Magenta Petrel
Encyclopedia
The Magenta Petrel or Chatham Island Taiko (Pterodroma magentae) is a small seabird
in the gadfly petrel
genus
, Pterodroma.
The first specimen of the Magenta Petrel was collected from His Italian Majesty's ship Magenta on July 22, 1867 in the South Pacific ocean, midway between New Zealand and South America. The link between it and the presumed-extinct Chatham Island Taiko was only confirmed when the first Taiko was caught on Chatham Island, New Zealand
by David Crockett on January 1, 1978. Formerly widespread on Chatham Island, the Taiko is now confined to the forested Tuku
valley system on the south-west of the island.
This medium-sized petrel has a brownish-grey back and wings, the undersides of the wings are brown and the belly is white. It has a black bill and pink legs. Adults weigh 400–600 g and nest in 1–3 m long burrows under dense forest.
This species is classified as critically endangered due to an assumed 80% decline in population in the last 60 years and the fact that it is restricted to one small location. The current population is estimated at between 100 and 150 individuals. In the 2005 breeding season, the 13 known breeding pairs successfully fledged 11 chicks. It is often referred to as the world's rarest seabird.
The main threats to the species are introduced
mammalian predators, principally cats and rats.
A conservation strategy is in place on the island to translocate chicks to an area where the main threats have been removed called the Sweetwater Secure Breeding Site. Studies in other petrel species such as Manx Shearwater
, Wandering Albatross
, and Cory's Shearwater
, have shown that birds return to the site in which they fledged. In 2007, eight chicks were successfully translocated and fledged from the breeding site.
Seabird
Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations...
in the gadfly petrel
Gadfly petrel
The gadfly petrels are seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. These medium to large petrels feed on food items picked from the ocean surface....
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
, Pterodroma.
The first specimen of the Magenta Petrel was collected from His Italian Majesty's ship Magenta on July 22, 1867 in the South Pacific ocean, midway between New Zealand and South America. The link between it and the presumed-extinct Chatham Island Taiko was only confirmed when the first Taiko was caught on Chatham Island, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
by David Crockett on January 1, 1978. Formerly widespread on Chatham Island, the Taiko is now confined to the forested Tuku
Tuku Nature Reserve
The Tuku Nature Reserve lies in the Tuku-a-tamatea River Valley in the south-west of the island of Rekohu, the main island in New Zealand’s Chatham Islands group in the south-west Pacific Ocean. It is important for the conservation of the critically endangered Magenta Petrel , or Chatham Island...
valley system on the south-west of the island.
This medium-sized petrel has a brownish-grey back and wings, the undersides of the wings are brown and the belly is white. It has a black bill and pink legs. Adults weigh 400–600 g and nest in 1–3 m long burrows under dense forest.
This species is classified as critically endangered due to an assumed 80% decline in population in the last 60 years and the fact that it is restricted to one small location. The current population is estimated at between 100 and 150 individuals. In the 2005 breeding season, the 13 known breeding pairs successfully fledged 11 chicks. It is often referred to as the world's rarest seabird.
The main threats to the species are introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
mammalian predators, principally cats and rats.
A conservation strategy is in place on the island to translocate chicks to an area where the main threats have been removed called the Sweetwater Secure Breeding Site. Studies in other petrel species such as Manx Shearwater
Manx Shearwater
The Manx Shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx Shearwaters were called Manks Puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters...
, Wandering Albatross
Wandering Albatross
The Wandering Albatross, Snowy Albatross or White-winged Albatross, Diomedea exulans, is a large seabird from the family Diomedeidae, which has a circumpolar range in the Southern Ocean. It was the first species of albatross to be described, and was long considered the same species as the Tristan...
, and Cory's Shearwater
Cory's Shearwater
The Cory's Shearwater is a large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae.This species breeds on islands and cliffs in the Mediterranean, with the odd outpost on the Atlantic coast of Iberia. The nest is on open ground or among rocks or less often in a burrow where one white egg is laid,...
, have shown that birds return to the site in which they fledged. In 2007, eight chicks were successfully translocated and fledged from the breeding site.
Further reading
Database entry includes justification for why this species is critically endangered- Imber, M.J., Tennyson, A.J.D, Taylor, G.A, and Johnston, P. (1998): A second intact specimen of the Chatham Island Taiko (Pterodroma magentae). Notornis 45(4): 247-254. PDF fulltext
External links
- BirdLife International Species Factsheet
- Taiko at the New Zealand Department of Conservation
- The Taiko Trust - supporting Taiko conservation and research
- Critically endangered seabird losing its pulling power TerraNature, 23 April 2008