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Pseudobulweria
__NOTOC__ ''Pseudobulweria'' is a genus of seabirds in the family Procellariidae. They have long been retained with the gadfly petrel genus ''Pterodroma'' despite morphological differences. Mitochondrial DNA cytochrome ''b'' sequence analysis has confirmed the split out of ''Pterodroma'' and places the genus closer to shearwaters. They thus represent either a plesiomorphic lineage still sharing some traits of the ancestral Procellariidae with the gadfly petrels, or convergent evolution of a shearwater to the ecological niche of gadfly petrels. They are a poorly known and highly endangered group: 3 of the 4 extant species are listed by the IUCN as critically endangered. The Tahiti petrel ('' Pseudobulweria rostrata'') is the most familiar and the best studied. Description and ecology They are generally largish darkish petrels, but may have white undersides. They are long-winged and fly about with rather leisurely wingbeats and soar a lot. Though they are attracted by chum, '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiji Petrel
The Fiji petrel (''Pseudobulweria macgillivrayi''), also known as MacGillivray's petrel, is a small, dark gadfly petrel. The Fiji petrel was originally known from one immature specimen found in 1855 on Gau Island, Fiji by naturalist John MacGillivray on board HMS ''Herald'' who took the carcass to the British Museum in London. It was rediscovered in 1983, since when there have been a further 21 records, which included the capture and photographing of one adult in April 1984. This species is classified as critically endangered as it is inferred from the number of records that there is only a tiny population of less than 50 confined to a very small breeding area. This bird is described as being long dark with chocolate-coloured feathers, a dark eye and bill and pale blue foot patches. It may be seen in waters around Gau Island but is believed to disperse to pelagic waters far from the island. The rarity and significance of this species is known to local residents of Gau and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beck's Petrel
Beck's petrel (''Pseudobulweria becki'') is a small species of petrel. Its specific epithet commemorates American ornithologist Rollo Beck. It is believed to nest on small islands with tall mountains around Melanesia. Described in 1928, and long known from only two specimens, sightings and collections in the 2000s confirmed the birds still existed, but are considered critically endangered by the IUCN. Description It is dark brown above and on the head and throat. It is dark underneath the wings with a fairly distinct white wingbar. The belly and breast are white. It flies over open oceans with straight wings that are slightly bent back at the tips. History The petrel used to be known from only two specimens – a female east of New Ireland, PNG in 1928 and a male north-east of Rendova, Solomon Islands in 1929. In 2005, a bird possibly of this species was photographed in Australia's Coral Sea by birding tour guide Richard Baxter. He noted that it was definitely not the similar a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tahiti Petrel
The Tahiti petrel (''Pseudobulweria rostrata'') is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is found in American Samoa, Australia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Mexico, New Caledonia, New Zealand, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and possibly the Cook Islands. It is a pelagic bird of the open seas, but nests in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland. It has been recorded as a vagrant in Hawaii, Taiwan, Japan, Baja California, and, most surprisingly, in North Carolina While there has been limited research done on the Tahiti petrel and its interactions with other species, it has been found that there is a possibility for the Tahiti petrel to coexist with the wedge-tailed shearwater. Due to the petrel's foraging patterns, described as opportunistic, contrasting the shearwater's more aggressive scavenging patterns, there is limite ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pseudobulweria Rostrata
The Tahiti petrel (''Pseudobulweria rostrata'') is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is found in American Samoa, Australia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Mexico, New Caledonia, New Zealand, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and possibly the Cook Islands. It is a pelagic bird of the open seas, but nests in subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland. It has been recorded as a vagrant in Hawaii, Taiwan, Japan, Baja California, and, most surprisingly, in North Carolina While there has been limited research done on the Tahiti petrel and its interactions with other species, it has been found that there is a possibility for the Tahiti petrel to coexist with the wedge-tailed shearwater. Due to the petrel's foraging patterns, described as opportunistic, contrasting the shearwater's more aggressive scavenging patterns, there is limite ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mascarene Petrel
