DOCSLIB.ORG

A Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria Bulwerii in Victoria

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria Bulwerii in Victoria AUSTRALIAN 114 BIRD WATCHER AUSTRALIAN BIRD WATCHER 1989, 13, 114-117 A Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii in Victoria by MIKE CARTER1 and TIM REID2 130 Canadian Bay Road, Mt Eliza, Victoria 3930 2Flat 2/61 Fawkner Street, St Kilda, Victoria 3182 Summary A Victorian record of Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii is documented and discussed in relation to previous reports in the Australian region and vagrancy in the Atlantic. The observation A Bulwer's Petrel Bulweria bulwerii was seen at sea near Portland in south-western Victoria on 14 September 1986. It was flying among massed feeding seabirds at 38 ~l'S, 141 "34 'E, five nautical miles south-south-east of Cape Nelson. The sounder aboard the 12.8 m long fishing vessel engaged on an RAOU Seabird Group excursion indicated the depth of the ocean floor to be 75 m. Thus we were above the continental shelf in inshore waters. The bird was under observation for only a few minutes just before 0830 h E.S.T., but was well seen and scrutinised for diagnostic characters when it was realised that it was either one of the all-dark 'sooty' storm-petrels Oceanodroma spp. or a Bulwer's Petrel. The closest it approached the boat was about 50 m. The light was dull because of the heavily overcast skies but as the bird passed to the south and west of our position, the sun was behind us so viewing conditions were advantageous. Although the bird hugged the surface of the sea, it was only occasionally lost from view behind waves until it changed direction, headed away from the boat and disappeared. A light southerly wind of around 5 to 7 knots produced a slight sea on a sloppy swell. There were no wind-induced white wave crests. Because the boat was stationary during this observation, it provided a sufficiently stable platform to permit critical examination of the bird. In 'addition to the authors, other observers to see the Bulwer's Petrel included David Anqrew, Rob Drummond, Chris Eastwood, Peter Lansley, Fred Smith and Bill Watson. MJC was the only observer present to have previous experience of the species. The majority of the birds feeding at this location were Fairy Prions Pachyptila turtur, of which there were several hundred. Much smaller numbers of other seabirds were also present. These included four species of albatross Diomedea spp., White-chinned Petrel Procellaria aequinoctialis, Sooty Shearwater Puffinus griseus, Short-tailed Shearwater P. tenuirostris, Fluttering Shearwater P. gavia, Hutton's Shearwater P. huttoni and Common Diving-Petrel Pelecanoides urinatrix. In the area in which the prions were feeding there were concentrations of a pink worm-like organism judged to be 2 mm to 3 mm in diameter and 15 mm in length. This was most likely a polychaete worm, an annelid (Gary Poore pers. comm.). These move to the sea's surface to spawn. One swarm near our boat extended for several square metres over a depth of less than a metre from about half a metre below the surface. VOL. 13 (4) DECEMBER 1989 A Bulwer's Petrel in Victoria 115 Description It was a slender, long-winged, long-tailed, blackish, prion-sized bird. Compared with the surrounding Fairy Prions, it had a longer wing span, was about 2 em longer overall, but had a smaller body. Thus the bird was about Yl em in length. Much of this length consisted of the very long narrow tail which was generally held tightly folded, tapering towards the tip. During banking manoeuvres, the tail was sometimes fanned revealing a wedge-shaped tip in which the outer rectrices were seen to be much shorter than the central feathers. The actual tip was fairly broad, not pointed, and marginally cleft (MJC). In this feature it was slightly reminiscent of a Common Noddy Anous stolidus. The wings were long and narrow, tapering gradually to the very pointed tips (MJC). Both the leading and trailing edges of the outer portion of the wing beyond the carpal were slightly convex, like the sides of a high gothic or lancet arch (TR). The wings were bowed forward to the carpal then swept back to the tip, curved rather than sharply angled like a shearwater Puffinus sp. , but straighter