giant petrel

[cateyes]

Hello

Does anyone know where i can find more info on these amazing birds? I saw a nature show that had them on it and aparently they are extremly agressive birds as well! larger stronger and even more agresssive the giant skuas! they are impressive looking as well.

[M Cowming]

Hi,

I suggest doing a google search on Giant Petrel and you should come up with plenty of info. Had the pleasure of seeing a couple in New Zealand a couple of years ago. fantastic birds.
Regards,

[Anhinga Watcher]

Hi cateyes,

Yes, they are indeed amazing birds. And they're HUGE!!! One amazing fact about them is that before they fly off the land, some strong wind is necessary, since their body mass is just too great. Have you seen the "Winged Migration" yet? One of the clips was filmed in Antaractica, and it shows a pair of giant petrels raiding the King Penguin colony. If you want to find giant petrels, you can travel down to the southern parts of New Zealand, but a lot of them would be found in Antaractica. Might want to try New Zealand first, since Antaractica is a bit restricted location for travelers. ;)

Tim

[Jos Stratford]

Pelagics off Cape Town should get you your desired birds, definately more affordable than hacking down to the Antarctic

[Alan henry]

Southern Giant Petrel is a very Common Bird in the Falkland Islands.

Northern Giant Petrel is seen in small numbers


I will post some photographs later today


Best regards


Alan

[Jos Stratford]

Oo, I should have added that Cape Town pelagics can get both - don't remeber which is most common on most trips ( I think it reverses summer/winter), but I did a November trip and got both in small numbers

[Alan henry]

A couple feeding on a stranded Long Finned Pilot Whale

[Rodrigo Tapia]

Hi Cateyes, Giant Petrels (Macronectes, Procellariidae), both Southern (M. giganteus) and Northern (M.halli), are very similar in shape, size and behaviour. Both can be found in the Humboldt Current waters, off the coasts of Chile and Southern Peru, especially during non-breeding season. Another surefire way to see them is to take a Pelagic off Valparaiso, in Chile. The Southern Giant is also common in Antarctic waters and breeds in Subantarctic Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, where I took these photos I´m sending to you.
Best regards,
Rodrigo. :flyaway:

[nzflutes]

Hello

Does anyone know where i can find more info on these amazing birds? I saw a nature show that had them on it and aparently they are extremly agressive birds as well! larger stronger and even more agresssive the giant skuas! they are impressive looking as well.


Hey Cateyes..

You might like to look up your search and look for Campbell Island or look up the Sub Antarctic Islands..they are south of NZ..and run by our Conservation Dept..I believe that they breed down there..

Maybe one day you could save your pennies and do a trip down there..there are a few boats that go..it is very wild and rough..and highly supervised..but would be a once in a lifetime trip to remember!!

The Invercargill Museum may also well have info..on them..

Caroline NZ

[Rodrigo Tapia]

Hi Jos,
Here are some (not very good) pictures of juveniles of both species taken in waters of the Humboldt Current some 15 miles off Valparaiso, Chile (Southeastern Pacific), where they are sympatric. Southern (Macronectes giganteus) has a pale green bill tip, whilst Northern (M. halli) has a reddish bill tip. The juveniles of both species are virtually identical in size, shape, colour, flight pattern, behaviour and "jizz", so it´s quite hard to tell them apart in the field from a distance. At close quarters, though, the diagnostic bill tip colour is where it´s at.
:flyaway:


Oo, I should have added that Cape Town pelagics can get both - don't remeber which is most common on most trips ( I think it reverses summer/winter), but I did a November trip and got both in small numbers

[scuba0095]

I beleive these are the only birds ive ever know to actually STEALL FOOD from a skua! I was watching them on a nature show and a skkua found a dead seal and was quickly chased off it by a giant peterl which i found bizzare since skuas are usually the ones doing the chasing!

[Rodrigo Tapia]

Hello, Scuba. Please accept my apologies for the late replies, I intended to answer some of your inquieries at least two times before, but just after I wrote some observations about Giants and their interaction with other Seabirds, I tried to send you those pictures you´ve probably already seen, but apparently private messaging does not support attaching pics. So while fidgeting about trying to figure out how I could send the darn pictures in my reply to you, I moved to another link and when I came back to my message, realised with horror that everything was forever lost. It was late at night, I was a little tired, so I was completely floored by the perspective of recalling and re-writing everything that I had written before the accident. Instead I simply went to the Giant Petrel thread and posted the pictures there.
I´ll be posting it all over again for you luckily this weekend, there´s some field observations I want to humbly share with you. I´m glad you´re interested in this huge and magnificent Birds, that interest is something we share.
All the Best,
Rodrigo. :flyaway:

P.S.: Give my regards to Neil Young. ;)

I beleive these are the only birds ive ever know to actually STEALL FOOD from a skua! I was watching them on a nature show and a skkua found a dead seal and was quickly chased off it by a giant peterl which i found bizzare since skuas are usually the ones doing the chasing!

[albatross02]

Hallo,

many seabirds included Giant Petrel, I saw on a boat trip from Kaikoura ( NZ ).
Also to see are 4 different kind of hugh albatross and Skua.
One of the best spot for seabirds in the wourld.


Best regards
Dieter

[scuba0095]

anyone have any other storyies on these amazing birds?