temnocephala lamothei is a species of flatworm in the family temnocephalidae .

the specific name lamothei is in honor of mexican helminthologist dr. marcos rafael lamothe-argumedo .

this species was collected in 2005 in misiones province , argentina and described in 2008 as a commensal in the mantle cavity of freshwater snail pomella megastoma .

temnocephala lamothei

temnocephala lamothei is a species of flatworm in the family . . . stock illustration - search vector clipart , drawings , and eps graphics images - csp23609896
temnocephala lamothei n . sp . is the fourth species described from mollusc hosts ( gastropoda , ampullariidae ) . despite the great diversity of potential hosts of the family occurring in the neotropical region , few commensal species of temnocephala ns are known . among them , only t . iheringi has been recorded in association with pomella megastoma ( = asolene megastoma ) ( damborenea et al . , 1997 ) in argentina .
in this contribution we describe a new species of temnocephala that is a commensal of pomella megastoma , which were collected in misiones province , argentina .
volonterio , o . 2007 . a new species of temnocephala ( platyhelminthes , temnocephalida ) and a description of t . axenos from uruguay . journal of natural history 41 : 12451257 . [ links ]
the presence of this new species of temnocephala , and its features similar to those of the other species of this genus that are commensals of molluscs , suggests the existence of a morphologically homogeneous group . more detailed studies of all known species , as well as the search for other temnocephala n species in ampullariids present in the neotropical region , will provide valuable information in the future on the relationships of these species to each other , and to other temnocephala ns that are commensals of crustaceans and chelonians . finally , studies on the relationships among commensal species will contribute new information and a better understanding of the relationships among host species .
the family temnocephalidae ( platyhelminthes , temnocephalida ) includes 12 genera , of which only temnocephala blanchard , 1849 is represented in south and central america . twentythree species of temnocephala are currently recognized ( damborenea and cannon , 2001 ; amato et al . , 2003 , 2006 ; amato and amato , 2005 ; volonterio , 2007 ) , and they are associated with a wide range of hosts ( mollusca ampullariidae , crustacea decapoda , insecta hemiptera , and chelonia ) .
temnocephala colombiensis n . sp . , is described as ectosymbiont of pomacea sp . from san josé del nús , antioquia , colombia . temnocephalans were removed from the mantle cavity and its eggs from the umbilicus and the basal region of the operculum . the new species is characterized by : cirrus curved toward hindbody , approximately 90° ; introvert ' s swelling with 20 to 26 longitudinal rows of fine spines and 11 to 13 spines per row ; dorsolateral excretory syncytial plates rectangular with rounded corners and excretory pores eccentric , displaced to the anterior portion of the plate . additionally we have done a comparison of cirrus morphology for temnocephala described to date , based on literature review . this is the first temnocephala described from colombia .
damborenea c . & brusa f . ( 2008 )
a new species of temnocephala ( platyhelminthes , temnocephalida ) commensal of pomella megastoma ( mollusca , ampullariidae ) from misiones , argentina
. revista mexicana de biodiversidad 79 : 1 - 7 . pdf
the 3 known species of temnocephala described as commensals of ampullariids are the most similar to the new species from a morphological point of view . in addition to sharing the same host , they have common morphological features such as a large sucker ( compared to those of other species that are commensals of crustaceans ) a nonpartitioned intestine , and the absence of paranephrocytes . however , the presence of a strongly sclerotized , oblique ring at the base of the cirrus introvert in t . lamothei , as well as the possession of a row of spines at the base of the introvert and another row at its distal end , are characteristic of the new species .
the mosaic pattern of the epidermal syncytia is constant within temnocephala species . these have only 4 plates : 1 body syncytium , 2
excretory
syncytia and 1 adhesive syncytium ( damborenea and cannon , 2001 ) . the shape and size of these plates vary slightly between the species of the genus . nevertheless , of the 3 known species of temnocephala ns from molluscs , only the plate pattern of t . iheringi has been described . unfortunately the specimens described herein were relaxed before fixation , and the plate pattern was not evident .
temnocephala lamothei n . sp . , comensal de pomella megastoma ( sowerby , 1825 ) , se describe para el arroyo yabotíminí , provincia de misiones , argentina . se extrajeron ejemplares juveniles y adultos de la cavidad paleal , por relajación de los hospederos . las características distintivas de la nueva especie son : intestino no septado , cirro de forma cónica , con una cara plana y otra cóncava , zona distal con espinas evidente por un fuerte anillo oblicuo esclerosado . dos hileras de espinas se reconocen en el extremo distal , 1 interna de espinas largas , que surge desde la base del introverso , y 1 externa , que surge del extremo distal del mismo . las especies más semejantes son t . iheringi , t . rochensis y t . haswelli , especies comensales de moluscos con las que es comparada . el hallazgo de esta nueva especie de temnocephala y sus características semejantes a las restantes especies del género comensales de moluscos , sugieren que las especies conocidas hasta la fecha formen un grupo morfológicamente homogéneo .
damborenea , m . c . ; brusa , f . ( 2008 ) . a new species of temnocephala ( platyhelminthes , temnocephalida ) commensal of pomella megastoma ( mollusca , ampullariidae ) from misiones , argentina . revista mexicana de biodiversidad , 79 suppl , available online at urltoken [ details ]
temnocephala colombiensis n . sp . , se describe como ectosimbionte de pomacea sp . de san josé del nús , antioquia , colombia . los temnocéfalos fueron removidos de la cavidad del manto y sus huevos , del ombligo y región basal del opérculo . la nueva especie se caracteriza por un cirro curvado hacia la región posterior del cuerpo , con aproximadamente 90° ; introverto ensanchado con 20–26 filas de espinas longitudinales y 11–13 espinas por fila ; placas sincitiales dorsolaterales rectangulares con extremos redondeados y poros excretores excéntricos en la porción anterior . adicionalmente se realiza una comparación de la morfología del cirro de las especies descritas a la fecha . esta es la primera especie de temnocephala descrita para colombia .
the site of attachment of the eggs of t . lamothei n . sp . on the host mollusc is very peculiar . the egg capsules of t . iheringi are always laid over the periostracum , especially at the contact zone between the peristome and the suture at the opening , and in the umbilicus . this pattern is repeated with no changes in different populations studied ( damborenea , 1992 ; 1996 ; martín et al . , 2005 ) . the site of egg attachment for t . haswelli and t . rochensis has not been described .
in comparison , t . iheringi is the species with the cirrus structure more similar to the new species ; it is similarly shaped , with 1 flat and 1 concave side . the cirri of these 2 species are also similar in length , although the base of this structure is longer in the new species ( the cirrus of t . iheringi is approximately 157 µm in total length and approximately 70 µm in basal width ( damborenea , 1992 ) , vs . 167 µm and 115 µm respectively in t . lamothei ) . t . iheringi bears several rows of spines at the distal end of the introvert .
hosts were collected at arroyo yabotíminí ( 26°57 ' 39 . 87 ' ' s , 53°49 ' 23 . 07 ' ' w ) in misiones province , argentina , in january 2005 . the temnocephala ns emerged when the hosts were relaxed using menthol . whole mounts were stained with carmine chloride and mounted in synthetic canada balsam . serial sections for histology were made in order to study and interpret the morphology and location of organs , particularly the genital system , and the arrangement and development of muscles . worms were embedded in paraplast , cut at 4 µm thick , stained with mayer ' s haematoxylin and eosin and mounted in synthetic canada balsam .
tyler , s . , artois , t . ; schilling , s . ; hooge , m . ; bush , l . f . ( eds ) ( 2006 - 2018 ) . world list of turbellarian worms : acoelomorpha , catenulida , rhabditophora .
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consejo nacional de investigaciones científicas y técnicasdivisión zoología invertebrados , museo de la plata , facultad de ciencias naturales y museo de la universidad nacional de la plata . paseo del bosque s / n 1900 . la plata , argentina .
key words : turbellaria , commensal , neotropical region , taxonomy , south america .
palabras clave : turbellaria , comensal , región neotropical , taxonomía , américa del sur .
two specimens were dissected for extraction of the cirrus . one was mounted in polyvinyllactophenol for study under optical microscope ( om ) and the other was dehydrated , dried , and metalized for study under scanning electron microscope ( sem ) .