The Mascarene petrel (''Pseudobulweria aterrima'') is a medium-sized, dark petrel. Also sometimes known as the Mascarene black petrel, this species was known from four specimens found in the nineteenth century on the island of Réunion. Two birds were found dead in the 1970s, and there have been rare observations of birds in the waters south of Réunion since 1964. It is also known from subfossil remains from the island of Rodrigues. It is known to breed in very small numbers in the Grand Bassin – Le Dimitile Important Bird Area in the mountains of Réunion. The species is classified as critically endangered as it is inferred from the number of records that there is an extremely small population threatened by introduced species, such as feral cats A feral cat or a stray cat is an unowned domestic cat (''Felis catus'') that lives outdoors and avoids human contact: it does not allow itself to be handled or touched, and usually remains hidden from humans. Feral cats may b ... [...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] |
Petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. Description The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross family, Diomedeidae). Having a fossil record that was assumed to extend back at least 60 million years, the Procellariiformes was long considered to be among the older bird groupings, other than the ratites, with presumably distant ties to penguins and loons. However, recent research and fossil finds such as ''Vegavis'' show that the Galliformes (pheasants, grouse and relatives), and Anseriformes (ducks, geese) are still not fully resolved. Known species All the members of the order are exclusively pelagic in distribution—returning to land only to breed. The family Procellariidae is the main radiation of medium-sized true petrels, characterised by united nostrils with medium septum, and a long outer functional primary feather. It is dom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shearwater
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds in the petrel family 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 .... They have a global marine distribution, but are most common in temperate and cold waters, and are pelagic outside the breeding season. Description These Procellariiformes, tubenose birds fly with stiff wings and use a "shearing" flight technique (flying very close to the water and seemingly cutting or "shearing" the tips of waves) to move across wave fronts with the minimum of active flight. This technique gives the group its English name. Some small species, like the Manx shearwater are cruciform in flight, with their long wings held directly out from their bodies. Behaviour Movements Many shearwaters are long-distance migrants, perhaps most s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. Other ways of defining species include their karyotype, DNA sequence, morphology, behaviour or ecological niche. In addition, paleontologists use the concept of the chronospecies since fossil reproduction cannot be examined. The most recent rigorous estimate for the total number of species of eukaryotes is between 8 and 8.7 million. However, only about 14% of these had been described by 2011. All species (except viruses) are given a two-part name, a "binomial". The first part of a binomial is the genus to which the species belongs. The second part is called the specific name or the specific epithet (in botanical nomenclature, also sometimes i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe and Asia from the "New World" of the Americas in the European perception of the World. The Atlantic Ocean occupies an elongated, S-shaped basin extending longitudinally between Europe and Africa to the east, and North and South America to the west. As one component of the interconnected World Ocean, it is connected in the north to the Arctic Ocean, to the Pacific Ocean in the southwest, the Indian Ocean in the southeast, and the Southern Ocean in the south (other definitions describe the Atlantic as extending southward to Antarctica). The Atlantic Ocean is divided in two parts, by the Equatorial Counter Current, with the North(ern) Atlantic Ocean and the South(ern) Atlantic Ocean split at about 8°N. Scientific explorations of the Atlanti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to as the tropical zone and the torrid zone (see geographical zone). In terms of climate, the tropics receive sunlight that is more direct than the rest of Earth and are generally hotter and wetter as they aren't affected as much by the solar seasons. The word "tropical" sometimes refers to this sort of climate in the zone rather than to the geographical zone itself. The tropical zone includes deserts and snow-capped mountains, which are not tropical in the climatic sense. The tropics are distinguished from the other climatic and biomatic regions of Earth, which are the middle latitudes and the polar regions on either side of the equatorial zone. The tropics constitute 40% of Earth's surface area and contain 36% of Earth's landmass. , the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
