Birdsong field guide
Northern Giant-Petrel
Macronectes halli
The Northern Giant-Petrel is a massive, aggressive seabird of the Southern Ocean, distinguished by its predatory behavior and heavy, tube-nosed bill.
What it sounds like
A variety of harsh, guttural croaks, rattling winnies, and hissed grunts, particularly during feeding frenzies.
Reference call, compare with what you heard
0:00 / 1:30
Field notes
- Identified by a reddish or brown bill tip (unguis), which distinguishes it from the green-tipped Southern Giant-Petrel.
- Unlike most other petrels, it is a formidable predator on land, capable of walking to hunt penguin chicks and scavenge seal carcasses.
- They possess an exceptional sense of smell, using large external nostrils to locate carrion over vast distances at sea.
- Commonly nicknamed 'stinkers' due to their pungent musky odor and habit of projectile-vomiting foul-smelling stomach oil when threatened.
- Displays sexual dimorphism in foraging, with males typically scavenging on land while females feed more frequently on pelagic cephalopods.
Habitat
Pelagic open ocean and rugged subantarctic islands for nesting.
Range
Circumpolar distribution throughout the Southern Ocean, primarily between 30°S and 64°S.
Similar & commonly confused birds
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