for sem observation , whole individuals and egg capsules were dehydrated in a graded ethanol series and criticalpoint dried , coated with gold and examined using a jeol 6360 sem .
photomicrographs were taken with a zeiss axioplan 2 microscope . nomarski ' s interference contrast filters were used for cirrus photomicrographs . measurements were obtained with the aid of an om ; ranges and number of specimens measured are listed in parentheses following the means .
the terminology used for description of reproductive structures follows cannon ( 1993 ) . the materials are deposited in the invertebrate collection at museo de la plata ( mlp ) , argentina .
based on 17 specimens : 2 wholemounted adult specimens ; 8 fixed adult and juvenile specimens ; 2 specimens and 1 cirrus mounted on stubs for sem ; 1 cirrus mounted in polyvinyllactophenol ; 2 specimens in sagittal sections and 1 in transversal sections ; 9 specimens were measured .
external characteristics . body elliptic , about 2 . 03 mm ( 1 . 102 . 9 mm , 9 ) long without tentacles , and about 1 . 10 mm ( 0 . 81 . 7 mm , 9 ) wide ( fig . 1 ) . posterior adhesive disk subterminal , pedunculate : disk diameter 0 . 74 mm at rim ( 0 . 751 . 15mm , 9 ) . epidermis syncytial , thin and unciliated . mosaic of epidermal syncytia not evident .
alimentary system . mouth midventral , between first and second quarters of body . pharynx longer than wide , 590 µm long , 363 µm wide , esophageal glands at its base ( fig . 1 ) . in all specimens studied , the pharynx shows a layer similar to a cuticle , that becomes loose in histological samples and can be seen free within the pharyngeal lumen . intestine saccular , without septa ; intestinal walls thick . paranephrocites not evident .
glands . rhabdite glands large , numerous , in lateral fields on body , extending onto sides of intestinal sac , with conspicuous rhabdite tracts . cyanophilus glands inconspicuous , evident only in sectioned specimens , separated from each other in parenchyma , and located among rhabdite glands . adhesive disks glands scarce and scattered , posterior to posterior testis . haswell ' s cells absent . shell gland very prominent , near gonopore and opening onto epidermis surrounding gonopore ( fig . 2 ) .
muscles . dorsal and ventral circular muscles of body wall similar . ventral longitudinal muscles of body wall stronger than dorsal ones . dorsoventral muscles and attachment muscles of pharynx weak . muscles controlling male organ strong . attachment muscles of adhesive disk weak .
reproductive system . male . four ovoid testes , 2 on each side of body , just behind intestine . posterior pair oblique , elliptical , larger than anterior testes ( fig . 1 ) . vasa deferentia extending from inner wall of posterior testes , separately joining a large pyriform thick , seminal vesicle with muscular walls . seminal vesicle opening into large oval prostatic bulb with muscular walls . abundant prostatic secretion observed near seminal vesicle and prostatic bulb , entering the latter through its walls . prostatic bulb prolonged into base of cirrus ( fig . 2 ) . cirrus curved in lateral view , 167 µm total length ; shaft coneshaped , 146 µm long , 115 . 5 µm wide at proximal shaft base ( figs . 38 ) . introvert not swollen , proximal margin slightly oblique , marked with a conspicuous , thickened oblique ring , evident under sem and om ; introvert portion 21 . 5 µm long , 40 µm wide at its proximal base ( figs . 38 ) . ratio between total length of cirrus and maximum width of shaft at base 5 . 45 ; ratio between total length of cirrus and total length of introvert 7 . 95 . shaft with 1 side straight and the other curved ( fig . 3 ) . two rows of spines : an inner 1 arising from shaft base , from thickened ring , approximately 1112 µm long ; and an outer row arising from distal margin of introvert , with approximately 4550 spines , 57 µm long ( figs . 68 ) .
female . gonopore midventral , in posterior third of body , surrounded by a muscular sphincter , genital atrium large , elongate ( fig . 2 ) . most female organs difficult to observe and measure in whole mounts . ovary small , round ; 1 seminal receptacle present , with spermatozoids inside . vesicula resorbens thickwalled , slightly insinuated into intestinal sac . a short oviduct opening into the ootype , posterior to seminal receptacle . abundant gland cells around ootype , genital atrium , and vagina , with ducts opening into them . vagina large and muscular , opening in front of cirrus introvert , with 1 weak sphincter ( fig . 2 ) . vitellaria dendrite covering dorsal and ventral sides of intestinal sac , never surpassing its limits .
eggs clavate , 625800 µm long and 75350 µm wide ( fig . 9 ) . polar filament long ( 115 µm ) . opercular plates large , arranged almost perpendicularly to great axis of eggs , so that fracture plane of opercula shows a straight angle respect to great axis of egg ( figs . 1012 ) . eggs deposited on external surface of host , on umbilical area , operculum and at contact zone of peristome and suture at opening ( figs . 1314 ) . some eggs covered by callus ( figs . 1516 ) .
type host : pomella megastoma ( sowerby , 1825 ) . two parasitized snails .
site : mantle cavity of snail . numerous eggs fixed over umbilicus and operculum and some eggs within spire .
type locality : arroyo yabotíminí ( 26°57 ' 39 . 87 ' ' s , 53°49 ' 23 . 07 ' ' w ) , misiones province , argentina . january 2005 .
helminth specimens deposited : holotype : sagittally sectioned specimen , mlp5718 . paratypes : 2 wholemounted specimens , mlp5719 ; 1 dissected cirrus in polyvinyllactophenol , mlp5720 ; 1 sagittally sectioned specimen , 1 transversely sectioned specimen , mlp5721 . other material : 8 specimens preserved in alcohol , unhatched eggs , mlp5722 .
etymology : species named in honor of dr . rafael lamothe argumedo for his important contribution to the knowledge of helminth diversity .
this introvert structure of the cirrus of the new species is unique ; unlike the other species , its proximal end is slightly oblique , marked with a conspicuous thickened ring .
with respect to the morphology of the distal end of the cirrus , the new species resembles t . haswelli . the description of the latter species only mentions a single crown with digitiform spines ( ponce de león , 1989 ) . however , a detailed drawing of the distal end of the cirrus shows an arrangement similar to that observed in the new species , i . e . , with a row of small spines inserted along the distal edge and a row of larger spines . the shape of the cirrus in t . haswelli  as in t . rochensis  is conical , with both sides curved , differing from the condition observed in the new species , and even longer ( 200 µm in t . haswelli and 186 µm in t . rochensis ) .
the new species attaches most of its eggs onto the host ' s umbilicus and over the basal region of the operculum , a feature never recorded in t . iheringi . in addition , some eggs are attached onto the contact zone between the peristome and the suture at the opening , so that they are covered by the mantle . because of this unique placement of eggs , many of them ( both hatched and unhatched ) were found to be covered by the callus of the host .
the authors are indebted to gerardo pérez ponce de león , virginia leónregagnon , luis garcíaprieto and david osoriosarabia for inviting us to contribute in this commemorative volume for professor rafael lamotheargumedo . we thank l . negrete for the collection of the specimens of p . megastoma and for providing us with field information . this work was supported by grants from conicet ( pip 6371 ) , by the facultad de ciencias naturales y museo , universidad nacional de la plata ( n488 ) , and by foncyt ( pme 159 ) .
spp . ( hemiptera , belostomatidae ) from southern brazil . revista brasileira de zoologia 22 : 107118 .
amato , j . f . r . , s . b . amato and l . c . campos daudt . 2003 . new species of
buckup and rossi ( crustacea , anomura ) from southern brazil . revista brasileira de zoologia 20 : 493500 .
amato , j . f . r . , s . b . amato and s . a . seixas . 2006 . a new species of
latreille ( crustacea , decapoda , trichodactylidae ) from southern brazil . revista brasileira de zoologia 23 : 796806 .
( platyhelminthes ) : ectosymionts of freshwater crabs and shrimps . memoirs of the queensland museum 33 : 1740 .
( platyhelminthes , temnocephalidae ) de crustáceos y moluscos de la argentina . iheringia , série de zoologia 72 : 321 .
( platyhelminthes , temnocephalidae ) de la isla martín garcía , buenos aires , argentina . neotropica 43 : 123124 .
damborenea , c . , f . brusa and a . paola . 2006 . variation in worm assemblages associated with
( caenogastropoda , ampullariidae ) in sites near the río de la plata estuary , argentina . biocell 30 : 457468 .
hyman , l . h . 1955 . miscellaneous marine and terrestrial flatworms from south america . american museum novitates 1742 : 133 .
martín p . r . , a . l . , estebenet and s . burela . 2005 . factors affecting the distribution of the commensal
ponce de león , r . 1980 . especies americanas de temnocephalidea benham ( platyhelmintha ) . i . descripción de
circuito exterior , ciudad universitaria , del . coyoacán , méxico , distrito federal , mx , 04510 , ( 52 - 55 ) 5622 - 9167 falvarez @ urltoken
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isomma is a genus of dragonflies in the family gomphidae .

