Bird guideGould's Petrel

Small gray-and-white gadfly petrel.

⚠️Endangered
🍃Indigenous: White-Winged Petrel, White-Winged Fulmar

At a glance

FamilyShearwaters and Petrels
SizeMedium
RarityCommon
HabitatPelagic; mostly offshore and over open ocean, occasionally seen from coastal headlands during passage.
Best timeMost reliable in New South Wales from December.

Sounds

Sound sample
0:000:00
Recorded by Greg McLachlan

Range map

Range map

239visible hotspots
24043visible records
2states
Low confidenceMediumHigh confidence

Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.

Species notes

Overview

Note distinctive dark gray cap extending from the crown down the sides of the face, nape and neck to the wing, contrasting with white face. Upperwings dark gray with distinctive dark ‘M’ that extends across the wings. Underparts all white apart from a broad black band at the bend of the wing which extends towards the tip and diagonally back towards, but not reaching, the body. Two subspecies; breeds off of New South Wales and along the central mountain range of New Caledonia respectively. Migrates east and north across Pacific Ocean after breeding. Distinguished from other gadfly petrels by darker cap, and broader dark band on underwing.

Behavior

Can be seen feeding in association with other seabirds, tuna and dolphins.

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