Stejneger's petrel (''Pterodroma longirostris'') is a

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 s ...

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 a member of the

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 ...

s. The bird is 26–31 cm in size, with a 53–66 cm wingspan. This species is 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 ...

, rarely approaching land, except to nest and rear young. It occurs in the Pacific Ocean, nesting in the

Cerro de Los Inocentes Cerro de Los Inocentes (meaning "Hill of the Innocents" in Spanish) is the highest mountain in the Juan Fernández Islands, Valparaíso Region, Chile. It is a nesting ground for the Stejneger's petrel. Geography This high peak rises above the ...

mountain of the

Juan Fernández Islands The Juan Fernández Islands ( es, Archipiélago Juan Fernández) are a sparsely inhabited series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean reliant on tourism and fishing. Situated off the coast of Chile, they are composed of three main volcanic i ...

off

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It is a transequatorial migrant, finding its way to subtropical waters off Japan before returning to its nesting sites. It has been reported well off the west coast of the United States. Stejneger's petrel nests in burrows. It prefers slopes and ridges in areas of dense

fern A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...

forests. The population of this bird is decreasing due to introduced cats on its breeding islands. It is considered a vulnerable species because of its restricted breeding range. The common name commemorates the Norwegian ornithologist Leonhard Hess Stejneger.

References

* "National Geographic" ''Field Guide to the Birds of North'' ''America'' *'' Seabirds, an Identification Guide'' by Peter Harrison, (1983) *''Handbook of the Birds of the World Vol 1'', Josep del Hoyo editor,

External links

BirdLife species factsheet

Stejneger's petrel Stejneger's petrel (''Pterodroma longirostris'') is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is 26–31 cm in size, with a 53–66 cm wingspan. This species is highly pelagic, rarely approaching land, except t ...

Birds of the Pacific Ocean Birds of Chile Taxa named by Leonhard Stejneger

{{Procellariiformes-stub