it is endemic to madagascar and contains only two species : isomma elouardi legrand , 2003 isomma hieroglyphicum selys , 1892

isomma

isomma elouardi occurs on madagascar , but the range of the species is unknown .
scattered collection localities are known for isomma hieroglyphicum , in eastern madagascar from the north to the south of the island .
isomma is a genus of dragonfly in the family gomphidae . it is endemic to madagascar and contains only two species :
justification : only the type specimens with type locality
madagascar
are known for isomma elouardi . therefore the species cannot be assessed in any category other than data deficient .
justification : in the 2006 red list assessment for isomma hieroglyphicum , the species was assessed as data deficient . new records were available for the previous assessment ( 2008 ) from scattered localities in eastern madagascar from the north to the south of the island . therefore the species is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a threatened or the near threatened category . no new records can be added for this assessment . therefore the species is assessed as least concern .
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thank you for taking the time to provide feedback on the iucn red list of threatened species website , we are grateful for your input .
schorr , m . and paulson , d . 2017 . world odonata list . revision 18 march 2017 . tacoma , washington , usa available at : urltoken .
based on the biology of the family , this species is likely to use small streams and rivers .
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small streams and rivers . specimens in southeastern madagascar were observed along running waters in forested areas .
the species may be affected by deforestation in the region , but more data are required to confirm this .
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hahncappsia neomarculenta is a moth in the crambidae family .

it was described by capps in 1967 .

it is found in north america , where it has been recorded from maryland , indiana , west virginia , north carolina , ohio and tennessee .

the wingspan is 22-24 mm for males and 22-23 mm for females .

adults have been recorded on wing from may to july .

hahncappsia neomarculenta

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munroe , e . , 1976 . moths of america north of mexico , fascicle 13 . 2a , p . 42 ; pl . 3 . 71 . order
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wilson 's storm petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) , also known as wilson 's petrel , is a small seabird of the austral storm petrel family oceanitidae .

it is one of the most abundant bird species in the world and has a circumpolar distribution mainly in the seas of the southern hemisphere but extending northwards during the summer of the northern hemisphere .

the world population has been estimated to be more than 50 million pairs .

the name commemorates the scottish-american ornithologist alexander wilson .

the genus name oceanites refers to the mythical oceanids , the three thousand daughters of tethys .

the species name is from latin oceanus , " ocean " .

