Chicks have been reintroduced to Maungaharuru, hills 24 km from the sea, in Hawke's Bay .
Not listed
At a glance
FamilyShearwaters and Petrels
SizeMedium
RarityUncommon
HabitatPelagic; mostly offshore and over open ocean, occasionally seen from coastal headlands during passage.
Best timeMost reliable in Tasmania from November to December.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by Johannes Fischer
Range map
Range map
136approx hotspots
3488approx 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
Slightly larger and heavier-bodied than Black-winged, Bonin, and Cook’s Petrels.
Behavior
Regularly seen offshore from boats and sometimes from shore.
Gallery
Regional timing
New South Wales
Tasmania
Queensland
Victoria
South Australia
Commonly confused with
Blue PetrelHalobaena caeruleaSometimes accompanies ships, especially near breeding islands and with groups of similar-sized and superficially similar prions. Blue Petrel told from all prion species by dark cap, half collar, and bold white tail tip. Also note differences in flight pattern; often a bit stronger and banks higher in strong winds.→Pintado PetrelDaption capenseA “professional” ship follower in the Southern Ocean, often in groups that circle a vessel for hours. Extent of white spotting on upperparts rather variable, but no other petrel has this white-spattered or “painted” pattern; pintado means painted in Spanish and is also an anagram of the genus name, Daption.→Little ShearwaterPuffinus assimilisWinter breeding birds mainly found around the Kermadec Islands, off southwest Australia, and off the northeastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand.→