than most Pterodroma species. They were slightly arched such that the carpals were a little above the back whilst the tip of the wing was drooped to about the level of the belly (MJC). A field sketch by Rob Drummond indicated a similar posture. It was short-necked in appearance and TR considered that the head was large and rounded with a steep forehead. Generally the bird appeared to be wholly and uniformly dark, even blackish. This included the bill (Rob Drummond) and the base of the primary shafts. At times TR detected a slightly paler bar passing diagonally across the coverts of the inner upper-wing. The bird flew low over the sea, passing among the feeding prions with a languid gliding flight more graceful than that of the prions. It did not bank steeply nor tum sharply, instead maintaining a rather level and direct flight (MJC). TR considered the flight to be prion-like but straighter and with looser wing beats. Two or three quick flaps were followed by a glide. It twisted and banked in a similar manner to nearby prions (TR). The ink drawing, Plate 32, has been prepared by TR from a sketch in his field notes. In certain respects, the image this presents differs from the combined description given above. Bulwer's Petrel off Portland, Victoria Plate 32 Drawing: Tim Reid AUSTRALIAN 116 CARTER & REID BIRD WATCHER Identification The size, wholly dark plumage and distinctive shape readily identified the bird as a Bulwer's Petrel. Other seabirds of similar size and all dark plumage are four species of storm-petrel, Markham's Oceanodrom£l m£lrkhami, Tristram's 0. tristrami, Black 0. melania and Matsudaira's 0. m£ltsudairae. However, all these species have forked tails (Harrison 1987). We were aware that Matsudaira's Storm-Petrel was a potential vagrant to the area from north-western Australia, so in addition to carefully studying the shape of the tail, the area at the base of the primaries was scrutinised for any trace of the white displayed by that species. No white was visible. Jouanin's Petrel B. fallax, from the north-western Indian Ocean and beyond, is a closely related and similar species but at 31 em in length would appear distinctly larger (Harrison 1987). Moreover, the tail lacked the distinctive 'step' formed by the shorter outer feathers of that species (Harrison 1987). Another similar species is the little-known Fiji Petrel Pseudobulweria m£lcgillivrayi. This species would also be substantially larger as well as having a shorter tail (Harrison 1987). Some observers may be concerned with separating Bulwer's Petrel from one of the three species of dark-plumaged noddy Anous spp. These too have long tails. However, all species are very much larger, have very long pointed bills and other characteristics typical of terns. Thus confusion should not be a problem for experienced observers if size is positively determined or a reasonable view obtained. Discussion Bulwer's Petrel is a pelagic species of solitary disposition distributed widely in tropical and subtropical seas of the three major oceans, but breeding only on islands in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Harrison 1983). In the northern hemisphere, its breeding range extends to 'J7 °N and vagrants have been recorded to 54 °N in the British Isles (Hollom 1960). Its range in the southern hemisphere is more tropical but sightings to 33 os in the cold waters west of the Cape in South Africa (Brooke & Sinclair 1978, Harrison 1983) indicate the potential for occurrence in the cooler climes of this hemisphere also. Within Australia, Bulwer's Petrels normally occur only in the seas of the north­ west (Harrison 1980, Dunlop et al. 1988, Neil Cheshire pers. comm.). The most southerly report to date is a sighting at 28 Oj7 'S, 112 "06 'E, 80 miles west of the Houtman Abrolhos (Neil Cheshire pers. comm.). The only recorded occurrence in eastern Australia was in the Coral Sea (Cheshire 1989). There are no previous records from southern Australia. Therefore the sighting of this predominantly warm-water pelagic species so close to shore and so far south during winter was a surprise. A previous report '... south of Cape Leeuwin, W.A., Sep. 1910 . .' referred to in Slater et al. (1986) must be rejected. This derives from the claim in Roberts (1967) that Edward Wilson's drawings of a bird