wilson ' s storm petrel

flat - clawed storm petrel , wilson’s petrel , wilson’s storm petrel , yellow - webbed storm - petrel .
the one record of the wilson’s storm - petrel was from the middle shelf .
no specific conservation measures are currently in place for wilson’s storm - petrel ( 2 ) .
wilson ' s storm petrel is one of the most abundant bird species in the world .
> calls of wilson & apos ; s storm petrel : functions , i . . .
wilson’s storm - petrel is extremely wide ranging , visiting all major oceans except the arctic ( 3 ) .
wilson ' s storm - petrel spends much of its life at sea ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
this map shows the geographic location of 1 wilson’s storm - petrel sightings ( blue star ) on petra’s fishing trip from port o’connor .
) . olfactory guidance of leach ' s storm petrel to the breeding island .
gębczyński ak ( 1995 ) is there a hypothermia in wilson’s storm petrel chicks ? . polish polar res 16 : 175–184
1 . wilson’s storm petrels are one of the most numerous birds in the world .
figure 1 . distribution of the leach ' s storm - petrel in north america .
wilson ' s storm - petrel is classified as least concern ( lc ) on the iucn red list ( 1 ) .
see howell ( 2012 ) for a detailed account of the distribution of wilson ' s storm - petrel in north america .
obst bs , nagy ka ( 1993 ) stomach oil and energy budgets of wilson’s storm petrel nestlings . condor 95 : 792–805
two subspecies of wilson’s storm - petrel are recognised : oceanites oceanicus exasperatus and the slightly smaller oceanites oceanicus oceanicus ( 3 ) .
pearman , m . 2000 . first records of elliot´s storm petrel oceanites gracilipes in argentina .
we had left the expected range of many humboldt current species including elliot’s storm - petrel .
4 . wilson’s storm petrels are the smallest warm - blooded animal to breed in the antarctic .
wilson’s storm petrels are gregarious at sea with flocks reaching several thousands at staging points during migration .
the latest sighting details and map for wilson ' s storm petrel are only available to our birdguides ultimate or our birdguides pro subscribers .
the life expectancy of a wilson ' s storm - petrel is approximately 10 years and four months ( quillfeldt & möstl 2003 ) .
in australian territories , the dark morph of the white - bellied storm - petrel ( fregetta grallaria ) may be confused with the wilson ' s storm - petrel . furthermore , the species is also superficially similar to leach ' s storm - petrel ( oceanodroma leucorhoa ) ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
wilson ' s storm - petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) doing the ' water walking ' thing . image by patrick coin , from wikipedia .
birdlife international . 2013 . species factsheet : wilson ' s storm - petrel oceanites oceanicus . downloaded from birdlife international on 5 march 2013 .
due to its fragility on land , wilson’s storm - petrel only comes to shore at night , to avoid predators such as gulls and eagles . when threatened , wilson’s storm - petrel may squeak and eject an oily liquid from the stomach in defence ( 2 ) ( 6 ) .
the breeding season for the wilson ' s storm - petrel is from november to december and march to may ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
the graph below shows the number and date of all wilson’s storm - petrel sightings offshore texas . not seen yet on a texas pelagic trip .
wilson ' s storm - petrel patters on the ocean surface with wings almost horizontal . photographed by leonard medlock on the august 08 bbc extreme pelagic
other names : flat - clawed or yellow - webbed storm - petrel , mother carey ' s chicken .
olivier f ( 2003 ) detailed information on 196 grid sites used for snow petrel and wilson’s storm petrel surveys in the windmill islands during the 2002 / 2003 season . australian antarctic data centre–snowhite metadata .
the wings of wilson’s storm - petrel are distinctively short and rounded , and its feet can be seen protruding slightly past its square tail when in flight . when gliding close to the water’s surface , wilson’s storm - petrel appears to ‘jump’ as it repeatedly dips its long legs in the water . this species has a distinctive bright yellow membrane between its black toes , which is thought to attract prey ( 2 ) . as in other storm - petrels , the female wilson’s storm - petrel is larger than the male ( 4 ) .
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bretagnolle , v . 1989 . calls of wilson ' s storm petrel : functions , individual and sexual recognitions , and geographic variation . behaviour 111 : 98–112 .
oceanites oceanicus ( wilson ' s storm - petrel ) : species management profile for tasmania ' s threatened species link ( threatened species section ( tss ) , 2014xt ) [ state action plan ] .
at nesting sites wilson’s storm petrel are killed by skuas and starvation , due to the blocking of the burrow by hard snow , is a cause of chick mortality .
the global population of the wilson ' s storm - petrel is estimated to be in the order of 12 000 000–30 000 000 birds ( birdlife international 2010b ) .
australian antarctic division ( aad ) ( 2010 ) . wilson ' s storm petrel factsheet . available from : urltoken . [ accessed : 02 - nov - 2010 ] .
moore , c . c . 1992 . wilson ' s petrel with legs ensnared in fishing mesh . british birds 85 : 556 .
quillfeldt p ( 2001 ) variation of breeding success in wilson’s storm petrels : influence of environmental factors . antarct sci 13 : 400–409
wilson’s storm petrel are numerous and wide ranging . they migrate from their antarctic breeding grounds to north of the equator in the atlantic , indian and pacific oceans , with few birds migrating north into the eastern pacific ocean . their range overlaps with many other storm petrel species .
olivier f ( 2005 ) detailed information on the location and characteristics of wilson’s storm petrel nests found during systematic surveys in the mawson and casey regions . australian antarctic data centre–snowhite metadata .
5 . during storms at sea wilson’s storm petrels will fly in the troughs of waves in order to take some sort of cover .
dive ? does wilson ' s storm - petrel dive ? i have seen thousands of wilsons and never saw a single bird dive under the water . parmelee ( 1993 ) descrbes an incident of wilson ' s storm - petrel
submerging to grasp rising oil droplets before the droplets could float to the surface and burst .
i don ' t really consider that diving .
protection / threats / status : in spite of predation on the breeding grounds , the wilson’s storm - petrel is one of the most abundant of all seabirds . the population was estimated at 12 , 000 , 000 / 30 , 000 , 000 individuals in 2004 , and it is still suspected to be stable . the wilson’s storm - petrel is currently evaluated as least concern .
moore , c . c . ( 1992 ) . wilson ' s petrel with legs ensnared in fishing mesh . british birds . 85 : 556 .
this analysis of the flight behaviour of wilson ' s storm petrel indicates that its ‘hovering’ is an energetically inexpensive foraging stragegy which is probably available only to small , surface - feeding birds with low wingloading .
) . much work remains to determine the nonbreeding distributions of these populations . the smaller , dark - rumped swinhoe ' s storm - petrel (
wilson ' s storm - petrel is one of the world ' s most abundant seabirds and the smallest endotherm ( generating its own heat for warmth ) that breeds in antarctic waters ( büßer et al . 2004 ; quillfeldt & möstl 2003 ) .
3 . the “storm” in the bird’s name refers to the idea that the appearance of flocks of the bird foretold of a coming storm .
’s storm - petrels and both a typical and an atypical , well - marked example of elliot’s storm - petrel . the puerto montt birds show less white on the belly and more white on the vent than typical elliot’s storm - petrels . elliot’s also shows a clear divide between belly and rump , along the femoral tract , although this may sometimes be faint or hidden .
off western australia and the northern territory , wilson ' s storm - petrels are mainly observed along the coast during migration ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
wilson ' s storm - petrels are diurnal feeders , consuming mainly pelagic ( marine ) crustaceans and fish with some cephalopods , polychaetes , gastropods and carrion .
interestingly in relation to wilson’s storm - petrel , harrison notes “cape horn birds may have pale vents ( naveen , pers . comm . ) . ” it would appear ron naveen was most likely referring here once again to
the breeding range of wilson ' s storm - petrel includes subantarctic islands from cape horn , chile , east to the kerguelen islands , the french southern territories and also includes coastal antarctica ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
wilson ' s storm - petrel breeds colonially in holes and crevices in cliffs , rocky slopes and screes on islands in the fuegian region of chile and the subantarctic , the antarctic mainland , and possibly in the andes .
james pc ( 1983 ) storm petrel tape lures : which sex is attracted ? ring migr 4 : 249–253 .
quillfeldt . p . 2001 . variation in breeding success of wilson ' s storm petrels : influence of environmental factors . antarctic science 13 : 400 - 409 .
wilson’s storm - petrel uses a wide range of vocal signals to communicate . it is a strong flier and an excellent swimmer , but cannot sustain itself for more than a few steps when walking on land ( 2 ) .
copestake , pg & croxall , jp ( 1985 ) . aspects of the breeding biology of wilson ' s storm petrel oceanites oceanicus at bird island , south georgia . british antarctica survey bulletin . 66 : 7 - 17 .
