Band-rumped Storm Petrel

Overview

The band-rumped storm petrel, also known as the Madeiran or Harcourt's storm petrel (Hydrobates castro), is a small seabird in the family Hydrobatidae classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• 19–21 cm in length with a 43–46 cm wingspan and a weight of 44–49 g.
• Mainly brownish black plumage with an extensive white rump.
• Features a forked tail and long wings, distinct from the more deeply forked tail and 'tern-like' flight of Leach's storm petrel.
• Exhibits a 'shearwater-like' flight pattern.

Habitat

This species breeds on islands in the warmer parts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, including the Berlengas, Azores, Madeira, Canary Islands, Saint Helena, eastern Japan, Kauai, Hawaii, and the Galápagos Islands. It spends the non-breeding period at sea and nests in colonies close to the sea within rock crevices.

Diet

Individuals feed by picking up prey items such as invertebrates, small vertebrates, and occasionally carrion directly from the water surface.

Did you know?

The species is strictly nocturnal at breeding sites to avoid predation by gulls and diurnal raptors, and will even avoid coming to land on clear moonlit nights.