seen at 46 °30 'S, 116 007 'E are of a Bulwer's Petrel. The position given is 700 nautical miles south of Point D'Entrecasteaux in south­ west Western Australia and is therefore well beyond any current defmition of oceanic Australia. Moreover, Neil Cheshire (in !itt.) suggested that the bird illustr~. - ~d was not a Bulwer's Petrel but more probably a Kerguelen Petrel Pterodrom£l brevirostris, a species likely to be encountered in the region. We entirely concur with Neil's identification. The tail is far too short for a Bulwer's Petrel and the drawing clearly shows the whitish leading edge on the inner under-wing which is diagnostic of Kerguelen Petrel. VOL. 13 (4) DECEMBER 1989 A Bulwer's Petrel in Victoria 117 The likely age and provenance of our Bulwer's Petrel is cause for considerable conjecture. If of northern hemisphere origin, then it is unlikely that it was an adult because the breeding season there extends from May to September (Harrison 1983).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • University of Cape Town
    The effects of introduced mice on seabirds breeding at sub-Antarctic Islands Ben J. Dilley Thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Town FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology DST/NRF Centre of Excellence Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science University of CapeCape Town of June 2018 University Supervised by Professor Peter G. Ryan The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derivedTown from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes Capeonly. of Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. University Declaration This thesis reports original research that I conducted under the auspices of the FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town. All assistance received has been fully acknowledged. This work has not been submitted in any form for a degree at another university. ………………….................. Ben J. Dilley Cape Town, June 2018 i A 10 day-old great shearwater Ardenna gravis chick being attacked by an invasive House mouse Mus musculus in an underground burrow on Gough Island in 2014 (photo Ben Dilley). ii Table of Contents Page Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................... vi Chapter 1 General introduction: Islands, mice and seabirds ......................................................... 1 Chapter 2 Clustered or dispersed: testing the effect of sampling strategy to census burrow-nesting petrels with varied distributions at sub-Antarctic Marion Island ...... 13 Chapter 3 Modest increases in densities of burrow-nesting petrels following the removal of cats Felis catus from sub-Antarctic Marion Island ...................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Stormy Petrel (Procellaria Pelagica)
    THE 0.8~ O.SEMI-ANNUAL. 37 THE STORMYPETREL. Procellaria Pelagica. DY W. RAINE, TORONTO, CANADA This interesting little bird, though rare in North America, is plen- tiful on the British side of the Atlantic Ocean. It is supposed to be the smallest web-footed bird known, and seldom comes to shore ex- cept during the breeding season, when they resort to such places as the Stilly Islands, in the English Channel, and the islands of the Irish Sea; but their chief nesting places are in the Orkney and Shetland Islands, and St. Kilda and STORMY PETREL. the outer Hebrides. This bird is well known to sailors by the name of Mother Carey’s Chicken, and hated by them because it foretells an approaching storm. They are mostly seen in stormy weather, because the marine crea- tures, on which they feed, are tossed to the surface of the chopping waves, and can be easily picked up by the bird as it passes over the waves, pattering the water with its webbed feet, and flapping its wings so as to keep itself just above the surface. The name Petrel is given to these birds on account of its powers of walking on the water, as is related of St. Peter. This bird seems very happy during rough weather, and many a ship-wrecked sailor, while clinging half locausted to some floating wreckage, has envied this little bird of its powers of flight, as it traverses the rolling, seething billows with wonderful ease. It feeds on the little fish, crustaceaus and molluses which are found in abundance on the surface of the sea.