by w . b . alexander in “birds of the ocean” ( 1928 ) . the taxon was later described in detail by murphy ( 1936 ) and referred to as “fuegian petrel” , a new subspecies of wilsons storm - petrel . subsequent to that , for reasons we have yet to establish , the taxon was “dropped” as a race of wilson’s . until very recently only two races of wilsons storm - petrel
adults are taken mostly by great skuas ( c . skua ) which take wilson ' s storm - petrels from the ground and in flight . remains of wilson ' s storm - petrels are frequent in skuas ' middens ( ground burrow used for food ) at many sites . at south georgia , some birds may be taken by southern giant - petrels ( macronectes giganteus ) and northern giant - petrels ( m . halli ) . there is one record of predation of a wilson ' s storm - petrel by a shark ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
department of sustainability , environment , water , population and communities . 2013 . oceanites oceanicus - wilson ' s storm - petrel in species profile and threats database , department of sustainability , environment , water , population and communities , canberra .
wilson’s storm petrels young and eggs are preyed upon by skuas , gulls , owls , and falcons . because of their small size adults may also be taken by falcons .
copestake , p . g . and croxall , j . p . ( 1985 ) aspects of the breeding biology of wilson’s storm petrel oceanites oceanicus at bird island , south georgia . british antarctic survey bulletin , 66 : 7 - 17 .
behaviors the most obvious storm - petrel behavior is pattering their feet along the surface of the water when feeding . this is best observed on a calm ocean . observe the angle of the wings when pattering . wilson ' s storm - petrel holds its wing in a horizontal to a shallow v shape as seen in chris ciccone ' s photograph . usually found in groups either resting on the ocean or feeding .
saville , s . , stevenson , b . , & southley , i . 2003 . a possible sighting of an ‘extinct’ bird – the new zealand storm - petrel .
lockley , r . m . 1983 . flight of the storm petrel . david & charles , newton abbott & london .
copestake , p . g . , and j . p . croxall . 1985 . aspects of the breeding biology of wilson ' s storm - petrel oceanites oceanicus at bird island , south georgia . british antarctic survey bulletin 66 : 7 - 17 .
introduction : the wilson’s storm - petrel is included in the southern subfamily oceanitinae , but it is a transequatorial migrant that winters in the northern hemisphere . this species has wide range and large populations . however , the main threats are first the ingestion of plastic , and then , the fishing nets where birds can be entangled at sea . it also has some natural avian predators on the breeding islands . the wilson’s storm - petrel spends most of the year at sea and comes on land only for breeding .
in australia , most reports of the wilson ' s storm - petrel are from the edge of the continental shelf and during autumn . the species is known to breed on heard island , where it is described as abundant ( woehler & johnstone 1991 ) .
within the antarctic area , certain sites have been designated specially protected areas ( aspa ) ( ats 2008 ) to preserve historical , scientific and environmental values . some of these include sites of breeding importance to the wilson ' s storm - petrel , namely :
wilson’s storm petrel is a small storm petrel with short , rounded wings and long legs projecting beyond the tail in flight . it is about 18 cm in length with a wing span of approximately 40 cm . their upperparts are mostly sooty - brown except for a conspicuous white rump and a pale brown band showing across the greater wing - coverts . their underside is mainly sooty - brown .
velez , l . g . ( 1995 ) . wilson ' s storm petrels oceanites oceanicus breeding at the bertrab nunatak , filchner iceshelf , antarctica . marine ornithology . 23 : 67 .
the wilson ' s storm - petrel is a pelagic ( marine ) species distributed throughout most of the world ' s oceans . its distribution stretches north through the mid - latitudes of the northern hemisphere and south through the oceans surrounding australia and the australian antarctic territory ( aat ) ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
wilson’s storm - petrel is among the most numerous of all birds . no global threat to this species is known , but it does face competition from commercial fishing , as well as the problem of pesticide and heavy metal contamination of its food sources ( 2 ) .
wilson’s storm - petrel makes nests in burrows or rock crevices , and tends to breed together in loose colonies . the breeding season is around november to december . each pair lays a single egg , which hatches after an incubation period of around 43 days ( 2 ) .
wilson’s storm - petrel breeds around the cold waters of antarctica , on rocky islets , cliffs and amongst boulder scree . during the southern winter it heads north , and may be seen around small rocky islands in the atlantic and indian oceans ( 2 ) ( 5 ) .
davis p ( 1957 ) the breeding of the storm petrel . british birds 50 : 85–384 , 85 - 101 , 371 - 384 .
many also displayed a lightly mottled vent / lower belly suggestive of elliot’s . we considered elliot’s a remote possibility off
the diet of wilson’s storm - petrel is mostly based on planktonic crustaceans , especially krill , but may also include fish , squid and other molluscs . this species can detect prey by smell , and is known to search out and follow fishing trawlers ( 2 ) ( 6 ) .
beck , j . r . , and d . w . brown . 1972 . the breeding biology of wilson ' s storm petrel , oceanites oceanicus ( kuhl ) , at signy island , south orkney islands . british antarctic survey sci . rep . 69 : 1 - 54 .
in summer , wilson ' s storm - petrels move in a circumpolar oceanic range , mostly restricted to the southern ocean ( south of 50° s to 40° s in the south - west region of the range ) . in the atlantic and south - west indian oceans , the species is found to approximately 30° s off western south america ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
) , nesting off japan , korea , china , and russia , is so similar it has been considered a race of leach ' s storm - petrel ; the two are appropriately considered a superspecies .
ingestion of plastics is a primary threat to wilson ' s storm - petrels , with a high proportion of adults and pre - fledged chicks reported to have plastic in stomachs ( moser & lee 1992 ) .
since unplugged birds recovered their olfactory capabilities during the experiment , we pooled them with the control birds in global homing success analysis . a g - test ( one - tailed ) indicated a lower global homing success of plugged birds with respect to pooled control and unplugged birds in common diving petrel ( p < 0 . 05 ) , madeiran storm petrel ( p < 0 . 05 ) , wilson ' s storm petrel ( p < 0 . 01 ) and thin - billed prions ( p < 0 . 001 ) .
wilson’s storm petrel breed on the antarctic continent , south georgia , kerguelen , falklands , tierra del fuego islands off cape horn , and possibly also at peter , bouvet , heard , the balleny islands and islands off graham land . non - breeders may remain in the north throughout the year .
the wilson’s storm - petrel is a transequatorial migrant . it migrates from the breeding grounds in antarctic to n of the equator in atlantic , indian and pacific oceans . a few birds migrate n into e pacific ocean . the non - breeding birds may remain in the north throughout the year .
the right storm - petrel to watch wilson ' s is the storm - petrel to watch as it readily approaches boats and can often be observed within 3 feet of the boat . harrison says it follows ships and attends trawlers . ( harrison 1983 ) . follows ships means it will follow the wake of a boat that is steaming along without dispersing fish waste or chum . attends trawlers refers to gathering behind a fishing vessel discarding fish parts .
wilson ' s storm petrel was included as a new zealand bird species without locality in buller ' s birds of new zealand , 1888 . there are two subspecies : oceanicus whuich breeds on subantarctic islands in the south atlantic and south indian ocean , and exasperatus which breeds on coasts and islands of antarctica and is an uncommon passage migrant through new zealand waters .
power , d . m . and d . g . ainley . 1986 . seabird geographic variability : similarity among populations of leach ' s storm - petrel . auk no . 103 : 575 - 585 . close
hedd p , montevecchi wa ( 2006 ) diet and trophic position of leach ' s storm - petrel during breeding and moult , inferred from stable isotope analysis of feathers . mar ecol prog ser 322 : 291–301 .
on my first pelagic trip to monterey bay in california , i was looking forward to identifying several new storm - petrels . the first flock spotted was far from the boat almost to the horizon . i decided to wait for a closer flock . but the next flock was also far away as was the following flock and they didn ' t seem to respond to the boat ' s chumming . i realized that other storm - petrels are not boat followers and i had to work at identifying distant storm - petrels . that ' s when i came to appreciate our wonderful little bird watcher friendly wilson ' s storm - petrel .
the white band across the rump and the yellow webbing is diagnostic but the wilson ' s storm - petrel is hard to identify , especially in flight . the square tail , brownish wingbar ( usually best seen on worn plumage ) and feet slightly extending beyond tail are useful identifiers ( lindsay 1986 ) .
