Barau's petrel (''Pterodroma baraui'') is a medium-sized
gadfly petrel
The gadfly petrels or ''Pterodroma'' are a genus of about 35 species of petrels, part of the seabird order Procellariiformes. The gadfly petrels are named for their speedy weaving flight, as if evading gadflies (horseflies). The flight action is ...
from the
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
Procellariidae. Its main breeding site is the island of
Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
.
Etymology
The name commemorates Armand Barau, an agricultural engineer and
ornithologist
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...
from the
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
territory
A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal.
In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...
of
Réunion
Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...
in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
. It is one of the most
recently discovered species of
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 ...
and was only described in 1964, although it was known to local people prior to that.
Description
Barau's petrel is around 40 cm long, and has white undersides and forehead. Its bill is black and its upper parts are dark, with a moderately distinct "M" pattern across the wings and back.
Distribution and habitat
Barau's petrel ranges across the Indian Ocean from Réunion to
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
and
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
. With the exception of a single nest found on the island of
Rodrigues
Rodrigues (french: Île Rodrigues, link=yes ; Creole: ) is a autonomous outer island of the Republic of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, about east of Mauritius. It is part of the Mascarene Islands, which include Mauritius and Réunion. Rodr ...
the bulk of the population is thought to nest on Réunion.
Behaviour
Feeding
The petrels are highly
pelagic
The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean, and can be further divided into regions by depth (as illustrated on the right). The word ''pelagic'' is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or wa ...
at sea, preying on small fish (10 cm) by surface-seizing and plunge diving. They will associate with other species while feeding.
Breeding
Their
colonies
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
are unusual in being far inland and at high elevations; they dig burrows under the forest at around 2,400-2,700m above sea level. The breeding biology of the species has not been studied but it is inferred that they have a 55-day incubation period and take around 100–120 days to
fledge
Fledging is the stage in a flying animal's life between hatching or birth and becoming capable of flight.
This term is most frequently applied to birds, but is also used for bats. For altricial birds, those that spend more time in vulnerable c ...
a chick. Unlike most burrow nesting procellariids, Barau's petrels begin to return to their colonies
diurnally, returning in the late afternoon and riding the thermal
updrafts to conserve energy. The chicks fledge between November and February. Sites which have been identified by
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
as being important for the conservation of the species include the
Grand Bénard – Tapcal and
Piton des Neiges – Gros Morne Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
s (IBAs) on Réunion where
breeding colonies exist.
Status and conservation
250px, Release of a rescued fledgling
Barau's petrel is considered to be an
endangered species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...
. It has a highly restricted breeding range and has suffered
hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
pressure in the past. While the shooting of the species has now been stopped, and the population seems to have recovered, it is currently threatened by
introduced species
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...
and
light pollution
Light pollution is the presence of unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive use of artificial Visible spectrum, lighting. In a descriptive sense, the term ''light pollution'' refers to the effects of any poorly implemented lighting, during the day ...
. Young birds, particularly fledglings, are disorientated by artificial lights such as streetlights or the floodlights of sporting venues, which they mistake for
bioluminescent
Bioluminescence is the production and emission of light by living organisms. It is a form of chemiluminescence. Bioluminescence occurs widely in marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some Fungus, fungi, microorganisms including ...
squid
True squid are molluscs with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight arms, and two tentacles in the superorder Decapodiformes, though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also called squid despite not strictly fitting t ...
, and lead them to fail reach the sea. It is estimated that as much as 40% of each breeding season's fledglings get confused in this fashion.
Conservation
Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws.
Conservation may also refer to:
Environment and natural resources
* Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...
organisations work with local people to catch disorientated chicks and release them back at sea, a program that is thought to rescue most of the lost chicks. Measures are also underway to reduce light pollution by shielding light sources so that they don't attract young birds, a method that has been used to help
Newell's shearwater
Newell's shearwater or Hawaiian shearwater (''ʻaʻo''), (''Puffinus newelli'') is a seabird in the family Procellariidae. It belongs to a confusing group of shearwaters which are difficult to identify and whose classification is controversial. I ...
s in
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
.
References
*Brooke, M. (2004). ''Albatrosses And Petrels Across The World'' Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK
*Le Corre, M., Ollivier, A., Ribes, S., Jouventin, P., (2002) "Light-induced mortality of petrels: a 4-year study from Réunion Island (Indian Ocean)" ''Biological Conservation'' 105: 93–10
Further reading
*
External links
BirdLife Species FactsheetPhotos
{{Taxonbar, from=Q790267
Pterodroma, Barau's petrel
Barau's petrel
Barau's petrel (''Pterodroma baraui'') is a medium-sized gadfly petrel from the family Procellariidae. Its main breeding site is the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
Etymology
The name commemorates Armand Barau, an agricultural engineer a ...
Birds of the Indian Ocean
Birds of Mauritius
Birds of Réunion
Fauna of Rodrigues
Birds of Western Australia
Barau's petrel
Barau's petrel (''Pterodroma baraui'') is a medium-sized gadfly petrel from the family Procellariidae. Its main breeding site is the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
Etymology
The name commemorates Armand Barau, an agricultural engineer a ...
Barau's petrel
Barau's petrel (''Pterodroma baraui'') is a medium-sized gadfly petrel from the family Procellariidae. Its main breeding site is the island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean.
Etymology
The name commemorates Armand Barau, an agricultural engineer a ...