Birds nocturnal

Great-winged Petrel

Pterodroma macroptera

A dark-feathered nomad of the Southern Ocean, the Great-winged Petrel is a master of high-speed oceanic flight. Known for its winter breeding habits and mysterious nocturnal life, this bird is a prize find for coastal wildlife watchers.

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Quick Identification

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Size

Length: 42–45 cm (16.5–17.7 in); Wingspan: 100–112 cm (39–44 in); Weight: 500–650 g (1.1–1.4 lbs).

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Colors

Uniformly dark chocolate-brown to sooty black across the body and wings. The bill is black, and a distinctive patch of pale grey or white feathers often surrounds the base of the bill and chin.

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Key Features

Large, all-dark gadfly petrel
Stubby, thick black bill with a prominent hooked tip
Long, narrow, pointed wings built for high-speed dynamic soaring
Pale greyish 'mask' or frosting around the face and bill area

When You’ll See Them

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Activity pattern nocturnal

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Peak hours 9 PM - 4 AM (at breeding colonies)

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Season March-November

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Diet Feeds primarily on cephalopods (squid), but also consumes small fish and crustaceans. They are surface-snatchers, grabbing prey from the water's surface at night when squid rise to the upper layers.

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Habitat Pelagic (open ocean); breeds on offshore islands and steep coastal cliffs with soft soil for burrowing.

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Behavior

The Great-winged Petrel is a master of the open ocean, spending the vast majority of its life on the wing. They are famous for their 'dynamic soaring,' a high-speed flight technique that uses the wind gradients above the waves to travel vast distances with minimal energy. Unlike many other petrels, they are highly solitary when at sea, rarely forming large flocks except when food is exceptionally abundant or at productive upwelling zones.

On land, these birds are strictly nocturnal and colonial. They return to their breeding sites under the cover of darkness to avoid predatory gulls and skuas. They are burrow-nesters, often digging deep tunnels into the soil or utilizing rock crevices on remote islands and steep coastal cliffs. While they are silent and stoic at sea, their colonies come alive at night with a chorus of whistling, piping, and 'si-si-si' calls as they communicate with mates and defend their nesting territories.

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Camera Tips

Capturing the Great-winged Petrel on camera is a unique challenge because they are almost never seen on land during the day. If you live near a known coastal breeding site, your best bet is to position your camera near the entrance of a known burrow. These burrows are typically found on steep, vegetated slopes or under the roots of coastal trees. Set your camera low to the ground—about 6 to 12 inches high—and angle it slightly upward to capture the bird's face and bill as it scuttles into the tunnel.

Since these birds are active in pitch darkness, high-quality infrared (IR) or 'no-glow' flash is essential. Standard white flashes will likely startle the birds and may even attract predators to the burrow entrance. Set your camera to video mode or high-speed burst; petrels can be surprisingly clumsy on land, scuttling quickly from the air to the safety of their holes, so a fast trigger speed is vital to avoid capturing just a blur of dark feathers.

Timing is everything with this species. They are winter breeders, returning to land between March and July to prepare burrows. You should focus your monitoring during these months, particularly on nights with low moonlight, as the birds are more active when the sky is dark. During the summer months, the birds are almost entirely pelagic and will not be found near land.

Avoid using any artificial lures or baits, as these can disrupt their natural foraging patterns and may attract invasive predators like rats or feral cats which are the primary threat to petrel colonies. Instead, focus on finding 'launching points'—high rocky outcrops where the birds climb to catch the wind for takeoff.

Lastly, ensure your camera is securely mounted and weather-proofed against salty sea spray. Petrels often land with a bit of a 'thump' and can be quite noisy; if your camera has a microphone, keep it on to capture their unique whistling vocalizations. Check your local regulations before placing cameras near nesting sites, as many of these colonies are in protected conservation areas.

Similar Species

Species that look similar or are commonly confused with Great-winged Petrel.

Grey-faced Petrel

Very similar but has a much lighter grey patch on the face and is primarily found in New Zealand waters.

Sooty Shearwater

Lacks the stubby 'gadfly' bill and has distinct silvery-white flash on the underwings during flight.

Providence Petrel

Smaller with distinctive white patches on the underwings and a different head shape.

Frequently Asked Questions

Great-winged Petrels are strictly nocturnal when on land to avoid predators. They typically arrive at their breeding colonies shortly after dusk and depart before the first light of dawn. At sea, they may feed both day and night, but are most active at the surface during the night when their prey (squid) migrates upward.

You cannot attract Great-winged Petrels to a typical suburban backyard. They only come to land on specific coastal cliffs or offshore islands to breed. If you live on a coastal property in New Zealand, Australia, or South Africa near a colony, maintaining native coastal vegetation and controlling predators like rats and cats is the best way to support them.

Their diet consists mainly of squid, which they catch by 'surface-seizing' or shallow plunging. They also eat small fish and bioluminescent crustaceans that become visible at the ocean's surface after dark.

No, they are pelagic birds that spend most of their lives hundreds of miles out at sea. They are only found on land in remote coastal or island locations during their winter breeding season.

The Great-winged Petrel (P. macroptera) and the Grey-faced Petrel (P. gouldi) were once considered the same species. The Grey-faced Petrel, found in New Zealand, has a significantly more prominent and extensive patch of pale grey feathers around the bill and forehead compared to the darker Great-winged Petrel.

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