Northern storm petrel
Northern storm petrels | |
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European storm petrels | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Procellariiformes |
Family: | Hydrobatidae Mathews, 1912 |
Genus: | Hydrobates F. Boie, 1822 |
Type species | |
Procellaria pelagica (European storm petrel) Linnaeus, 1758
| |
Species | |
See text | |
Synonyms | |
Oceanodroma Reichenbach, 1853 Thalassidroma Vigors, 1825 Zalochelidon Billberg, 1828 Cymochorea Coues, 1864 Halocyptena Coues, 1864 Pacificodroma Bianchi, 1913 Bannermania Mathews & Iredale, 1915 Tethysia Mathews, 1933 Loomelania Mathews, 1934 Bianchoma Mathews, 1943 Stonowa Mathews, 1943 Thalobata Mathews, 1943 Hydrobatinae (Mathews, 1912) |
Northern storm petrels are seabirds in the genus Hydrobates in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The family was once lumped with the similar austral storm petrels in the combined storm petrels, but have been split, as they were not closely related. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. Their flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.
The northern storm petrels are found in the Northern Hemisphere, although some species around the Equator dip into the south. They are strictly
Several species of storm petrel are threatened by human activities. One species, the Guadalupe storm petrel, is thought to have gone extinct. The principal threats to storm petrels are introduced species, particularly mammals, in their breeding colonies; many storm petrels habitually nest on isolated mammal-free islands and are unable to cope with predators such as rats and feral cats.
Up and down! - up and down!
From the base of the wave to the billow’s crown,
And amidst the flashing and feathery foam
The stormy petrel finds a home, -
A home, if such a place may be
For her who lives on the wide, wide sea.
O’er the deep! - o’er the deep!
Where the whale and the shark and the sword-fish sleep, -
Outflying the blast and the driving rain,
The petrel telleth her tale — in vain;
Yet he ne’er falters, - so, petrel, spring
Once more o’er the waves on thy stormy wing!
From "The Stormy Petrel" poem by
Taxonomy
The family Hydrobatidae was introduced with Hydrobates as the
The genus Hydrobates was erected in 1822 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie.[6] He listed two species but did not specify a type. In 1884 Spencer Baird, Thomas Brewer and Robert Ridgway designated the European storm petrel as the type species.[7][8] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek hudro- meaning "water-" with batēs meaning "walker".[9]
In the past two subfamilies, the Hydrobatinae and Oceanitinae, were recognized within a single large family Hydrobatidae, but this has since been split with the elevation of the Oceanitidae to family status.
The following cladogram shows the results of the phylogenetic analysis by Wallace et al. (2017).[13]
Hydrobates |
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Species
Common name | Scientific name | Status |
---|---|---|
European storm petrel | Hydrobates pelagicus | extant |
Fork-tailed storm petrel | Hydrobates furcatus | extant |
Ringed storm petrel | Hydrobates hornbyi | extant |
Swinhoe's storm petrel | Hydrobates monorhis | extant |
Matsudaira's storm petrel | Hydrobates matsudairae | extant |
Leach's storm petrel | Hydrobates leucorhous | extant |
Townsend's storm petrel | Hydrobates socorroensis | extant |
Ainley's storm petrel | Hydrobates cheimomnestes | extant |
Ashy storm petrel | Hydrobates homochroa | extant |
Band-rumped storm petrel | Hydrobates castro | extant |
Monteiro's storm petrel | Hydrobates monteiroi | extant |
Cape Verde storm petrel | Hydrobates jabejabe | extant |
Wedge-rumped storm petrel | Hydrobates tethys | extant |
Black storm petrel | Hydrobates melania | extant |
Guadalupe storm petrel | Hydrobates macrodactylus | possibly extinct |
Markham's storm petrel | Hydrobates markhami | extant |
Tristram's storm petrel | Hydrobates tristrami | extant |
Least storm petrel | Hydrobates microsoma | extant |
One species, the
In 2010, the
Morphology and flight
Northern storm petrels are the smallest of all the seabirds, ranging in size from 13 to 25 cm in length. The Hydrobatidae have longer wings than the austral storm petrels, forked or wedge-shaped tails, and shorter legs. The legs of all storm petrels are proportionally longer than those of other Procellariiformes, but they are very weak and unable to support the bird's weight for more than a few steps.[10]
All but two of the Hydrobatidae are mostly dark in colour with varying amounts of white on the rump. Two species have different plumage entirely, the ringed storm petrel, which has white undersides and facial markings, and the fork-tailed storm petrel, which has pale grey plumage.[15] This is a notoriously difficult group to identify at sea. Onley and Scofield (2007) state that much published information is incorrect, and that photographs in the major seabird books and websites are frequently incorrectly ascribed as to species. They also consider that several national bird lists include species that have been incorrectly identified or have been accepted on inadequate evidence.[16]
Storm petrels use a variety of techniques to aid flight. Most species occasionally feed by surface pattering, holding and moving their feet on the water's surface while holding steady above the water. They remain stationary by hovering with rapid fluttering or using the wind to anchor themselves in place.[17] This method of feeding flight is more commonly used by Oceanitidae storm petrels, however. Northern storm petrels also use dynamic soaring, gliding across wave fronts gaining energy from the vertical wind gradient.[18][19]
Diet
The diet of many storm petrels species is poorly known owing to difficulties in researching; overall, the family is thought to concentrate on crustaceans.[20] Small fish, oil droplets, and molluscs are also taken by many species. Some species are known to be rather more specialised; the grey-backed storm petrel is known to concentrate on the larvae of goose barnacles.
