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Bulwer's Petrel

Bulweria bulwerii
For a Petrel, the Bulwer's Petrel is relatively small. Its entire body length does not normally get larger than 10in (compared to some of their cousins that can be more than double or triple that!).

Just like those cousins, the Bulwer's Petrel is a seabird that spends huge portions of its time living flying across the open sea. They have large wingspans compared to their body length (up to 3ft!) that allow them to soar long distances without using large amounts of energy. They feed on very small creatures that live at the ocean's surface, snatching them while in flight.

The Bulwer's Petrels do come ashore in order to breed, and their nesting sites are typically in the small islands chains of the Atlantic Ocean, though some populations make it to the Pacific as well. They breed in large colonies before dispersing again to fly across the oceans.

IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : Atlantic Islands
Size : Length up to 10ft (25cm), Wingspan up to 3ft (.9m)
Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : Procellariiformes
Family : Procellariidae -- Genus : Bulweria -- Species : B. bulwerii
Image : Peiwen Chang

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