Bulwer's Petrel
Overview
Bulwer's Petrel: Medium petrel, dark brown overall, pale diagonal bars across secondary coverts. Long tail is usually held in a point; wedge shape visible when fanned. Bill is black and hooked. Legs and feet are black. Feeds on squid, plankton and small fish. Picks food from surface while in flight.
Range and Habitat
Bulwer's Petrel: Breeds on small oceanic islands and offshore islets in the tropical Pacific and Atlantic oceans; accidental summer visitor off Monterey, California, and Outer Banks, North Carolina. Pelagic, comes ashore only to breed.
INTERESTING FACTS
A female nesting on Sand Island, Johnston Atoll, during the 1992 and 1993 breeding season was at the time at least 24 years old, making it the oldest known Bulwer's Petrel in the world.
The Bulwer’s Petrel is named after the Scottish naturalist James Bulwer.
A group of petrels are collectively known as a "gallon" and a "tank" of petrels.
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