Bird Sightings: Leach's Storm Petrel

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Bird Sightings: Leach's Storm Petrel

Leach's Storm Petrel

Oceanodroma leucorhoa

Gobhan mara

Photography © Terry Fountain
St Kilda - Outer Hebrides (Western Isles)
12th July, 2007

A common migrant breeder in the Western Isles. There are colonies of Leach's storm petrel on the Islands of St Kilda, Sula Sgeir, North Rona and also the Flannan Isles.

Our petrel phototographs :

Storm Petrel

Leach's Storm Petrel

Oceanodroma leucorhoa

AKA: Leach's storm petrel

AMBER LIST, 51,000 pairs in UK (summer) BTO

See from Westerly seawatching places when a gale blows to shore

Breeds: Islands: UK (Western & Northern Isles) & North & West of Europe. Forms colonies. (UK May - September). (Nests: crevices & burrows, holes in stone walls. Visits the nest at night)

Winters: Leaves September - October, British & Irish birds go to tropics (some stay in North Atlantic)

Feeds in flocks: planktonic crustaceans & small fish (picked from surface - hovering: wings up in V shape, flutttering & bat-like) Follows ships (comes ashore only to feed at NIGHT)

Starling sized seabird.. All black below, mostly black above, (upperwing pale band of mid-feathers), (underwing no white band) V-shaped white rump patch only reaches partway down the side, with centre dark line (storm petrel's go far down), Forked tail.

Listen Leach's Petrel - RSPB site

Similar birds: storm petrel (NOT forked tail),

Gaelic name "Gobhan mara " means swallow of the sea

Great Skuas eat storm petrels. They live alongside where the petrels are breeding - a plentiful food supply. Rats and feral cats can also be a major problem for breeding birds

As with other seabirds, strong gales can sometimes blow many birds to shore, they are known as 'wrecks'. Nearly 7000 storm petrels were blown ashore in gales in November 1952.

The oldest recorded Leach's petrel was almost 30 years old.

Terry Fountain's web site:
http://www.hebridesphotographic.com

Other local bird photographs

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