the wilson ' s storm - petrel has been identified as a conservation value in the temperate east ( dsewpac 2012aa ) marine region . see schedule 2 of the temperate east marine bioregional plan ( dsewpac 2012aa ) for regional advice . maps of biologically important areas have been developed for wilson ' s storm - petrel in the temperate east ( dsewpac 2012aa ) marine region and may provide additional relevant information . go to the conservation values atlas to view the locations of these biologically important areas . the
species group report card - seabirds
for the temperate east ( dsewpac 2012aa ) marine region provides additional information .
maguire ej , zonfrillo b , clark h , wilkins m ( 1980 ) status of storm petrel in clyde and forth . scottish birds 11 : 51–53 .
the wilson ' s storm petrel migrates from its antarctic breeding grounds to north of the equator in the atlantic , indian and pacific oceans . the ross sea birds and birds south of australia , migrate to the indian ocean . they are gregarious at sea with flocks reaching several thousands at staging points during migration .
behaviour in the wild : the wilson’s storm - petrel feeds mainly on crustaceans , especially krill of genus euphausia , small fish ( 2 - 8 cm long ) , squid and carrion . it also follows ships and trawlers for offal , and often feeds around large cetaceans that lead the preys to the surface .
quillfeldt , p . & e . möstl ( 2003 ) . resource allocation in wilson ' s storm - petrels oceanites oceanicus determined by measurement of glucocorticoid excretion . acta ethologica . 5 ( 2 ) : 115 - 122 .
one of the most numerous of all sea birds ( 3 ) , wilson’s storm - petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) is predominantly sooty - black with a white , u - shaped rump . there is a pale bar on the upperwing , and the dark underwing has a paler patch on the underwing - coverts ( 3 ) .
breeding sites of wilson ' s storm - petrel outside the americas include south shetland , bouvetøy , crozet , kerguelen , heard , macquarie , balleny , scott , and peter islands , and many other small islands and archipelagos in the southern ocean , as well as antarctica ( murphy 1936 , onley and scofield 2007 , brooke 2004 ) .
underside scott surner captured this view of wilson ' s storm - petrel which shows the underside as it banks toward the boat . notice that the wings are dark underneath and that the white rump wraps on either side of the tail down to the legs . the bird ' s left leg clearly extends beyond tail . look closely at the right foot and you can see a hint of the yellow web between the toes . the close approach of this storm - petrel and the thousands that swarm in our waters makes photographs like this possible . great picture scott . thanks for sharing .
the average size of individuals is 15–19 cm in length , with a wingspan of 38–42 cm . each wing is 14–15 cm long , and the tail is 5 . 7–6 . 2 cm long . the average weight of a wilson ' s storm - petrel is approximately 34–50 grams ( lindsay 1986 ; marchant & higgins 1990 ) . wilson ' s storm - petrels are gregarious ; congregating when feeding and migrating and breeding colonially . at sea they are found singularly or in small flocks . historically , groups of hundreds to thousands were recorded at whaling stations ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
howell , s . n . g . 2012 . petrels , albatrosses and storm - petrels of north america . princeton university press , new jersey .
- once again we found ourselves puzzled by storm - petrels in chilean waters .
quillfeldt , p . , and h . - u . peter . 2000 . provisioning and growth in chicks of wilson ' s storm - petrels ( oceanites oceanicus ) on king george island , south shetland islands . polar biology 23 : 817 - 824 .
wilson ' s storm petrel feeds over the continental shelf . they feed , typically of storm petrels , by running along the surface of the water with wings outstretched and bill , or their entire head , submerged in the water to scoop in their food , taking minutiae from the surface . they feed on crustacea , cephalopods , fish , and offal . they readily follow ships and attend trawlers , attracted by the left overs , and whales and dolphins .
montage showing representatives of the five main petrel clades . top left : great shearwater ( puffinus gravis ) . top right : black - capped petrel ( petrodoma hasitata ) , both images by patrick coin . below , top to bottom : southern giant petrel ( macronectes giganteus ) by brocken inaglory ; broad - billed prion ( pachyptila vittata ) , by rosemary tully ; westland petrel ( procellaria westlandica ) , by mark jobling .
15–20 cm ; 28–50 g ; wingspan 34–42 cm . small blackish storm - petrel with long legs , square - ended tail and white horseshoe on uppertail - coverts . head and . . .
in the non - breeding season , the birds are mainly seen in tropical and subtropical waters ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) . in pack - ice , the species rests on ice - floes and flies in the shelter of floes during gales . outside of the breeding season , the wilson ' s storm - petrel roosts on the sea surface ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
in the breeding season , the species is seen foraging near to breeding sites . their range extends a few degrees into the subtropical zone where breeding is on islands is close to the subtropical convergence . in the ross sea in summer , most birds are within 500 km of nesting grounds , and individuals are mainly found in open water north of pack ice . within pack - ice , the wilson ' s storm - petrel frequents light pack . however , the species is more often seen over wide leads and pools rather than near ice - floes or brash - ice . concentrations of the wilson ' s storm - petrel have been observed at the edge of pack ice . on the antarctic continent , birds are occasionally seen well inland ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
büßer , c . , a . kahles & p . quillfeldt ( 2004 ) . breeding success and chick provisioning in wilson ' s storm - petrels oceanites oceanicus over seven years : frequent failures due to food shortage and entombment . polar biology . 27 : 613 - 622 .
gladbach , a . , c . braun , a . nordt , h . u . peter & p . quillfeldt ( 2009 ) . chick provisioning and nest attendance of male and female wilson ' s storm petrels oceanites oceanicus . polar biology . 32 : 1315 - 1321 .
scott spangenber donated this great photo of wilson’s storm - petrel from the july 19 , 2008 bbc pelagic to the continental shelf edge , the bird on the left has its feet closed as usual , but the bird on the right is caught with both feet open giving us a clear look at the yellow web . nice photo scott . yellow webs are not a field mark for the ordinary observer , but with a good photograph they are pretty definitive . the only other storm - petrel in our area to display yellow web is the white - faced storm - petrel which is otherwise very distinctive . notice also how clearly the white rump wraps around the underside of the bird to the left and the light band on the upper wing clearly stops short of the leading edge of the left wing .
wilson’s storm petrel return to their colonies in november / december and eggs are laid in mid - december ( approximately one month later at heard island and iles kerguelen ) . both parents share the 39–48 day incubation period , taking alternative shifts of about 48 hours . once the chicks hatch they are fed irregulary by both parents for up to 52 days . fledging and dispersion begins in april / may .
despite its small size and seemingly weak flight , this bird is at home on the roughest of seas , flying in the troughs of the waves during gales . it also travels huge distances - - from the antarctic to the edge of the arctic . although it nests only in far southern oceans , wilson ' s storm - petrel is often the most common seabird off the atlantic coast of the united states .
calls and songs : sounds by xeno - canto the wilson’s storm - petrel’s main call is a loud , nasal , grating « aark aark » given from the ground at colonies . the male utters a monotonous chatter to attract females “aark - uh - ah - ah - uh - uh” . this species is usually silent at sea , but some quiet , low squeaks can be heard within the feeding flocks . the birds may call during aerial pursuits or while flying above the nesting hole at night .
’s position near the southern edge of the expected range for many humboldt current seabirds .
( ed . a . s . king and j . mclelland ) , pp .
seabird season is in full swing , as this week ' s terrific winner demonstrates .
around antarctica , 72 . 9 % of observations of the feeding systems of wilson ' s storm - petrel were of pattering with 27 . 1 % of observations being of dipping ( n = 284 ) ( harper 1987 ) . comparatively , in the ross sea , 74 % of observations were of pattering , 23 % were of dipping and 3 % were of surface - seizing ( n = 35 ) ( harper 1987 ) .
reproduction of this species : the breeding season occurs between november / december and late january / late march throughout the range . the wilson’s storm - petrel breeds in loose colonies established on rocky islands , on cliffs or among boulder scree . it nests in cavities , rock crevices or burrows ( 20 - 50 cm long ) . the nest can be unlined , but sometimes , the nest - chamber is lined with feathers and moss .
wilson’s storm petrels have the ability to hover just above the water’s surface in order to pluck at plankton just underneath . their feet will dip in at a spot in the water ( perhaps to attract prey ) , the bird will nab the food , and then it will flutter to a new spot a little ways away . they will also sometimes make rare dives in order to nab small fish .
