Wilson's Storm Petrel (Oceanites oceanicus) lives in open ocean across Southern Ocean. It feeds on krill & plankton. Its conservation status is Least Concern.
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The world population was estimated in 2022 as stable at 8-20 million birds, a range that reflects the difficulty of counting such a widespread species. Earlier, in 2010, estimates varied between 12 and 30 million, showing how counts have fluctuated over time. A 1998 book even suggested more than 50 million pairs, highlighting the uncertainty in historic surveys. Despite these differing figures, the latest assessment indicates no recent decline.
At 40 g on average, it is the smallest warm-blooded animal that breeds in the Antarctic region, underscoring its extreme miniaturisation among polar birds. It nests in colonies close to the sea, using rock crevices or small burrows in soft earth to lay a single white egg. Both parents share incubation duties and later feed the chick, relying on their keen sense of smell to locate the nest in darkness.
This storm petrel is strictly nocturnal at the breeding sites to avoid predation by larger gulls and skuas, and will even avoid coming to land on clear moonlit nights, reducing its visibility to daytime hunters. Both parents tend the nest and feed the single chick, coordinating their visits under cover of darkness.
Wilson's storm petrel occasionally supplements its planktonic diet by catching small fish, taking individuals that measure between three and eight centimetres and belong to the Myctophidae family. While its usual prey are surface-dwelling invertebrates, this ability shows the bird can handle prey larger than typical plankton. Such fish are captured without the bird having to plunge deeply, as it usually feeds close to the water's surface.
Wilson's storm petrel flies with a more direct gliding style than other small petrels, staying low over the sea and repeatedly pattering on the water as it gathers planktonic food. Its unique fluttering and hovering are performed with wings held high, allowing it to maintain lift even in calm conditions. By exploiting the gentle breeze generated by waves, the bird can effectively soar while stabilising itself with its feet.
Sources
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As the sun dips below the horizon, the Wilson's Storm Petrel takes to the sky, its delicate form silhouetted against the fading light as it dances on the wind, its rapid wingbeats a blur of motion. With an effortless glide, it rides the ocean's updrafts, its large eyes scanning the waves for the tiny crustaceans that sustain it, a true master of the marine realm. In its wake, a trail of tiny footprints on the water's surface is all that remains, a fleeting testament to the petrel's ephemeral presence in this vast and mysterious world.
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