Silvery gray-brown above, with a white belly and pale throat.
TAS: Endangered
Indigenous: Pediunker, Black-Tailed Shearwater, Great Gray Petrel, Brown Petrel, Bully, Night Hawk, Kuia
At a glance
FamilyShearwaters and Petrels
SizeSmall
RarityUncommon
HabitatPelagic; mostly offshore and over open ocean, occasionally seen from coastal headlands during passage.
Best timeMost reliable in Tasmania from March to April.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by David Boyle
Range map
Range map
14approx hotspots
2380approx records
1states
Low confidenceMediumHigh confidence
Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.
Species notes
Overview
Underwing is dark and unmarked. Bill is pale yellowish with dark contours. Simple bicolored coloration separates this species from other petrels, and chunky proportions and stubby-billed profile distinguish it from similar-looking shearwaters.
Behavior
Breeds on islands in the southern Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, favoring steep slopes with ample ground cover.
Gallery
Regional timing
New South Wales
Tasmania
Western Australia
South Australia
Victoria
Commonly confused with
White-headed PetrelPterodroma lessoniiBack is pale gray with darker outer wings, creating an “M” shape on the back. Look for stout black bill and pinkish-colored feet. Breed on Antipodes and Auckland Islands in the New Zealand region and also on subantarctic Indian Ocean and Macquarie Islands. Three similar species: Soft-plumaged Petrel is smaller with gray-brown head and band on upper breast; Gray Petrel is larger with a smaller, darker head, a pale green bill, and a long neck; and pale morph Kermadec Petrel is smaller, lacks an eye patch, has darker upperparts, and shows white patches under the wing.→Soft-plumaged PetrelPterodroma mollisNote the heavy dark bill. In flight, exhibits gray underwings and gray and dark brown M-pattern on the back. The rare dark morph has dark underparts, but still retains the distinctive complete breast band, which is the most useful mark separating this species from Fea’s and Zino’s Petrels.→Slender-billed PrionPachyptila belcheriA medium-sized prion. The dark “M” across the back is found in all the prion species, but is noticeably less pronounced on the Slender-billed Prion. Breeds on islands in the southern Indian Ocean, the Falklands, and around subantarctic South America while ranging throughout southern oceans during the nonbreeding season. Very difficult to distinguish from other prion species at sea, but distinguishable with careful observation of all described features.→