    [Show full text]
  • White-Chinned Petrel Distribution, Abundance and Connectivity: NZ Populations and Their Global Context
    White-chinned petrel distribution, abundance and connectivity: NZ populations and their global context Kalinka Rexer-Huber Final report to Conservation Services Programme, Department of Conservation December 2017 Please cite as: Rexer-Huber, K. 2017 White-chinned petrel distribution, abundance and connectivity: NZ populations and their global context. Report to NZ Deparment of Conservation. Parker Conservation, Dunedin pp 13. 1 Rexer-Huber | White-chinned petrels Summary The white-chinned petrel Procellaria aequinoctialis is one of the most frequently observed seabird species captured in fisheries bycatch, yet some populations remain virtually unstudied. In the New Zealand region, the priority programmes to fill key information gaps included surveying, tracking and collecting demographic data from white-chinned petrels in the Auckland Islands. Survey of the Campbell Island population and clarification of taxonomic uncertainty in the New Zealand region were secondary aims. The scope of this report is to summarise research findings, with focus on New Zealand populations of white-chinned petrels. An estimated 186,000 (95% CI: 131,000–248,000) white-chinned petrel pairs breed in the Auckland Islands, and the Campbell Island group supports around 22,000 (15,000–29,000) breeding pairs. The New Zealand region supports almost a third of white-chinned petrels globally, but population trends remain unknown. We establish population baselines that can be repeated for trend estimation. A tracking programme in the Auckland Islands has retrieved 40 geolocators from white-chinned petrels, which were analysed together with tracking data from all major island populations. NZ populations do not overlap at sea with populations from South Atlantic or Indian Ocean islands.
    [Show full text]
  • The Taxonomy of the Procellariiformes Has Been Proposed from Various Approaches
    山 階 鳥 研 報(J. Yamashina Inst. Ornithol.),22:114-23,1990 Genetic Divergence and Relationships in Fifteen Species of Procellariiformes Nagahisa Kuroda*, Ryozo Kakizawa* and Masayoshi Watada** Abstract The genetic analysis of 23 protein loci in 15 species of Procellariiformes was made The genetic distancesbetween the specieswas calculatedand a dendrogram was formulated of the group. The separation of Hydrobatidae from all other taxa including Diomedeidae agrees with other precedent works. The resultsof the present study support the basic Procellariidclassification system. However, two points stillneed further study. The firstpoint is that Fulmarus diverged earlier from the Procellariidsthan did the Diomedeidae. The second point is the position of Puffinuspacificus which appears more closely related to the Pterodroma petrels than to other Puffinus species. These points are discussed. Introduction The taxonomy of the Procellariiformes has been proposed from various approaches. The earliest study by Forbes (1882) was made by appendicular myology. Godman (1906) and Loomis (1918) studied this group from a morphological point of view. The taxonomy of the Procellariiformes by functional osteology and appendicular myology was studied by Kuroda (1954, 1983) and Klemm (1969), The results of the various studies agreed in proposing four families of Procellariiformes: Diomedeidae, Procellariidae, Hydrobatidae, and Pelecanoididae. They also pointed out that the Procellariidae was a heterogenous group among them. Timmermann (1958) found the parallel evolution of mallophaga and their hosts in Procellariiformes. Recently, electrophoretical studies have been made on the Procellariiformes. Harper (1978) found different patterns of the electromorph among the families. Bar- rowclough et al. (1981) studied genetic differentiation among 12 species of Procellari- iformes at 16 loci, and discussed the genetic distances among the taxa but with no consideration of their phylogenetic relationships.
    [Show full text]
  • Report on Biodiversity and Tropical Forests in Indonesia
    Report on Biodiversity and Tropical Forests in Indonesia Submitted in accordance with Foreign Assistance Act Sections 118/119 February 20, 2004 Prepared for USAID/Indonesia Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan No. 3-5 Jakarta 10110 Indonesia Prepared by Steve Rhee, M.E.Sc. Darrell Kitchener, Ph.D. Tim Brown, Ph.D. Reed Merrill, M.Sc. Russ Dilts, Ph.D. Stacey Tighe, Ph.D. Table of Contents Table of Contents............................................................................................................................. i List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. v List of Figures............................................................................................................................... vii Acronyms....................................................................................................................................... ix Executive Summary.................................................................................................................... xvii 1. Introduction............................................................................................................................1- 1 2. Legislative and Institutional Structure Affecting Biological Resources...............................2 - 1 2.1 Government of Indonesia................................................................................................2 - 2 2.1.1 Legislative Basis for Protection and Management of Biodiversity and
