Antarctica (NB), Australia (B) (NB), Falkland Islands (Malvinas), French Southern Territories (B), Namibia, New Zealand (B), South Africa (B), South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, St Helena (B).
Vagrant to Brazil, Israel, Jordan, Mozambique, Uruguay (NB).
Breeds at islands in the New Zealand region, the North and South Atlantic Oceans and the Indian Ocean. Rare visitor to the seas off southern Australia.
Voice
A low-pitched musical wail, usually repeated several times uttered in flight. Usually silent at sea. Never heard calling from the ground. Young utter a repeated piping 'pee-chee' call.
Soft-plumaged Petrel (Pterodroma mollis) [XC510487]
by id from Murphy's Hill, Chatham Island, New Zealand (flight call, wing noises)
Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia. Breeds at islands in the New Zealand region, the North and South Atlantic Oceans and the Indian Ocean (August - May).
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Nest
A chamber at the end of a burrow, lined with leaves. In colonies on oceanic islands.
Eggs (Guide)
1; white; oval; about 58 x 43 mm. Incubation: about 50 days; by both sexes.
Young
Semi-altricial, nidicolous. Fledge in about 91 days. Tended by both parents.
Subspecies
The following subspecies, feae breeds on Cape Verde Island and Desertas Island off Madeira and madeira are no longer recognised.
Subspecies mollis found in Australian waters.
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
mollis (Gould, 1844) - Tristan da Cunha, Gough I; Antipodes I.
dubia Clancey et al., 1981 - Prince Edward Is, Crozet, Kerguelen, Amsterdam Is.
Similar Species
White-headed Petrel (Pterodroma lessonii) which is larger, paler and has a suborbital patch isolated on a mainly pale head, Mottled Petrel (Pterodroma inexpectata) which has a dark abdomen and a strikingly patterned white underwing with a pronounced black carpal bar, Magenta Petrel (Pterodroma magentae) which has a more pronounced hood, without any white on the chin, face and throat and with more uniformly dark upperparts and Grey Petrel (Procellaria cinerea) which is much larger and has a darker head, dark under tail-coverts and a larger, paler bill.
References
See References.
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
BirdLife International Species Factsheet