Birds · Procellariiformes · Procellariidae

Cape Petrel

Daption capense

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The Cape petrel, or pintado petrel, has a black-and-white mottled back pattern so strongly contrasted that it looks like a chessboard, unique among the seabirds of the south. It is the most easily identified petrel of the Southern Ocean and one of the most gregarious: it follows ships in flocks and gathers noisily over any source of food. It feeds on krill, squid and carrion, and filters the water with its bill as it swims.

Weight

350 g – 530 g

Size

38 cm – 40 cm

Lifespan

20 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

OceanPolarIslandsCarnivore Diurnal Colonial Bird Ocean Polar Islands

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Fun facts

Its black-and-white mottled back is so distinctive that no other seabird in the southern hemisphere resembles it, and 19th-century whalers called it the Cape pigeon.
It feeds by swimming and filtering: it takes in surface water and forces it out again, holding back the krill with the lamellae of its bill, a method more like a duck's than a petrel's.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: The Southern Ocean and Antarctic waters; it breeds on cliffs in Antarctica and on the subantarctic islands
Sexual maturity: 6 years
Gestation / incubation: 45 days of incubation
Litter / clutch size: 1 egg

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daption_capense