Birdsong field guide
Ainley's Storm-Petrel
Hydrobates cheimomnestes
A small, elusive seabird formerly considered a subspecies of Leach's Storm-Petrel, distinguished by its unique winter breeding cycle.
What it sounds like
A rhythmic series of staccato, chattering notes and low purrs, often described as a 'wicka-wicka' sound.
Reference call, compare with what you heard
No reference call found yet · Xeno-canto
Field notes
- It is an allochronic sibling species to the Townsend's Storm-Petrel, utilizing the same nesting sites but during the opposite season.
- The scientific name 'cheimomnestes' translates from Greek as 'winter-courting,' reflecting its peak activity from November to May.
- It breeds exclusively on small offshore rocks and islets surrounding Guadalupe Island, Mexico.
- Like many Procellariiformes, it is strictly nocturnal at its breeding colonies to avoid predation by gulls and hawks.
- It possesses a highly developed olfactory sense, used both for locating patchy food sources at sea and identifying its specific burrow.
Habitat
Pelagic open ocean; nests in volcanic rock crevices and talus slopes on offshore islets.
Range
Breeds on Guadalupe Island; ranges across the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean toward the Equator.
Similar & commonly confused birds
Ashy Storm-PetrelHydrobates homochroaBand-rumped Storm-PetrelHydrobates castroBlack Storm-PetrelHydrobates melaniaCape Verde Storm-PetrelHydrobates jabejabeEuropean Storm-PetrelHydrobates pelagicusFork-tailed Storm-PetrelHydrobates furcatusGuadalupe Storm-PetrelHydrobates macrodactylusLeach's Storm-PetrelHydrobates leucorhous
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