Black-winged Petrel - BirdForum Opus

Photo by Mat & Cathy
Lord Howe Island, Australia, December 2007

Pterodroma nigripennis

Identification

Photo © by Ken Doy
Lord Howe Island, Australia, February 2019

28–31 cm (11-12¼ in)

• Upperparts ashy-grey
• Upper wings brownish-black
• Underparts white
• Underwing white, with black diagonal stripe
• White forehead, chin and throat
• Greyish collar
• Black bill
• Pinkish legs and feet

Distribution

Asia and Australasia
Breeds in the south-west Pacific; ranges south-central Pacific Ocean

Found around Japan, French Polynesia, Australia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Norfolk Island and, rarely, in the United States.

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species^[1], sometimes thought to be a subspecies of Bonin Petrel^[2].

Habitat

Pelagic when not breeding.

Behaviour

Diet

There is not a lot of information available. They are, however, known to eat cephalopods, prawns and insects.

Breeding

Nests in crevices or burrows.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. New Zealand Birds
4. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved March 2019)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Black-winged Petrel. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Black-winged_Petrel

External Links

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