Giant petrel
Giant petrel Temporal range:
| |
---|---|
Southern giant petrel juvenile | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Procellariiformes |
Family: | Procellariidae |
Genus: | Macronectes Richmond, 1905 |
Type species | |
Procellaria gigantea (southern giant petrel) Gmelin, 1789
| |
Species | |
Macronectes giganteus |
Giant petrels form a
Taxonomy
The genus Macronectes was introduced in 1905 by the American ornithologist Charles Wallace Richmond to accommodate what is now the southern giant petrel. It replaced the previous genus Ossifraga which was found to have been earlier applied to a different group of birds.[4][5] The name Macronectes combines the Ancient Greek makros meaning "great" and nēktēs meaning "swimmer".[6]
The present-day giant petrels are two large
A fossil giant petrel, Macronectes tinae is known from the Pliocene epoch of New Zealand.[1]
Common name | Scientific name and subspecies | Range | Size and ecology | IUCN status and estimated population |
---|---|---|---|---|
Southern giant petrel, Antarctic giant petrel, giant fulmar, stinker, and stinkpot | Macronectes giganteus (Gmelin, 1789) |
Antarctica to the subtropics of Chile, Africa, and Australia |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
Northern giant petrel or Hall's giant petrel | Macronectes halli Mathews, 1912 |
Southern Ocean north of the Antarctic Convergence Zone, and north through Chile, Argentina, South Africa, and half of Australia. |
Size: Habitat: Diet: |
LC
|
Tina's giant petrel, Taranaki giant petrel | Macronectes tinae (Tennyson & Salvador, 2023) |
extinct (New Zealand, Pliocene) | Size: Habitat: Diet: |
EX
|
Description
The southern giant petrel is slightly larger than the northern giant petrel, at 3 to 8 kg (6.6–17.6 lb), 180 to 210 cm (71–83 in) across the wings, and 86 to 100 cm (34–39 in) of body length.
The two species are difficult to tell from each other, possessing similar long, pale, orange bills and uniform, mottled grey plumage (except for around 15% of southern petrels, which are almost completely white). The billtip of M. halli is reddish-pink and that of M. giganteus is pale green, appearing slightly darker and lighter than the rest of the bill, respectively. The underside of older M. halli birds is paler and more uniform than M. giganteus, the latter showing a contrast between paler head and neck and darker belly.[14] Additionally, adults of M. halli typically appear pale-eyed, while adults of M. giganteus of the normal morph typically appear dark-eyed (occasionally flecked paler). Classic examples of northern giant are identifiable at some range. Young birds of both species are all dark and very hard to distinguish unless bill tip colour can be seen. Some relatively young northern giant petrels can appear to be paler on the head, suggesting southern giant, thus this species is harder to confirm.[citation needed]
The extinct Macronectes tinae is characterized by having smaller bodies than their living relatives.[1]
Etymology
Macronectes comes from the
Behaviour
Feeding
Petrels are highly opportunistic feeders. Unique among procellarids, they will feed both on land and at sea; in fact, they find most of their food near coastlines. On land, they feed on
Reproduction
The southern giant petrel is more likely to form loose colonies than the northern, both species laying a single egg in a rough
Conservation
While both species were listed as
The southern giant petrel is listed as endangered on the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, while the northern giant petrel is listed on the same act as vulnerable.[10][23][24] Their conservation status also varies from state to state within Australia.[10][23]
State | Macronectes halli | Macronectes giganteus |
---|---|---|
NSW | Vulnerable[10][25] | Endangered[23][26] |
QLD | Vulnerable[10][27] | Endangered[23][27] |
SA | N/A | Vulnerable[23][28] |
TAS | Rare[10][29] | Vulnerable[23][29] |
VIC | Endangered[10][30] | Endangered[23][30] |
Gallery
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Giant petrel which has just killed a king penguin chick
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Giant petrel flying above South Georgia Island
References
- ^ hdl:10037/29075.
- ^ ISBN 0-7876-5784-0.
- ^ a b "Giant Petrels". Oceanwide Expeditions. Archived from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
- ^ Richmond, Charles Wallace (1905). "New generic name for the giant fulmar". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 18: 76 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
- ^ Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1979). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 59 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
- ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ Remsen Jr., J. V.; et al. (7 Aug 2008). "A classification of the bird species of South America South American Classification Committee American Ornithologists' Union". South American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 9 Jul 2009.
- ^ Tree of Life (27 Jun 2008). "Procellariidae. Shearwaters, Petrels". Tree of Life Web Project. Retrieved 18 Mar 2009.
- ^ "Southern Giant Petrel - Fact File". Heard Island. Australian Government. Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Macronectes halli — Northern Giant Petrel". Species Profile and Threats Database. Australian Government. 2022. Archived from the original on 2 June 2011. Retrieved 2017-07-27.
- ^ "Northern Giant Petrel - Macronectes halli". Oiseaux. Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
- ISBN 0-7876-5784-0.
- ISBN 0-671-65989-8.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ a b c d BirdLife International (2009). "Southern Giant-petrel - BirdLife Species Factsheet". Bird Life International. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 16 Mar 2009.
- ISBN 0-8160-3377-3.
- S2CID 43648629.
- .
- . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
- . Retrieved 13 November 2021.
- ^ BirdLife International (2009). "Northern Giant-petrel - BirdLife Species Factsheet". BirdLife International. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
- . Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- . Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Macronectes giganteus — Southern Giant-Petrel, Southern Giant Petrel". Species Profile and Threats Database. Australian Government. 2022. Archived from the original on 4 May 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ "EPBC Act List of Threatened Fauna". Australian government: Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. Retrieved 25 July 2009.
- ^ "Northern Giant-Petrel - profile". NSW Government Office of Environment & Heritage. 13 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ^ "Southern Giant Petrel - profile". NSW Government Office of Environment & Heritage. 13 January 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ^ a b "Search threatened species". Microsoft Power BI. April 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-29.
- ^ "National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972" (PDF). Legislation South Australia. 2020. p. 24. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Threatened Species List - Vertebrate Animals". Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania. 6 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 - Threatened List" (PDF). Victoria State Government Environment, Land, Water and Planning. June 2022. p. 6. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
Sources
- Brands, Sheila (14 Aug 2008). "Systema Naturae 2000 / Classification - Genus Macronectes -". Project: The Taxonomicon. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
- Brooke, M. (2004). "Procellariidae". Albatrosses And Petrels Across The World. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-850125-0.
- del Hoyo, Josep, Elliott, Andrew & Sargatal, Jordi (1992). Handbook of Birds of the World Vol 1. Barcelona:Lynx Edicions, ISBN 84-87334-10-5
External links
- Southern and Northern Giant Petrels - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds.
- Video of George the Giant Petrel being released by New Zealand Department of Conservation