    [Show full text]
  • The Rise and Fall of Bulwer's Petrel
    A paper from the British Ornithologists’ Union Records Committee The rise and fall of Bulwer’s Petrel Andrew H. J. Harrop ABSTRACT This short paper examines two recent reviews of records of Bulwer’s Petrel Bulweria bulwerii in Britain by BOURC. Four records were assessed, including three specimen records from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and a modern-day sighting from Cumbria. None was found acceptable, and the reasons are discussed here. ulwer’s Petrel Bulweria bulwerii was By the time The Handbook was published, seven named after Rev. James Bulwer, an records were listed for Britain, all in England Bamateur Norfolk collector, naturalist and (Witherby et al. 1940), and these were repeated conchologist, who first collected it in Madeira, in Bannerman’s The Birds of the British Isles probably in 1825 during a short expedition to (1959). Of these seven, four (all from Sussex, Deserta Grande (Mearns & Mearns 1988). It between 1904 and 1914) were subsequently was first described by Sir William Jardine and rejected as ‘Hastings Rarities’ (Nicholson & Fer- Prideaux John Selby, in Illustrations of guson-Lees 1962; see plate 380) and a fifth, said Ornithology in 1828 (Jardine & Selby 1828). The to have been picked up at Beachy Head, Sussex, species has had a turbulent history as a British by an unnamed person on 3rd February 1903, bird. This paper provides a brief summary of escaped this fate only because it occurred records in the British ornithological literature, outside the area used to define ‘Hastings’ presents the results of two BOURC reviews, and records (Bourne 1967).
    [Show full text]
  • An Assessment for Fisheries Operating in South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
    FAO International Plan of Action-Seabirds: An assessment for fisheries operating in South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands by Nigel Varty, Ben Sullivan and Andy Black BirdLife International Global Seabird Programme Cover photo – Fishery Patrol Vessel (FPV) Pharos SG in Cumberland Bay, South Georgia This document should be cited as: Varty, N., Sullivan, B. J. and Black, A. D. (2008). FAO International Plan of Action-Seabirds: An assessment for fisheries operating in South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands. BirdLife International Global Seabird Programme. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire, UK. 2 Executive Summary As a result of international concern over the cause and level of seabird mortality in longline fisheries, the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) Committee of Fisheries (COFI) developed an International Plan of Action-Seabirds. The IPOA-Seabirds stipulates that countries with longline fisheries (conducted by their own or foreign vessels) or a fleet that fishes elsewhere should carry out an assessment of these fisheries to determine if a bycatch problem exists and, if so, to determine its extent and nature. If a problem is identified, countries should adopt a National Plan of Action – Seabirds for reducing the incidental catch of seabirds in their fisheries. South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) are a United Kingdom Overseas Territory and the combined area covered by the Territorial Sea and Maritime Zone of South Georgia is referred to as the South Georgia Maritime Zone (SGMZ) and fisheries within the SGMZ are managed by the Government of South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) within the framework of the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living (CCAMLR).
    [Show full text]
  • European Red List of Birds
