Black-bellied Storm Petrel

Photo by WickWelsh
Pelagic off Cape Town, South Africa, October 2016

Fregetta tropica

Identification

19·5–21 cm (7¾-8¼ in)

• Black upperparts, head and upper breast, darker on the wings and tail
• White belly, upper tail-coverts, some of the under tail-coverts on each side edged with white, pure white long inner wing-coverts and axillary plumes
• Black iris, bill and legs

Flight

Their feet just protrude beyond the tail when flying.

Distribution

Antarctica, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Falkland Islands, French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, Madagascar, Mozambique, New Zealand, Oman, Peru, Saint Helena, Sao Tomé and Principe, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Uruguay, and Vanuatu.

Taxonomy

There are 2 subspecies^[1]

• F. t. tropica:

• Subantarctic circumpolar islands; ranges north to tropics

• F. t. melanoleuca:

• Tristan da Cunha and Gough islands

Habitat

Highly pelagic. Rarely near land except when breeding.

Behaviour

they readily follow ships.

Diet

The diet consists of squid, small fish and crustaceans.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved October 2016)
3. Wikipedia

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Black-bellied Storm Petrel. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 25 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-bellied_Storm_Petrel

External Links

Search for photos of Black-bellied Storm Petrel in the gallery

• View more images of this species on Orientalbirdimages