White-chinned Petrel

Procellaria aequinoctialis - Puffin à menton blanc

Systematics

Order
:
Procellariiformes
Family
:
Procellariidés
Genus
:
Procellaria
Species
:
aequinoctialis

Descriptor

Linnaeus, 1758

Biometrics

Size
: 58 cm
Wingspan
: 134 à 147 cm.
Weight
: 1000 à 1420 g

Geographic range

Distribution

Identification

One of the most difficult species to identify. Entirely black, except for a small (sometimes very small!) white patch on the chin. Can be confused with the Westland Petrel (P. westlandica) and Parkinson's Petrel (P. parkinsoni) with which it is sometimes seen. It is clearly larger than the other two species, but this is not very meaningful when they are not seen together. The best criterion is the colour of the bill, horn-coloured, while the others have a black tip. It is generally found further south than its two congeners.

Subspecific information 2 subspecies

Procellaria aequinoctialis aequinoctialis (widespread)
Procellaria aequinoctialis steadi ()

Foreign names

Puffin à menton blanc,
Pardela gorjiblanca,
pardela-de-mento-branco,
Weißkinn-Sturmvogel,
fehérállú viharmadár,
Witkinstormvogel,
Petrello mentobianco,
vithakad petrell,
Hvithakepetrell,
víchrovník bielobradý,
buřňák bělobradý,
Hvidhaget Skråpe,
isomeriliitäjä,
Bassiaan (Witkenpylstormvoël),
baldriga de mentó blanc,
burzyk białobrody,
Белогорлый буревестник,
ノドジロクロミズナギドリ,
白颏风鹱,
白頦風鸌,

Voice song and cries

play
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Habitat

Mainly offshore, with a preference for areas above the continental shelf. I observed it in small numbers less than an hour away from the coast of South Island in New Zealand.

Behaviour character trait

It is a gregarious species regularly following fishing vessels and other ships.

Flight

On calm days, it moves with powerful wing beats alternating with some lightly arched glided flights. This latter type of flight becomes dominant when the sea and winds are strong.

Dietfeeding habits

During the breeding season, their main prey is cephalopods, with some crustaceans as well. Out of breeding season, fish and waste from fishing boats become especially important. Although they mostly catch prey at the surface, they can also dive, either from the surface or while flying, to catch food.

Reproduction nesting

The White-chinned Petrel nests in colonies from November to May. A single egg is laid in November or December in the bottom of a burrow where it is incubated for around two months. The chick, covered in a dark brown down at hatching, takes flight three months later.

Geographic range

The White-chinned Petrel breeds on several subantarctic islands off New Zealand, Africa and South America; for example the French territories of Marion, Crozet and the Kerguelen Islands, as well as on the Falklands, Prince Edward, Auckland and Campbell Islands. It can be observed in an area extending up to 65° south, but like several other procellariiform species, it takes advantage of the Humboldt Current to travel almost as far north as the equator along the western coasts of South America.

Threats - protection

IUCN conservation status

Extinct

Threatened

Least
concern

Extinc
in the Wild

Near
threatened

Not
evaluated

EX EW CR EN VU NT LC NE

The population is strong with several million individuals (2,000,000 nesting pairs just in South Georgia). The main threats are predators introduced on the islands where it reproduces and, like on Tristan da Cunha, the consumption of chicks by the inhabitants. It is likely that its disappearance from the Chatham Islands is due to its exploitation by humans. Mortality due to industrial fishing activities is important.