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Petrels are a monophyletic [1] group of marine seabirds, sharing a characteristic of a nostril arrangement that results in the name "tubenoses". [2] Petrels encompass three of the four extant families within the Procellariiformes order, namely Procellariidae (fulmarine petrels, gadfly petrels, diving petrels, prions, and shearwaters), Hydrobatidae (northern storm petrels), and Oceanitidae ...
The fulmarine petrels include the largest procellariids, the giant petrels, as well as the two fulmar species, the snow petrel, the Antarctic petrel, and the Cape petrel. The fulmarine petrels are a diverse group with differing habits and appearances, but are linked morphologically by their skull features, particularly the long prominent nasal ...
Giant petrels form a genus, Macronectes, from the family Procellariidae, which consists of two living and one extinct species. They are the largest birds in this family. Both extant species in the genus are native to the Southern Hemisphere. Giant petrels are extremely aggressive predators and scavengers, inspiring another common name, the ...
In general, petrels were considered to be "soul birds", representing the souls of drowned sailors, and it was considered unlucky to touch them. [78] In the Russian language, many petrel species from the Hydrobatidae and Procellariidae families of the order Procellariiformes are known as burevestnik, which literally means 'the announcer of the ...
Diving petrels are among the world's most numerous birds, with common and South Georgia diving petrels numbering several million pairs each. The Peruvian and Whenua Hou diving petrels, on the other hand, are highly threatened by guano extraction, introduced species and climate change , and are considered endangered species .
The common diving petrel is a small, plump petrel, 200 to 250 mm (7.9–9.8 in) in length and weighing around 86 to 186 g (3.0–6.6 oz). The plumage is black above and dull white below and it has a relatively short black bill . [ 8 ]
The Antarctic petrel (Thalassoica antarctica) is a boldly marked dark brown and white petrel, found in Antarctica, most commonly in the Ross and Weddell Seas. They eat Antarctic krill , fish , and small squid .
The southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus), also known as the Antarctic giant petrel, giant fulmar, stinker, and stinkpot, is a large seabird of the southern oceans. Its distribution overlaps broadly with the similar northern giant petrel , though it overall is centered slightly further south.