matsudaira’s storm - petrel , at sea off denis island , seychelles , november 2014 . this sequence of one individual illustrates the long wings and relatively long , deeply forked tail of this large , dark - rumped oceanodroma . note how the apparent shape , size and contrast of the white patch at the primary bases and of the pale upperwing bar appear to change with angle and light . tubenoses project & extreme gadfly petrel expeditions © hadoram shirihai
identification - dark with white rump the first storm - petrel you are likely to see in new england waters is the wilson ' s storm - petrel or wsp . the first characteristic you will notice is that it is a dark bird with a prominent white rump . your identification problem will be to separate it from the three other dark with white rump storm - petrels possible in our waters . separating new england storm - petrels . in this awesome photograph taken by scott spangenberg you can see the primary field marks of the wsp . the most prominent feature is the complete , white band on the rump . when flying the long legs trail behind the tail . ( 1 ) . there are white bands on both upper wings that do not reach the leading edge of the wing . ( 2 ) notice the straight trailing edge of the wings in calm winds . ( 3 )
wilson’s storm petrels feed by running along the surface of the water with wings outstretched and the bill ( or their entire head ) submerged in the water to scoop in their food , taking minutiae from the surface . they feed on crustacea ( amphipods and euphausia ) , cephalopods ( squid ) , fish , offal , etc .
wilson ' s storm - petrel breeds on rocky islets , on cliffs and amongst boulder scree . it prefers to feed mainly in cold waters over continental shelves or inshore , with a diet of comprised mainly of planktonic crustaceans ( especially krill ) and fish ( del hoyo et al . 1992 ) . its diet shifts from mainly crustaceans during egg formation to an increased proportion of fish during chick - rearing and moulting ( quillfeldt et al . 2005 ) .
2 . the bird is named after alexander wilson , a scottish - american naturalist who is called the “father of american ornithology . ”
wilson ' s storm petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) characteristically feeds by ‘hovering’ over the water surface , but its technique for this is unlike that of other flying vertebrates . the kinematics and aerodynamics of this ‘hovering’ flight were investigated to determine the possible sources of lift ; various nonaerodynamic sources of lift were discounted . it is suggested that the storm petrel soars into an ambient , horizontal wind , and thus is not hovering in the usual sense . such soaring into a horizontal wind is only possible if some thrust component counteracts the bird ' s aerodynamic drag , and it is shown that the hydrodynamic drag of the feet through the water is adequate to balance aerodynamic drag . the bird is thus analagous to a kite , where the tension in the string counterbalances the aerodynamic drag of the kite .
the movements of the storm petrel ' s wings during ‘hovering’ suggest that the bird may use the wing - flip mechanism for generation of high lift coefficients ( weis - fogh , 1973 , 1976 ) . such high lift coefficients are required for the bird to ‘hover’ under calm conditions , when ambient wind velocity is less than 5 m s −1 . use of the wing - flip mechanism would enable the bird to ‘hover’ at lower ambient wind velocities . ground effect also contributes to the bird ' s ability to ‘hover’ .
such was the interest sparked by these birds that we began to closely inspect all storm - petrels thereafter .
sex differences in biometrics of european storm petrels ( hydrobates pelagicus ) attracted to playback calls in southern europe .
the diet of the wilson ' s storm - petrel shifts from mainly crustaceans during egg formation to an increased proportion of fish during chick - rearing and moulting ( quillfeldt et al . 2005 ) . fish prey includes antarctic silverside ( pleuragramma antarcticum ) , lanternfish ( protomyctophum bolini ) and norman ' s lanternfish ( p . normani ) . squid are usually taken in higher proportions outside the breeding season . species consumed include the glacial squid ( psychroteuthis glacialis ) and orchomene sp . other items eaten include cirriped larvae , gastropods and nereid worms ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
harrison , p . , m . sallaberry , c . p . gaskin , k . a . baird , a . jaramillo , s . m . metz , m . pearman , m . o ' keeffe , j . dowdall , s . enright , k . fahy , j . gilligan , and g . lillie . 2013 . a nwq species of storm - petrel from chile . auk 130 : 180 - 191 .
carboneras , c . , jutglar , f . & kirwan , g . m . ( 2018 ) . wilson ' s storm - petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) . in : del hoyo , j . , elliott , a . , sargatal , j . , christie , d . a . & de juana , e . ( eds . ) . handbook of the birds of the world alive . lynx edicions , barcelona . ( retrieved from urltoken on 9 july 2018 ) .
the vocalizations of the wilson & apos ; s storm petrel ( class aves ) are described briefly . the functions of these calls was determined by experimental playback . the grating call was highly stereotyped individually , and was used in sexual contexts ( short version ) or agonistic situations ( long version ) . in contrast , the chattering call , displayed only by males , was used for self - advertisement and species recognition . the geographic variation of calls exhibited between two different populations is discussed .
wilson ' s storm - petrels return to breeding sites in late october to early december . during summer , some immatures remain in tropic areas but adults may be distributed within 750 km of breeding sites . the maximum foraging range of breeding birds at south georgia is estimated at 189–250 km and at the antarctic peninsula , 744 km ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
benvenuti , s . , ioalè , p . , gagliardo , a . and bonadonna , f .
naveen , r . ( 1981 ) storm petrels of the world . an introductory guide to their identification . in :
the wilson’s storm - petrel feeds by “running” over the surface . it flies low over the water with dangling legs and outstretched wings . the bill ( or the entire head ) is submerged in the water to seize the food . the birds patter on the water surface with their feet , displaying conspicuously the yellow webs , in order to disturb the preys and to attract them to the surface . dipping , pattering , skimming and shallow - plunging are the usual techniques . they are very gregarious and forage in flocks .
habitat : the wilson’s storm - petrel is strictly marine . during the breeding season , it frequents the cold waters inshore or over the continental shelf . outside this period , it is mainly over pelagic waters . the breeding colonies are established on remote , rocky islands , usually on cliffs or among boulder scree . although it avoids snow and ice , there are some records of birds nesting up to 120 kilometres inland in e antarctica , at 600 metres of elevation . it nests in rock crevices and self - excavated burrows under boulders .
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the views expressed are those of the author ( s ) and are not necessarily those of scientific american .
perneger tv ( 1998 ) what ' s wrong with bonferroni adjustments . brit med j 316 : 1236–1238 .
subspecies and range : the wilson’s storm - petrel has three recognized subspecies . o . o . chilensis breeds in tierra del fuego . outside this period , it can be found at least as far as peru . o . o . oceanicus is present in all major oceans . it breeds on subantarctic islands from cape horn e to kerguelen and heard islands . o . o . exasperatus is also present in all major oceans . it breeds on south sandwich islands , the islands of scotia sea and coastal antarctica . this one is the largest race .
7 . the name “petrel” refers to saint peter and was given to the species because the birds’ hovering makes them look like they are walking on water .
chicks can reach 145 % of adult body weight by fledging , and adult wilson ' s storm - petrels may also increase their body weight during chick raising . this is due to the provisioning of krill in february to march when it is at its peak density in waters surrounding breeding sites ( copestake & croxall 1985 ) . this ability to gain sufficient weight will impact the success of the individual .
the wilson’s storm - petrel returns to the colonies in november / december . they are monogamous , usually with long - term pair - bonds retained from year to year . the nuptial displays include aerial pursuits at night . two or several birds fly fast in circles above the nesting site while calling loudly . it is suggested that the conspicuous white rump is helpful in these displays performed in almost total darkness . the female performs a pre - laying exodus during 10 - 11 days prior to the egg - laying . they are loosely colonial and may share the site with other seabird species .
present address : department of zoology , duke university , durham , north carolina 27706 , u . s . a .
leach ' s storm - petrel , also known as leach ' s petrel and mother cary ' s chicken , is the most widespread procellariiform breeding in the northern hemisphere . more than eight million pairs nest in burrows or crevices on atlantic islands from norway to massachusetts and on pacific islands from baja california to hokkaido , japan . outside the long nesting season , these seabirds disperse widely in the atlantic and pacific oceans , well away from land and mainly in the tropics . millions more nonbreeders , mostly immatures , remain at sea year - round , although many of them visit colonies during the nesting season . small and dark and not usually gregarious or attracted to ships , this species is inconspicuous at sea . even at nesting islands , individuals fly to and from their subterranean nests only at night . many aspects of their lives remain mysteries .