Almost all species forage in the pelagic zone. Although storm petrels are capable of swimming well and often form rafts on the water's surface, they do not feed on the water. Instead, feeding usually takes place on the wing, with birds hovering above or "walking" on the surface (see morphology) and snatching small morsels. Rarely, prey is obtained by making shallow dives under the surface.[10]
Like many seabirds, storm petrels associate with other species of seabirds and marine mammal species to help obtain food. They may benefit from the actions of diving predators such as seals and penguins, which push prey up towards the surface while hunting, allowing the surface-feeding storm petrels to reach them.[21]
Distribution and movements
The Hydrobatidae are mostly found in the Northern Hemisphere.[20]
Several species of northern storm petrel undertake migrations after the breeding season, of differing lengths; long ones, such as Swinhoe's storm petrel, which breeds in the west Pacific and migrates to the west Indian Ocean;[22] or shorter ones, such as the black storm petrel, which nests in southern California and migrates down the coast of Central America as far south as Colombia.[23] Some species, like Tristram's storm petrel, are thought to be essentially sedentary and do not undertake any migrations away from their breeding islands.
Breeding
Storm petrels nest
Storm petrels are
Threats and conservation
Several species of storm petrel are threatened by human activities.[34] The Guadalupe storm petrel has not been observed since 1906 and most authorities consider it extinct. One species (the ashy storm petrel) is listed as endangered by the IUCN due to a 42% decline over 20 years.[35] For the ringed storm petrel, even the sites of their breeding colonies remain a mystery.
Storm petrels face the same threats as other seabirds; in particular, they are threatened by introduced species. The Guadalupe storm petrel was driven to extinction by feral cats,[36] and introduced predators have also been responsible for declines in other species. Habitat degradation, which limits nesting opportunities, caused by introduced goats and pigs is also a problem, especially if it increases competition from more aggressive burrowing petrels.
Cultural representation of the storm petrel
"Petrel" is a diminutive form of "Peter", a reference to
Up and down! - up and down!
From the base of the wave to the billow’s crown...
Outflying the blast and the driving rain,
The petrel telleth her tale — in vain!
This excerpt of "The Stormy Petrel" by
Breton folklore holds that storm petrels are the spirits of sea-captains who mistreated their crew, doomed to spend eternity flying over the sea, and they are also held to be the souls of drowned sailors. A sailing superstition holds that the appearance of a storm petrel foretells bad weather.[40] Sinister names from Britain and France include waterwitch, satanite, satanique, and oiseau du diable.[41]
Symbol of revolution
The association of the storm petrel with turbulent weather has led to its use as a metaphor for revolutionary views,[42] the epithet "stormy petrel" being applied by various authors to characters as disparate as a Roman tribune,[43] a
In "Song of the Stormy Petrel", Gorki turned to the imagery of subantarctic avifauna to describe Russian society's attitudes to the coming revolution. The storm petrel was depicted as unafraid of the coming storm –the revolution. This poem was called "the battle anthem of the revolution", and earned Gorky himself the title of the "Storm Petrel of the Revolution".[49][50]
While this English translation of the bird's name may not be a very ornithologically accurate translation of the Russian burevestnik (буревестник),
The motif of the stormy petrel has a long association with
References
- ^ A Library of Poetry and Song: Being Choice Selections from The Best Poets. With An Introduction by William Cullen Bryant, New York, J.B. Ford and Company, 1871, p. 354.
- ^ Mathews, Gregory M. (1912). The Birds of Australia. Vol. 2. London: Witherby. p. 45.
- ^ Degland, Côme-Damien (1849). Ornithologie Européenne, ou Catalogue Analytique et Raisonné des Oiseaux Observés en Europe (in French). Vol. 1. Paris: Libraire Encyclopédique de Robert. p. 445.
