BirdUp · Species
White-necked Petrel
Pterodroma cervicalis(Salvin, 1891)
Updated
- Order
- PROCELLARIIFORMES
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Pterodroma
At a glance
The White-necked Petrel is a large bird, about 43 cm long, native to Australia. It is best seen in summer.
- Size
- 43 cm
- Origin
- Native
- Best seen
- Summer
- Commonness
- Common
01 · Identification
How to tell it apart
What does a White-necked Petrel look like?
The White-necked Petrel is a large bird, about 43 cm long and weighing 380–545 g.
The white-necked petrel, also known as the white-naped petrel, is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. During the non-breeding season it occurs throughout a large part of the Pacific, but it is only known to breed on Macauley Island in New Zealand's Kermadec Islands and the Australian territory of Norfolk Island and Phillip Island. It formerly bred on Raoul Island, but has now been extirpated from this locality due to predation by rats and cats. Reports of breeding on Merelava, Vanuatu, are more likely to be the very similar Vanuatu petrel, P. occulta, which some consider to be a subspecies of the white-necked petrel. The IUCN rating as vulnerable is for the "combined" species.
Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
03 · When
When to look
When can you see a White-necked Petrel?
The White-necked Petrel is recorded across its Australian range mainly in January, February, March, April, June, November and December.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
05 · Behaviour
Habits and haunts
What does a White-necked Petrel eat?
The White-necked Petrel feeds on fish/invertebrates, usually foraging alone.
06 · Gallery
Plumage up close
4 photos
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