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Pachyptila
''Pachyptila'' is a genus of seabirds in the family Procellariidae and the order Procellariiformes. The members of this genus and the blue petrel form a sub-group called prions. They range throughout the southern hemisphere, often in the much cooler higher latitudes. Three species, the broad-billed prion (''Pachyptila vittata''), the Antarctic prion (''Pachyptila desolata'') and the fairy prion (''Pachyptila turtur''), range into the subtropics. Taxonomy The genus ''Pachyptila'' was introduced in 1811 by the German zoologist Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger. The name combines the Ancient Greek ''pakhus '' meaning "dense" or "thick" with ''ptilon'' meaning "feather" or "plumage". The type species was subsequently designated as the broad-billed prion by English naturalist Prideaux John Selby in 1840. The English name "prion" comes from the Ancient Greek (', "saw"), in reference to the serrated edges of its bill. All the members of this genus, along with the rest of the Procellariif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slender-billed Prion
The slender-billed prion (''Pachyptila belcheri'') or thin-billed prion, is a species of petrel, a seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is found in the southern oceans. Taxonomy The slender-billed prion was species description, formally described in 1912 by the Australian born ornithologist Gregory Mathews under the binomial name ''Heteroprion belcheri''. The prion is now placed with the other prions in the genus ''Pachyptila'' that was introduced in 1811 by the German zoologist Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek ''pakhus '' meaning "dense" or "thick" with ''ptilon'' meaning "feather" or "plumage". The specific epithet ''belcheri'' was chosen in recognition of the Australian judge and amateur ornithologist Charles Frederic Belcher, Charles Belcher who had found the first specimens dead on a beach near the town of Geelong in the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. The species is considered to be monotypic: no subspecies a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slender-billed Prion
The slender-billed prion (''Pachyptila belcheri'') or thin-billed prion, is a species of petrel, a seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is found in the southern oceans. Taxonomy The slender-billed prion was species description, formally described in 1912 by the Australian born ornithologist Gregory Mathews under the binomial name ''Heteroprion belcheri''. The prion is now placed with the other prions in the genus ''Pachyptila'' that was introduced in 1811 by the German zoologist Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek ''pakhus '' meaning "dense" or "thick" with ''ptilon'' meaning "feather" or "plumage". The specific epithet ''belcheri'' was chosen in recognition of the Australian judge and amateur ornithologist Charles Frederic Belcher, Charles Belcher who had found the first specimens dead on a beach near the town of Geelong in the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. The species is considered to be monotypic: no subspecies a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prion (bird)
The prions () or whalebirds are small petrels in the genera ''Pachyptila'' and '' Halobaena''. They form one of the four groups within the Procellariidae along with the gadfly petrels, shearwaters and fulmarine petrels. The name comes from the Greek ', meaning "saw", a reference of the serrated edges of the birds' saw-like bill. They are found in the Southern Ocean and breed on a number of subantarctic islands. Prions grow long, and have blue-grey upper parts and white underparts. Three species of prion have flattened bills with a fringe of lamellae that act as strainers for zooplankton.Maynard, B. J. (2003) All prions are marine and feed on small crustacea such as copepods, ostracods, decapods, and krill, as well as some fish such as myctophids and nototheniids. List of species * ''Pachyptila'' ** ''Pachyptila turtur'', fairy prion ** ''Pachyptila belcheri'', slender-billed prion ** ''Pachyptila crassirostris'', fulmar prion ** ''Pachyptila vittata'', broad-billed prion ** ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fulmar Prion
The fulmar prion (''Pachyptila crassirostris'') is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae, found in the southern oceans. Etymology Its common name " prion" (not to be confused with the misfolded proteins of the same name) means "saw", referring to the bill; "fulmar" means "foul-gull". The species was once assigned under the now-obsolete genus ''Fulmariprion'' (from "fulmar" and "prion"). The genus '' Pachyptila'' means "thick feathers". Its specific name ''crassirostris'' means "thick-beaked". Taxonomy The fulmar prion is a member of the genus '' Pachyptila'' – and along with the blue petrel – makes up the prions. They in turn are members of the family Procellariidae and the order Procellariiformes. The prions are small and typically eat zooplankton;Maynard, B. J. (2003) however, as a member of the Procellariiformes, they share certain identifying features. First, they have nasal passages that attach to the upper bill called naricorns, although the nostrils on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Salvin's Prion
Salvin's prion (''Pachyptila salvini''), also known as the medium-billed prion, is a species of seabird in the petrel family Procellariidae. Taxonomy Salvin's prion is a member of the genus ''Pachyptila'', and along with the blue petrel, they make up the prions. They in turn are members of the family Procellariidae, and the order Procellariiformes. The prions are small and typically eat just zooplankton;Maynard, B. J. (2003) however as a member of the Procellariiformes, they share certain identifying features. First, they have nasal passages that attach to the upper bill called naricorns. Although the nostrils on the prion are on top of the upper bill. The bills of Procellariiformes are also unique in that they are split into between 7 and 9 horny plates. They produce a stomach oil made up of wax esters and triglycerides that is stored in the proventriculus. This is used against predators as well as an energy rich food source for chicks and for the adults during their long flight ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antarctic Prion