    European Red List of Birds Compiled by BirdLife International Published by the European Commission. opinion whatsoever on the part of the European Commission or BirdLife International concerning the legal status of any country, Citation: Publications of the European Communities. Design and layout by: Imre Sebestyén jr. / UNITgraphics.com Printed by: Pannónia Nyomda Picture credits on cover page: Fratercula arctica to continue into the future. © Ondrej Pelánek All photographs used in this publication remain the property of the original copyright holder (see individual captions for details). Photographs should not be reproduced or used in other contexts without written permission from the copyright holder. Available from: to your questions about the European Union Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers or these calls may be billed Published by the European Commission. A great deal of additional information on the European Union is available on the Internet. It can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu). Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication. ISBN: 978-92-79-47450-7 DOI: 10.2779/975810 © European Union, 2015 Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorized without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged. Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder. Printed in Hungary. European Red List of Birds Consortium iii Table of contents Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................................1 Executive summary ...................................................................................................................................................5 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Cytochrome-B Evidence for Validity and Phylogenetic Relationships of Pseudobulweria and Bulweria (Procellariidae)
    The Auk 115(1):188-195, 1998 CYTOCHROME-B EVIDENCE FOR VALIDITY AND PHYLOGENETIC RELATIONSHIPS OF PSEUDOBULWERIA AND BULWERIA (PROCELLARIIDAE) VINCENT BRETAGNOLLE,•'5 CAROLE A3VFII•,2 AND ERIC PASQUET3'4 •CEBC-CNRS, 79360 Beauvoirsur Niort, France; 2Villiers en Bois, 79360 Beauvoirsur Niort, France; 3Laboratoirede ZoologieMammi•res et Oiseaux,Museum National d'Histoire Naturelie, 55 rue Buffon,75005 Paris, France; and 4Laboratoirede Syst•matiquemol•culaire, CNRS-GDR 1005, Museum National d'Histoire Naturelie, 43 rue Cuvier, 75005 Paris, France ABSTRACT.--Althoughthe genus Pseudobulweria was described in 1936for the Fiji Petrel (Ps.macgillivrayi), itsvalidity, phylogenetic relationships, and the number of constituenttaxa it containsremain controversial. We tried to clarifythese issues with 496bp sequencesfrom the mitochondrialcytochrome-b gene of 12 taxa representingthree putative subspecies of Pseudobulweria,seven species in six othergenera of the Procellariidae(fulmars, petrels, and shearwaters),and onespecies each from the Hydrobatidae(storm-petrels) and Pelecanoidi- dae (diving-petrels).We alsoinclude published sequences for two otherpetrels (Procellaria cinereaand Macronectesgiganteus ) and use Diomedeaexulans and Pelecanuserythrorhynchos as outgroups.Based on thepronounced sequence divergence (5 to 5.5%)and separate phylo- genetichistory from othergenera that havebeen thought to be closelyrelated to or have beensynonymized with Pseudobulweria,we conclude that the genusis valid, and that the MascarenePetrel (Pseudobulweria aterrima)
    [Show full text]
  • Appendix, French Names, Supplement
    685 APPENDIX Part 1. Speciesreported from the A.O.U. Check-list area with insufficient evidencefor placementon the main list. Specieson this list havebeen reported (published) as occurring in the geographicarea coveredby this Check-list.However, their occurrenceis considered hypotheticalfor one of more of the following reasons: 1. Physicalevidence for their presence(e.g., specimen,photograph, video-tape, audio- recording)is lacking,of disputedorigin, or unknown.See the Prefacefor furtherdiscussion. 2. The naturaloccurrence (unrestrained by humans)of the speciesis disputed. 3. An introducedpopulation has failed to becomeestablished. 4. Inclusionin previouseditions of the Check-listwas basedexclusively on recordsfrom Greenland, which is now outside the A.O.U. Check-list area. Phoebastria irrorata (Salvin). Waved Albatross. Diornedeairrorata Salvin, 1883, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, p. 430. (Callao Bay, Peru.) This speciesbreeds on Hood Island in the Galapagosand on Isla de la Plata off Ecuador, and rangesat seaalong the coastsof Ecuadorand Peru. A specimenwas takenjust outside the North American area at Octavia Rocks, Colombia, near the Panama-Colombiaboundary (8 March 1941, R. C. Murphy). There are sight reportsfrom Panama,west of Pitias Bay, Dari6n, 26 February1941 (Ridgely 1976), and southwestof the Pearl Islands,27 September 1964. Also known as GalapagosAlbatross. ThalassarchechrysosWma (Forster). Gray-headed Albatross. Diornedeachrysostorna J. R. Forster,1785, M6m. Math. Phys. Acad. Sci. Paris 10: 571, pl. 14. (voisinagedu cerclepolaire antarctique & dansl'Ocean Pacifique= Isla de los Estados[= StatenIsland], off Tierra del Fuego.) This speciesbreeds on islandsoff CapeHorn, in the SouthAtlantic, in the southernIndian Ocean,and off New Zealand.Reports from Oregon(mouth of the ColumbiaRiver), California (coastnear Golden Gate), and Panama(Bay of Chiriqu0 are unsatisfactory(see A.O.U.
