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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Procellariidae
  4. ›
  5. Daption
  6. ›
  7. Pintado Petrel
Pintado Petrel
Photo · (c) Flavien Saboureau, some rights reserved (CC BY)

BirdUp · Species

Pintado Petrel

Daption capense(Linnaeus, 1758)

Updated 21 March 2026

Origin: Native
Order
PROCELLARIIFORMES
Family
Procellariidae
Genus
Daption

At a glance

The Pintado Petrel is a large bird, about 35–42 cm long, native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
35–42 cm
Origin
Native
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Very common
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Pintado Petrel look like?

The Pintado Petrel is a large bird, about 35–42 cm long and weighing 342–577 g.

The pintado petrel, also called the Cape petrel, or Cape fulmar, is a common seabird of the Southern Ocean from the family Procellariidae. It is the only member of the genus Daption, and is allied to the fulmarine petrels and the giant petrels. It is an abundant seabird, with an estimated population of around 2 million.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
35–42 cm
Weight
342–577 g
Wingspan
80 cm

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Pintado Petrel?

The Pintado Petrel is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Pintado Petrel eat?

The Pintado Petrel feeds on carrion and fish/invertebrates, usually foraging in flocks.

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Pintado Petrel live in Australia?

The Pintado Petrel is native to Australia, recorded across 29 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingSO, AN : subantarctic and Antarctic is. and coasts

Non-breedingTo tropics in cold waters of Benguela Current of south Africa, south Australasia and Humboldt Current of South America north to Ecuador and south Brazil

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Breeding
  • Non-breeding
  • Passage

7 regions recorded