Muttonbirding is the seasonal harvesting of the chicks of

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 f ...

s, especially

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 shearwa ...

species, for food, oil and feathers by recreational or commercial hunters. Such hunting of petrels and other seabirds has occurred in various locations since prehistoric times, and there is evidence that many island populations have become extinct as a result. More recently ‘muttonbirding’ usually refers to the regulated and sustainable harvesting of shearwaters in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. Anderson, Atholl. (1998). Origins of Procellariidae Hunting in the Southwest Pacific. ''International Journal of Osteoarchaeology'' 6(4): 403–410. These include the

short-tailed shearwater The short-tailed shearwater or slender-billed shearwater (''Ardenna tenuirostris''; formerly ''Puffinus tenuirostris''), also called yolla or moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in A ...

, also known as the yolla or Australian muttonbird, in

Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, as well as the

sooty shearwater The sooty shearwater (''Ardenna grisea'') is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand, it is also known by its Māori name , and as muttonbird, like its relatives the wedge-tailed shearwater (''A. pacificus' ...

, also known as the titi or New Zealand muttonbird, on several small islands known as the

Muttonbird Islands Muttonbird or mutton bird may refer to species of petrel, especially shearwaters, whose young are harvested for food and other uses before they fledge in Australia and New Zealand. The English term "muttonbird" originally emerged among settlers on ...

, scattered around

Stewart Island Stewart Island ( mi, Rakiura, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across the Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a total land ar ...

in the far south of New Zealand. Mutton-bird-egging-chappell-island-1893-377736-medium

Australia

Licensed commercial harvesting of short-tailed shearwater chicks on the coast and islands of Tasmania began in 1903, although it had long been a traditional form of subsistence harvesting by

Aboriginal Tasmanians The Aboriginal Tasmanians (Palawa kani: ''Palawa'' or ''Pakana'') are the Aboriginal people of the Australian island of Tasmania, located south of the mainland. For much of the 20th century, the Tasmanian Aboriginal people were widely, and ...

and European settlers there. However, by the late 20th century the industry was declining due to falling demand for the product and reduced interest by younger Indigenous people in the main area of activity, the islands of the

Furneaux Group The Furneaux Group is a group of approximately 100 islands located at the eastern end of Bass Strait, between Victoria and Tasmania, Australia. The islands were named after British navigator Tobias Furneaux, who sighted the eastern side of th ...

.Skira, I. (1996). "Aboriginal people and muttonbirding in Tasmania". In: M. Bomford & J. Caughley (eds),''Sustainable use of wildlife by Aboriginal Peoples and Torres Strait Islanders'', Bureau of Resource Sciences: Canberra.

New Zealand

The harvesting of sooty shearwater chicks on 36 islands, known as the Titi or Muttonbird Islands, around

Rakiura Rakiura may refer to: * Stewart Island/Rakiura, the third-largest island of New Zealand * ''Rakiura'' (insect), a genus of insects endemic to New Zealand * Rakiura National Park Rakiura National Park is a nature reserve park located on Stewar ...

(Stewart Island), is managed entirely by Rakiura

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

, with about 250,000 being harvested each year. There is some evidence that this harvest has been occurring since at least the 17th century.Hawke, David; Newman, Jamie; Moller, Henrik; & Wixon, John. (2003). A possible early muttonbirder’s fire on Poutama, a Rakiura titi island, New Zealand. ''Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand'' 33(2): 497–507.

Muttonbirds

Muttonbird may refer to various

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...

s, particularly

s in the genus ''

Puffinus ''Puffinus'' is a genus of seabirds in the order Procellariiformes that contains about 20 small to medium-sized shearwaters. Two other shearwater genera are named: ''Calonectris'', which comprises three or four large shearwaters, and ''Ardenna'' ...

'', called

s, where the young birds are harvested for food and oil by being extracted by hand from the nesting burrows before they fledge. The English term "muttonbird" originally emerged among settlers on

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together with ...

as the strong taste and fattiness of these birds' meat was likened to mutton. Others have compared it to fish or seafood in flavour. Some species are: *

Short-tailed shearwater The short-tailed shearwater or slender-billed shearwater (''Ardenna tenuirostris''; formerly ''Puffinus tenuirostris''), also called yolla or moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in A ...

, a seabird that nests in south-eastern Australia, particularly in the

of islands in eastern

Sooty shearwater The sooty shearwater (''Ardenna grisea'') is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand, it is also known by its Māori name , and as muttonbird, like its relatives the wedge-tailed shearwater (''A. pacificus' ...

, a seabird that nests mainly in

and islands in the South

Atlantic Ocean 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 ...

Wedge-tailed shearwater The wedge-tailed shearwater (''Ardenna pacifica'') is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It is one of the shearwater species that is sometimes referred to as a muttonbird, like the sooty shearwater of New Zealand and ...

, found throughout the tropical and subtropical parts of the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

s *

Manx shearwater The Manx shearwater (''Puffinus puffinus'') is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx shearwaters were called Manks puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an ...

, breeding in the

North 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 ...

region, was harvested in historical times *

Cape Verde shearwater The Cape Verde shearwater (''Calonectris edwardsii''), or cagarra locally, is a medium-large shearwater, a seabird in the petrel family Procellariidae. It is endemic to the Cape Verde archipelago of Macaronesia in the Atlantic Ocean, off the co ...

, breeding in the

Cape Verde , national_anthem = () , official_languages = Portuguese , national_languages = Cape Verdean Creole , capital = Praia , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , demonym ...

archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean, has declined because of over-harvesting *

Grey-faced petrel The grey-faced petrel (''Pterodroma gouldi'') is a petrel endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori language, Māori name and (along with other species such as the sooty shearwater) as a Muttonbird ...

(''Pterodroma gouldi'') * Providence petrels, harvested to extinction on

in the early 19th century but still existing on

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland P ...

, were known as 'muttonbirds' or 'flying sheep'

References

{{reflist

External links

Keep the Titi Forever

* ttp://www.muttonbird.net.au/Recipes.html Muttonbird recipes
Muttonbirding in New Zealand

A Seaweed Pantry
–

Tales from Te Papa ''Tales From Te Papa'' is a television series of mini-documentaries about objects from the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (Te Papa) and the activities of the Museum staff. The series is a partnership between Television N ...

Episode 100 – A short YouTube video about muttonbirding Game birds Bird mortality Poultry dishes Māori cuisine Society of New Zealand Māori society Hunting in New Zealand Bird hunting Seabirds

Australia

New Zealand

Muttonbirds

See also

References

Further reading

External links