Wilson's Storm-Petrel (Oceanites oceanicus)

Indonesian-Petrel badai pantat putih

Description: very small (18 cm) black and white petrel. Upperparts black with grayish wing bar and a conspicuous white rump bar formed by white upper tail coverts; underparts sooty brown. The feet protrude just beyond the short square tail in flight. Iris-dark; bill; black; feet – black with yellow webs.

Voice: twittering and piping calls at breeding sites but only a faint peeping by feeding birds at sea.

Distribution and status: breeds in Antartic but migrates over almost all the world’s oceans. Occasionally seen over Javan and Bali waters.

Habits: flies singly or in small parties low over sea with short glides interspersed with loose wingbeats, tilting and rolling from side to side. When onto food it hovers and paddles on the water with its long feet. Often follows ships.

Diet: fish, plankton, crustacean floating scraps.

Race: O.o. exasperatus