Souvenir sheet for Birdlife International: the Southern Giant Petrel Macronectes giganteus
Southern giant-petrels (Macronectes giganteus) breed on the Antarctic continent, Antarctic Peninsula and on sub-Antarctic islands including Heard Island, South Georgia, Marion, and Iles Crozet. They nest in ice-free coastal areas, rocky bluffs, open flats, edges of plateaux or offshore rocks. However, even though nests may be totally covered by snow, the parental birds often continue to sit on them to protect their eggs or chicks from the potentially fatal cold.
They have two distinct colour phases, which are white and dark. The dark phase adults have a grey-brown body with white head, neck and brown speckled breast. Juveniles of dark phase birds have a dark brown body with a dark brown iris.. White phase birds are completely white except for a few scattered dark feathers and generally constitute a maximum of 5% of a population.
Southern giant-petrels tend to return to the same nesting sites every breeding season. Some pairs have been observed returning to the same nest year after year. They will defend their eggs and small chicks. Both adult birds and chicks can regurgitate food and oils to a distance of a metre or more if they are disturbed. They feed on krill, squid, fish, other small seabirds, and carcasses of marine mammals. However, it has been shown that there is a significant dietary difference between the sexes. Females feed more on live prey at sea such as krill, squid, and fish, whereas males feed more on carrion.
Above text based on that written by Eric Woehler, AAD and Yuzuru Hyakutake, AADC.
Text below from these sources: Tony Soper, Antarctica, a guide to the wildlife, Bradt Books, 2000, and Jeff Rubin, Antarctica, Lonely Planet, 2000
| Although most individuals are grey, this species has a
wide colour range from black, brown to almost white. Due to their size and
tendency to follow ships at sea they are sometimes confused with small or
juvenile albatrosses. As the "vultures of the Antarctic" they scavenge on
mainly on carrion (mostly penguin) but are known to hunt in groups. Giant
petrels can be very vicious, often seen in bloody attacks on penguins or
young chicks, or tearing flesh from seal or whale carrion. While at sea they
catch fish, squid and anything else that is edible. Another name given to
giant petrels is "stinker", which comes from their ability to spit (with
accuracy) a blob of oil and food at their attacker. Breeding in loose
groups their eggs hatch in 60 days, and the chicks fledge 4 months later. Although not endangered, giant petrels are often caught in long line fishing hooks, and are easily disturbed from their nests. Stats: Length: 85 - 100 cm Wingspan: 180 - 205 cm |