    [Show full text]
  • Order PROCELLARIIFORMES: Albatrosses
    Text extracted from Gill B.J.; Bell, B.D.; Chambers, G.K.; Medway, D.G.; Palma, R.L.; Scofield, R.P.; Tennyson, A.J.D.; Worthy, T.H. 2010. Checklist of the birds of New Zealand, Norfolk and Macquarie Islands, and the Ross Dependency, Antarctica. 4th edition. Wellington, Te Papa Press and Ornithological Society of New Zealand. Pages 64, 78-79 & 82-83. Order PROCELLARIIFORMES: Albatrosses, Petrels, Prions and Shearwaters Checklist Committee (1990) recognised three families within the Procellariiformes, however, four families are recognised here, with the reinstatement of Pelecanoididae, following many other recent authorities (e.g. Marchant & Higgins 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Viot et al. 1993, Warham 1996: 484, Nunn & Stanley 1998, Dickinson 2003, Brooke 2004, Onley & Scofield 2007). The relationships of the families within the Procellariiformes are debated (e.g. Sibley & Alquist 1990, Christidis & Boles 1994, Nunn & Stanley 1998, Livezey & Zusi 2001, Kennedy & Page 2002, Rheindt & Austin 2005), so a traditional arrangement (Jouanin & Mougin 1979, Marchant & Higgins 1990, Warham 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Warham 1996: 505, Dickinson 2003, Brooke 2004) has been adopted. The taxonomic recommendations (based on molecular analysis) on the Procellariiformes of Penhallurick & Wink (2004) have been heavily criticised (Rheindt & Austin 2005) and have seldom been followed here. Family PROCELLARIIDAE Leach: Fulmars, Petrels, Prions and Shearwaters Procellariidae Leach, 1820: Eleventh room. In Synopsis Contents British Museum 17th Edition, London: 68 – Type genus Procellaria Linnaeus, 1758. Subfamilies Procellariinae and Fulmarinae and shearwater subgenera Ardenna, Thyellodroma and Puffinus (as recognised by Checklist Committee 1990) are not accepted here given the lack of agreement about to which subgenera some species should be assigned (e.g.
    [Show full text]
  • Egg Dimensions and Shell Characteristics of Bulwer's Petrels, Bulweria Bulwerii, on Laysan Island, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands!
    Pacific Science, vol. 54, no. 2: 183-188 © 2000 by University of Hawai'i Press. All rights reserved Egg Dimensions and Shell Characteristics of Bulwer's Petrels, Bulweria bulwerii, on Laysan Island, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands! 2 3 2 G. C. WmTTow • AND T. N. PETrn ABSTRACT: Measured values for Bulwer's Petrel eggs and eggshells from Laysan Island, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, were within 10% of predicted values available in the literature. In the absence of published predictive equa­ tions for egg volume, fresh-egg contents, and total functional pore area of the shell, in Procellariiformes, new logarithmic relationships were developed for tropical Procellariiformes. Data are now needed for species breeding at higher latitudes to determine if these relationships are representative of all Procellarii­ formes. BULWER'S PETREL IS a small, procellariiform placing the air ill the aircell with distilled seabird of the tropical Atlantic, Pacific, and water (Grant et al. 1982a). Egg volumes were Indian Oceans (Warham 1990, Megyesi and measured by weighing the eggs in air and in O'Daniel 1997). In the Hawaiian Archipel­ water (Rahn et al. 1976). Shell weight and ago, it breeds on islands from Pearl and shell thickness were determined on shells that Hermes Reef in the Northwestern Hawaiian had been dried in a desiccator for at least 3 Islands, to offshore islands of Hawai'i in the days. Shell weight was measured by weighing main Hawaiian Islands (Harrison 1990). the dried shells on a Mettler balance (Model Previously, data were presented for, inter H6) to the nearest 0.1 mg. Shell thickness was alia, the incubation period and the incuba­ determined with micrometer calipers (Starrett tion weight loss of eggs on Manana, a small No.
    [Show full text]