- ^ Vieillot, Louis Pierre (1816). Analyse d'une Nouvelle Ornithologie Élémentaire (in French). Paris: Deterville/self. p. 42.
- ^ Commission of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (1992). "Opinion 1696: Hydrobatidae Mathews, 1912 (1865) (Aves: Procellariiformes): conserved". Bulletin of Zoological Nomenclature. 49 (3): 250–251.
- ^ Boie, Friedrich (1822). "Ueber Classification, insonderheit der europäischen Vogel". Isis von Oken (in German). 1822. Cols 545–564 [562].
- ^ Baird, S.F.; Brewer, T.M.; Ridgway, R. (1884). The Water Birds of North America. Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy, at Harvard College, Volume 13. Vol. 2. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company. p. 403.
- ^ 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. 111.
- ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
- ^ ISBN 84-87334-10-5
- PMID 9787440. Corrigendum
- ^ Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Petrels, albatrosses". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- PMID 27693526.
- .
- ISBN 0-395-33253-2
- ISBN 978-0-7136-4332-9
- .
- .
- ISBN 0-679-45123-4
- ^ ISBN 0-19-850125-0
- ^ Harrison N.; Whitehouse M.; Heinemann D.; Prince P.; Hunt G.; Veit R. (1991). "Observations of Multispecies Seabird Flocks around South Georgia" (PDF). Auk. 108 (4): 801–810.
- ^ Van Den, Berg AB; Smeenk, C; Bosman, CAW; Haase, BJM; Van Der, Niet AM; Cadée, GC (1990). "Barau's petrel Pterodroma baraui, Jouanin's petrel Bulweria fallax and other seabirds in the northern Indian Ocean in June–July 1984 and 1985" (PDF). Ardea. 79: 1–14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-01-07. Retrieved 2012-12-20.
- ^ Ainley, D. G., and W. T. Everett. 2001. Black Storm Petrel (Oceanodroma melania). In The Birds of North America, No. 577 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.
- doi:10.1139/z90-209.
- .
- JSTOR 4512409.
- JSTOR 1370475.
- ^ West, J. & Nilsson, R. (1994). "Habitat use and burrow densities of burrow-nesting seabirds on South East Island, Chatham Islands, New Zealand" (PDF). Notornis (Supplement). 41: 27–37. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-11-20.
- JSTOR 4088735.
- ^ Warham, J. (1976). "The Incidence, Function and ecological significance of petrel stomach oils" (PDF). Proceedings of the New Zealand Ecological Society. 24: 84–93. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-07-24.
- JSTOR 1369418.
- ISBN 0-8493-9882-7
- ^ Klimkiewicz, M. K. 2007. Longevity Records of North American Birds Archived 2011-05-19 at the Wayback Machine. Version 2007.1. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Bird-Banding Laboratory. Laurel MD.
- ^ IUCN, 2006. Red List: Storm petrel Species Retrieved August 27, 2006.
- S2CID 12860880.
- JSTOR 1360977.
- ^ Slotterback, J. W. (2002). Band-rumped Storm Petrel (Oceanodroma castro) and Tristram’s Storm-Petrel (Oceanodroma tristrami). In The Birds of North America, No. 673 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.
- ^ Campbell, Craig (13 September 2016). "'Miraculous' St Peter bird is able to walk on water".
- ^ A Library of Poetry and Song: Being Choice Selections from The Best Poets. With An Introduction by William Cullen Bryant, New York, J.B. Ford and Company, 1871, p. 354.
- ISBN 978-1-4081-3131-2.
- ISBN 0-486-22145-8.
- ^ ISBN 1571131795
- ISBN 0819601187
- ^ Lynah, Mary-Elizabeth (1934), Archibald Stobo of Carolina: Presbyterianism's Stormy-petrel, American Historical Society
- Bamian
- ^ Jacobson, Charles; Davis, Jeff (1925), The life story of Jeff Davis: the stormy petrel of Arkansas politics, Parke-Harper publishing co.
- ^ See e.g. numerous references in this Cand. Sc. (Philology) dissertation abstract:
Ledneva, Tatiana Petrovna (Леднева, Татьяна Петровна) (2002), Авторская позиция в произведениях М. Горького 1890-х годов. (Author's position in Maxim Gorky's 1890s works)
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ISBN 978-0805207880
- Time Magazine, June 25, 1965
- ^ Mironov (2012) p. 461.
- ISBN 5-224-02354-8. (This is a modern reprint (using modernized Russian orthography) of the 1903 edition, which would have been familiar to Gorky and his readers).
- ^ Christie (2005) p. 43.
- ^ Yaroslansky (1937) Introduction.
- ^ "Anarchist pamphlets/booklets". Anarchists Federation. Archived from the original on 2013-05-13. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
External links
- Storm petrel videos on the Internet Bird Collection