Procellaria

Procellaria is a genus of Southern Ocean long-winged seabirds related to prions, and within the order Procellariiformes. The black petrel (Procellaria parkinsoni) ranges in the Pacific Ocean, and as far north as Central America. The spectacled petrel (Procellaria conspicillata) is confined to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Westland petrel (Procellaria westlandica) to the Pacific Ocean. The white-chinned (Procellaria aequincotialis) and grey petrel (Procellaria cinerea) range throughout the higher latitudes of the Southern Ocean.

Procellaria
White-chinned petrel (Procellaria aequinoctalis)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Procellariiformes
Family: Procellariidae
Genus: Procellaria
Linnaeus, 1758
Type species
Procellaria aequinoctialis

Taxonomy

The genus Procellaria was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae.[1] The name is from the Latin procella meaning "storm" or "gale".[2] The type species was designated as the white-chinned petrel by George Robert Gray in 1840.[3][4]

The genus Procellaria is within the Procellariinae clade, which includes the Shearwaters (a monophyletic group comprising Puffinus, Ardenna and Calonectris) along with a clade of 7-8 species of small stocky petrels in Bulweria and Pseudobulweria.[5]

Species

There are five extant species, all of which have "petrel" in their common name.[6]

ImageCommon NameScientific nameDistribution
Grey petrel, grey shearwater, or pediunkerProcellaria cinereabreeds on subantarctic islands
White-chinned petrelProcellaria aequincotialisbreeds on subantarctic islands
Spectacled petrelProcellaria conspicillatabreeds on Inaccessible Island – split from P. aequincotialis
Black petrel or Parkinson's petrelProcellaria parkinsonibreeds on Little Barrier Island and Great Barrier Island
Westland petrelProcellaria westlandicabreeds on South Island

Fossil material of an extinct species Procellaria altirostris discovered in New Zealand and dating from the Pliocene was described in 2021.[7]

Description

Procellaria is a member of the family Procellariidae and the order Procellariiformes. As members of Procellariiformes, they share certain characteristics. First they have tubular nostrils called naricorns. This feature gives them their common name, tubenoses. The opening to the nostril is located differently in some birds. These birds have the opening on top of the upper bill. Second, they produce a stomach oil that contains wax esters and triglycerides. This oil fills two functions. When predators threaten the birds or their chick or egg, they spit the substance on them. This substance has an awful smell, and mats the feathers down, degrading their usefulness. Also, they can digest the wax esters for a high energy source of food, during long flights or the period of time that they are incubating their egg or caring for their young. They also have a uniquely structured bill, with seven to nine distinct horny plates.[8] Finally, they have a salt gland that is located above their nasal passages and helps desalinate their body, as they drink seawater. They excrete the salty waste out their nose.[9]

Distribution and habitat

They range from the cold waters of the Southern Ocean to temperate waters, and are pelagic except during the breeding season.

Behaviour

These tubenoses fly like shearwaters, with stiff wings and shearing technique across wave fronts. This technique saves energy. During breeding season they utilize coastal cliffs on islands, laying their single egg in a burrow.[10]

Conservation

The conservation status of bird species are designated by BirdLife International on behalf of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The white-chinned, spectacled and black petrel are classified as "Vulnerable", the grey petrel as "Near-threatened" and the Westland petrel as "Endangered".[11] All five members of the genus are listed in the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels.[12]

References
  1. Linnaeus, Carl (1758). Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis (in Latin). Vol. 1 (10th ed.). Holmiae (Stockholm): Laurentii Salvii. p. 131.
  2. Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 317. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  3. Gray, George Robert (1840). A List of the Genera of Birds : with an Indication of the Typical Species of Each Genus. London: R. and J.E. Taylor. p. 78.
  4. Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1979). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 85.
  5. Estandia, A; Chesser, RT; James, HF; Levy, MA; Ferrer Obiol, J; Bretagnolle, V; Gonzales-Solis, J; Welch, AJ (July 2021). "Substitution rate variation in a robust procellariiform seabird phylogeny is not solely explained by body mass, flight efficiency, population size or life history traits". bioRxiv. doi:10.1101/2021.07.27.453752. S2CID 236502443.
  6. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2021). "Petrels, albatrosses". IOC World Bird List Version 11.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  7. Tennyson, A.J.; Tomotani, B.M. (2021). "A new fossil species of Procellaria (Aves: Procellariiformes) from the Pliocene of New Zealand". Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia. 61: e20216116. doi:10.11606/1807-0205/2021.61.16. S2CID 234091690.
  8. Double (2003).
  9. Ehrlich, Dobkin & Wheye (1988), p. .
  10. Carboneras, C. (1992). "Family Procellariidae (Petrels and Shearwaters)". In del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A.; Sargatal, J. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Barcelona, Spain: Lynx Edicions. pp. 216–257. ISBN 84-87334-10-5.
  11. BirdLife International (2021). "Search for Procellaria". Data Zone. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  12. "Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels". Retrieved 17 December 2021.

Sources
  • Double, M. C. (2003). "Procellariiformes (Tubenosed Seabirds)". In Hutchins, Michael; Jackson, Jerome A.; Bock, Walter J.; Olendorf, Donna (eds.). Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. Volume 8: Birds I Tinamous and Ratites to Hoatzins. Joseph E. Trumpey, Chief Scientific Illustrator (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group. pp. 107–111. ISBN 0-7876-5784-0.
  • Ehrlich, Paul R.; Dobkin, David, S.; Wheye, Darryl (1988). The Birders Handbook (1st ed.). New York, NY: Simon & Schuster. pp. 29–31. ISBN 0-671-65989-8.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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