Other Names (World)
Trindade Petrel, Trinidate Petrel, Round Island Petrel, Trinidad Petrel, Trindade Island Petrel, Trinidad Island Petrel, Herald Petrel
Family
Procellariidae (Petrels, Shearwaters)
Size
34 - 39 cm
Wingspan: 85 - 100 cm
First Described (Guide)
(Gigliolo & Salvadori, 1869)
Derivation
Pter-o'-drom'-a - Gk, pteron, wing; Gk, dromos, race, running: arm-in-jon-i-an'-a - Captain Victor Arminjon, commander of the Magenta
Brazil (B), Atlantic Ocean (Southwestern) (B) (NB).
Vagrant to Argentina, Portugal, Puerto Rico.
Unknown to Mauritius (B).
Population
Estimated population is 1,100 - 15,000 (2010) and stable.
Status VU
Predation by introduced feral pigs, cats and humans, habitat and nest destruction by goats are the main threats.
For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.
Voice
A squeaky sibilant succession of 'hi-hi-hi..' notes accompanied by vigorous body pulsations. Also a staccato 'hik', and chattering, tern-like noises between bickering birds during the breeding season.
Trindade Petrel (Pterodroma arminjoniana) [XC141333]
by Guilherme R R Brito from Round Island, Mauritius (flight call)
Trindade Petrel (Pterodroma arminjoniana) [XC77651]
by Johannes Fischer from Trindade Is., Arquip\u00e9lago de Trindade e Martim Vaz, Brazil (call)
Nest
A hollow on the ground in niches among rocks.
Eggs (Guide)
1; white; oval; 56 - 63 x 41 - 46 mm.
Subspecies
Pterodroma arminjoniana (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Trinidate Petrel (Pterodroma arminjoniana), Herald Petrel (Pterodroma heraldica) and Henderson Petrel (Pterodroma atrata) following Brooke (2004).
Subspecies heraldica sometimes considered separate species. At the other extreme, validity of subspecific division has been questioned. Birds of Easter I sometimes placed in separate subspecies paschae.
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
arminjoniana (Gigliolo & Salvadori, 1869) - Southern Atlantic, at Trinidade and Martin Vaz Is; Indian Ocean, at Round I (Mauritius).
heraldica (Salvin, 1888) - Breeds in the tropical Pacific Ocean (Raine I., Tonga and French Polynesia to Easter I.). Pelagic range incompletely known, but occurs regularly to the central Pacific Ocean. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Herald Petrel (Pterodroma heraldica).
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