and shows some plumage features suggestive of elliot’s including pale mottling on the belly and a paler underwing panel . some indeed suspect
cramp s , simmons kel ( 1977 ) the birds of the western palearctic , vol . 1 . oxford university press .
on migration in the indian and pacific oceans , the species remains far out to sea ; although first - year birds may follow the coasts of southern continents . birds often congregate and feed at ocean fronts , and are occasionally sighted inshore ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) . in south - east australia , wilson ' s storm - petrels are found over waters of surface temperatures between 9 . 4–22 . 0 °c ( reid et al . 2002 ) .
in the south - west pacific ocean , wilson ' s storm - petrels are observed on passage off new caledonia in march to june ; off vanuatu in october ; the solomon islands in april ; and papua new guinea ( png ) in may and september to november . winter records from southern png , solomon island and the coral sea suggest a possible extension of wintering areas off northern australia to the northern coral sea ( marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
in the waters off of chile ,
fuegian storm - petrel
is very common , usually found within 509 km of the coast between 3 . 10°s and 53 . 63°s ( spear and ainley 2007 ) . similarly , beck ( in murphy 1936 ) recorded this taxa within 250 km of shore . in austral spring , the nonbreeding season , densities of this taxon are greatest off of southern chile , though other concentrations occur extend to northern chile . in austral autumn , the breeding season , concentrations were bifurcated , with the largest numbers off central and southern chile .
flood . r . l . and thomas b . 2007 . identification of ‘black - and - white’ storm - petrels of the north atlantic .
molecular evidence revealed that traditional grouping of all storm - petrels in a single family was paraphyletic # r # r ; precise relationships at higher levels within this order are still disputed , but storm - petrels now generally split into two families , comprising “southern” oceanitidae and “northern” hydrobatidae # r .
this species account is dedicated in honor of bill ellison , a member of the cornell lab of ornithology ' s administrative board .
palma , r . l . , a . j . d . tennyson , c . p . gaskin , and a . jaramillo . 2012 . the scientific name , author , and date for the
fuegian storm - petrel
, a subspecies of oceanites oceanicus from southern south america . notornis 59 : 74 - 78 .
in the caribbean region , wilson ' s storm - petrels occur off guadeloupe mid - february to early august , with a peak in april , and seasonally fairly common around the bahamas from late april to mid - june , but for the most part uncommon in the caribbean . rare to locally fairly common from april to september , but mainly late may to august in the gulf of mexico , with the largest concentrations around the mouth of the mississippi river ( howell 2012 ) .
olivier f , wotherspoon sj ( 2006 ) modeling habitat selection using presence - only data : case study of a colonial hollow nesting bird , the snow petrel . ecol model ( in press )
wilson’s storm - petrel ( oceanites oceanicus ) is known to breed in antarctic and subantarctic latitudes . nests are usually on rocky islets but also occur up to 120 km inland and almost 600 m asl in eastern antarctica . the subspecies chilensis breeds in tierra del fuego but there is increasing evidence that it may also nest in the chilean andes . the chilean ornithologist rafael barros v . found several apparently lost individuals , most of them juveniles still with some downy plumage , in an area of the andes where he lived between 1917 and 1928 . subsequently , in 1936 , robert c . murphy indicated that many birds captured in november–december off valparaíso showed enlarged gonads , implying a possible breeding area nearby .
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wilson ' s storm - petrels lay single egg clutches . both parents incubate the chick , rotating approximately every two days , and attend to the provisioning of chicks . hatching mainly takes place in the first half of february and chicks stay in the nest burrows for about 60 days . during the day , the chick is left unattended and is fed by adults on nocturnal visits until fledging . fledging starts in the second half of march ( gladbach et al . 2009 ; marchant & higgins 1990 ) .
in the antarctic peninsula nests in cavities in glacial rubble , scree , and also in tunnels excavated by the birds under boulders . usually enters and leaves the nest site at night . one egg per nest . both parents incubate the egg and feed the chick . adults , eggs and chicks preyed upon by skuas . ( harrison 1983 ) . an even bigger danger is that the adult , egg , or chick become trapped in the burrow by a heavy snow storm . researchers in antarctica found mummified remains in burrows . when to see look for wilson ' s storm - petrel from june to october on stellwagen bank and even in the harbor in summer . the highest numbers are seen in july and early august . the bird is best observed on very calm seas when you can see it pattering on the water picking up bits of food on the wing .
fowler ja , hulbert me , smith g ( 1986 ) sex ratio in a sample of storm petrels tape - lured in shetland . seabird 9 : 15–19 .
robbins , c . s . ( 1983 ) . golden field guide to birds of north america . golden press . 360p . [ details ]
west coast pelagic trips have started using beef suet as chum and are having more success at getting the storm - petrels closer to the boat . on a socal over night trip a large flock of black storm - petrels and fork - tailed storm - petrels responded to suet that had been put through a hamburger meat grinder . a large flock of least storm - petrels ignored the commotion . on the atlantic side , band - rumped storm - petrels that usually make a single pass by the boat and are gone also responded to suet that had been put through a meat grinder . the birds made pass after pass over the suet . it is hard to get the butcher to grind suet for you , but you need very small piece of suet for the birds to pick up quickly as they fly over the water .
habitat : widespread in the world’s oceans . some authorities consider it the world’s most abundant seabird . certainly , it is the most abundant pelagic bird in the north atlantic for much of the warmer months ( apr into oct ) , even though it nests at islands in the far southern oceans .
i should note that ‘petrel’ is supposed to be pronounced in similar fashion to the name peter , since it apparently originated as a diminutive form of that name ( and hence started out as ‘peter - el’ ) . the books say that petrels are named after st . peter since he “walked ( somewhat fearfully ) on the stormy sea of galilee at christ’s invitation” ( lockley 1983 , p . 8 ) . the irony here is that the ‘water walking’ behaviour referred to here is practised by storm - petrels , not by petrels proper ( storm - petrels don’t really walk on the water ; rather , they patter across the surface with their large webbed feet while flying ) [ adjacent image , showing this behaviour , by patrick coin ] . so , petrels – most of which are speedy soarers – are named after the idiosyncratic behaviour practised by storm - petrels .
olivier f , wotherspoon sj ( 2005 ) gis based applications of resource selection functions to the prediction of snow petrel distribution and abundance in east antarctica : comparing models at multiple scales . ecol model 189 : 105–129
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intriguing are inland reports of wilson ' s storm - petrels from the andes that suggest the possibility of an inland component to the species ' range ( marin 2002 , alvaro jaramillo , personal communications ) . several reports from as far as 110 km inland and 1400 m in elevation of adults and juveniles mostly april and may ( though there are several from late january through march ) , and even small flocks encountered in las cuevas , mendoza , argentina in january , 1940 ( zotta 1944 ) . though these sightings may be attributed to vagrancy , the number of storm - petrel records from the andes and evidence such as a bird found with an egg in its oviduct underneath the eyrie of a peregrine falcon ( falco peregrinus ) ( alvaro jaramillo , personal communication ) point to nesting somewhere inland , likely the andes . in the northern hemisphere , oceanites rarely occur as vagrants after storms so the same is assumed in the southern hemisphere .
at sea ,
fuegian storm - petrel ( o . o . chilensis ) is found in the highest density over the continental slope within the humboldt current . densities of this taxon decrease with sea surface temperature and wind speed , and increase with sea surface salinity ( spear and ainley 2007 ) . the subspecies oceanicus and exasperatus are found in the deep waters of the south equatorial current .
when it blows a hard gale of wind the stormy petrel makes its appearance . while the sea runs mountains high , and every wave threatens destruction to the labouring vessel , this little harbinger of storms is seen enjoying itself , on rapid pinion , up and down the roaring billows . when the storm is over it appears no more . it must have been hatched in æolus ' s cave , amongst a clutch of squalls and tempests ; for whenever they get out upon the ocean it always contrives to be of the party . — charles waterton