Herald Petrel (Pterodroma arminjoniana)
The Herald Petrel (Pterodroma arminjoniana) is a medium-sized bird belonging to the Procellariidae family. It is a sea bird and spends much of its life out on or above the ocean, only really visiting nesting grounds during breeding season. It is generally found in water below the Equator but you may find these birds as far north as North Carolina on occasion. One of their more notable breeding grounds is that of Raine Island and other small cays in the Coral Sea where it can forage comfortably in the surrounding ocean. When looking for breeding grounds, the Herald Petrel favours warm islands with soils which are well suited for nesting burrows. It feeds on squid and crustaceans which it skims from just below the surface of the water with its bill only to be ingested later whilst the bird is in flight.
When you look at the Herald Petrel, you will find that its body measures roughly 36-41 cm in length with a wingspan of 97-102 cm. Generally speaking, the whole bird is grey with some green showing on the nape and upper tail. The body has no patterning whatsoever. The Herald Petrel also has a hooked, seasbird-shaped bill and a pointed tail. The wings are also quite pointed in shape while the legs are pink in colour. Birdwatchers should note that there are three different colour morphs of the Herald Petrel: light, intermediate and dark. The light morph has a white chests and belly while its upperparts are a dark grey. The dark morph has a dark grey body overall with a silver-grey or white base on its underwing flight feathers. The intermediate morph is mixture of the light and dark morph.
When the time comes for the Herald Petrel to breed, both sexes will work together to excavate or clean out a burrow. Once this is done, the female lays only one egg in a sparse, un-lined burrow and both the male and female share incubation duties. After 49-54 days, the eggs hatch and a new Herald Petrel is born. Herald Petrels have only one brood a year.
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