The Trindade petrel (''Pterodroma arminjoniana'') is a 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 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 Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

is in size, with an wingspan. The

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 ...

has various color morphs: dark and light, as well as intermediates between the two. Previously, two separate populations were considered conspecific, one occurring in the south

Pacific 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 ...

, sometimes seen 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 ...

; the other occurring in the south

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 an ...

, nesting off

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, with regular sightings in the

Gulf Stream The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Current, North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida a ...

off the southeastern United States. The little-known Pacific birds were then split and determined distinct as the

Herald petrel The Herald petrel (''Pterodroma heraldica'') is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. Its range includes the south Pacific Ocean and Indian Ocean. Description The bird is in size, with an wingspan. It was formerly considered ...

, ''Pterodroma heraldica''. It uses oceanic

islands An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

and

atolls An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can grow ...

, nesting on

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...

ledges, ridges or rocky slopes. On some islands, nesting birds are threatened by

feral cat 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 breed over dozens ...

s and

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include ''Neotoma'' ( pack rats), ''Bandicota'' (bandicoot ...

s. Due to ongoing

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

and small breeding range, this species is evaluated as vulnerable on the

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...

. The specific name is after Vittorio Arminjon, captain of the ship during the voyage in which the specimen was collected.

Notes

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, * "National Audubon Society" ''The Sibley Guide to Birds'', by David Allen Sibley,

External links

BirdLife species factsheet
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1092784

Trindade petrel The Trindade petrel (''Pterodroma arminjoniana'') is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is in size, with an wingspan. The petrel has various color morphs: dark and light, as well as intermediates between the two. ...

Birds of Brazil Birds of the Atlantic Ocean Nature Conservation Act endangered biota