The Antarctic prion (''Pachyptila desolata'') also known as the dove prion, or totorore in Māori, is the largest of the prions, a genus of small petrels of the Southern Ocean. Taxonomy The Antarctic prion was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the other petrels in the genus ''Procellaria'' and coined the binomial name ''Procellaria desolata''. Gmelin based his description on the "brown-banded petrel" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham from a specimen supplied by the naturalist Joseph Banks that had been collected on the "Isle of Desolation", now the Kerguelen Islands. The Antarctic prion is now one of seven prions placed in the genus ''Pachyptila'' that was introduced in 1811 by the German zoologist Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek ''pakhus '' meaning "dense" or "thick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fairy Prion
The fairy prion (''Pachyptila turtur'') is a small seabird with the standard prion plumage of blue-grey upperparts with a prominent dark "M" marking and white underneath. The sexes are alike. This is a small prion of the low subantarctic and subtropic seas. Taxonomy The fairy prion was formally described in 1820 by the German naturalist Heinrich Kuhl under the binomial name ''Procellaria turtur''. It is now placed with the other prions in the genus ''Pachyptila'' that was introduced in 1811 by Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek ''pakhus '' meaning "dense" or "thick" with ''ptilon'' meaning "feather" or "plumage". The specific epithet ''turtur'' is Latin for "turtle dove". The word comes from the Ancient Greek word meaning "a saw", which is in reference to its serrated edges of its bill.Gotch, A. T. (1995) The fairy prion is a member of the genus ''Pachyptila'', and along with the blue petrel makes up the prions. They in turn are members of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Broad-billed Prion
The broad-billed prion (''Pachyptila vittata'') is a small pelagic seabird in the shearwater and petrel family, Procellariidae. It is the largest prion, with grey upperparts plumage, and white underparts. The sexes are alike. It ranges from the southeast Atlantic to New Zealand mainly near the Antarctic Convergence. In the south Atlantic it breeds on Tristan da Cunha and Gough Island; in the south Pacific it breeds on islands off the south coast of South Island, New Zealand and on the Chatham Islands. It has many other names that have been used such as blue-billed dove-petrel, broad-billed dove-petrel, long-billed prion, common prion, icebird, and whalebird. Taxonomy The broad-billed prion was described in 1777 by the German naturalist Georg Forster in his book ''A Voyage Round the World''. He had accompanied James Cook on Cook's second voyage to the Pacific. He included a brief description: "the blue petrel, so called from its having a blueish-grey colour, and a band of bla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Procellariidae
The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the diving petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes (or tubenoses), which also includes the albatrosses and the storm petrels. The procellariids are the most numerous family of tubenoses, and the most diverse. They range in size from the giant petrels with a wingspan of around , that are almost as large as the albatrosses, to the diving petrels with a wingspan of around that are similar in size to the little auks or dovekies in the family Alcidae. Male and female birds are identical in appearance. The plumage color is generally dull, with blacks, whites, browns and grays. The birds feed on fish, squid and crustacea, with many also taking fisheries discards and carrion. Whilst agile swimmers and excellent in water, petrels have weak legs and can only shuffle on land, with the giant petrels of the genus Macronectes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, the petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still called tubenoses in English, procellariiforms are often referred to collectively as the petrels, a term that has been applied to all members of the order,Warham, J. (1996). ''The Behaviour, Population, Biology and Physiology of the Petrels''. London: Academic Press, or more commonly all the families except the albatrosses.Brooke, 2004. They are almost exclusively pelagic (feeding in the open ocean), and have a cosmopolitan distribution across the world's oceans, with the highest diversity being around New Zealand. Procellariiforms are colonial, mostly nesting on remote, predator-free islands. The larger species nest on the surface, while most smaller species nest in natural cavities and burrows. They exhibit strong philopatry, returning to their natal colony to breed and returning to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Georg Forster
Johann George Adam Forster, also known as Georg Forster (, 27 November 1754 – 10 January 1794), was a German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist and revolutionary. At an early age, he accompanied his father, Johann Reinhold Forster, on several scientific expeditions, including James Cook's second voyage to the Pacific. His report of that journey, ''A Voyage Round the World'', contributed significantly to the ethnology of the people of Polynesia and remains a respected work. As a result of the report, Forster, who was admitted to the Royal Society at the early age of twenty-two, came to be considered one of the founders of modern scientific travel literature. After returning to continental Europe, Forster turned toward academia. He taught natural history at the Collegium Carolinum in the Ottoneum, Kassel (1778–84), and later at the Academy of Vilna (Vilnius University) (1784–87). In 1788, he became head librarian at the University of Mainz. Most of his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stomach Oil
Stomach oil is the light oil composed of neutral dietary lipids found in the proventriculus (fore-gut) of birds in the order Procellariiformes. All albatrosses, procellarids (gadfly petrels and shearwaters) and northern and austral storm petrels use the oil. The only Procellariiformes that do not are the diving petrels. The chemical make up of stomach oil varies from species to species and between individuals, but almost always contains both wax esters and triglycerides. Other compounds found in stomach oil include glycerol ethers, pristane and squalene. Stomach oil has low viscosity and will solidify into a hard wax if allowed to cool. It was once thought that stomach oil was a secretion of the proventriculus, but it is now known to be a residue of the diet created by digestion of the prey items such as krill, squid, copepods and fish. It is thought to serve several functions for Procellariiformes, primarily as an energy store; its calorific value is around 40 MJ/kg (9.6 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
