Pycroft's petrel (Pterodroma pycrofti ) is a species of seabird in the petrel and shearwater family Procellariidae.
A piscivore is a carnivorous animal that eats primarily fish. Piscivorous is equivalent to the Greek-derived word ichthyophagous. Fish were the die...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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CongregatoryCongregatory animals tend to gather in large numbers in specific areas as breeding colonies, for feeding, or for resting.
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Precocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
A burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
Soaring birds can maintain flight without wing flapping, using rising air currents. Many gliding birds are able to "lock" their extended wings by m...
Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, b...
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MigratingAnimal migration is the relatively long-distance movement of individual animals, usually on a seasonal basis. It is the most common form of migrati...
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starts withThe Pycroft's petrel is small, measuring 26 cm (10 in) in length and weighing between 112–198 g (4.0–7.0 oz). The plumage of the Pycroft petrel is grey and white; the upperparts are grey (with a darker M pattern on the back) and the underparts and forehead are white. It has a faint grey band across the breast and a dark grey patch around the eye.
The breeding habitat of the Pycroft's petrel is temperate forests with soft soils on offshore islands.
Little is known about its diet, but it is known to eat squid and crustaceans. Outside the breeding season it is thought to feed in the Central Pacific, and has been recorded as far as Japan, the United States, United States Minor Outlying Islands, and Wallis and Futuna Islands.
The species only breeds in New Zealand, nesting on 11 islands off the North Island. Breeding colonies are found on Stephenson Island, the Poor Knights Islands, Hen and Chickens Islands, and Mercury Islands. It used to also breed on Norfolk Island and Lord Howe Island, but has since become extinct there.
The breeding season begins in October when birds return to their colony; laying is synchronised and happens between 21 November and 10 December. This species lays a single egg in a burrow. The nesting burrows are 30 to 130 cm (12–51 in) long and the nesting chamber is lined with leaves. Both parents incubate the egg, with the male taking the first shift. This first incubation shift lasts 10–14 days. Chicks hatch 45 days after laying. Chicks leave the nest in around 80 days after hatching, and are not fed for the last week they are in the nest.
Chicks and eggs are sometimes eaten by tuatara. The species is threatened by introduced rats, which prey on nesting eggs and nestlings.
The species is listed as vulnerable by the IUCN Red List. Efforts to remove rats and other introduced predators from their breeding colonies have resulted in a recovery for this species, and its numbers are now increasing.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...