Matsudaira's Storm Petrel
Hydrobates matsudairae
日本叉尾海燕
Introduction
A seabird in the family Hydrobatidae. It breeds exclusively on the Volcano Islands in the northwest Pacific Ocean and migrates to the Indian Ocean for the winter. Formerly classified in the genus Oceanodroma before that genus was synonymized with Hydrobates.
Description
A small seabird with blackish alula feathers that are offset by white bases to its dark primaries. The tail is long and deeply forked. The beak is lengthy with a pronounced hook at its tip.
Identification
Field identification relies on the blackish alula feathers contrasting with white bases to the dark primaries, combined with the deeply forked tail shape and the long, hooked beak.
Distribution & Habitat
Breeds solely on the Volcano Islands in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Migrates to the Indian Ocean for the winter period.
Behavior & Ecology
No detailed behavioral information provided in the source article.
Conservation
No conservation information provided in the source article.
Culture
No cultural significance or folklore information provided in the source article.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Hydrobatidae
- Genus
- Hydrobates
- eBird Code
- maspet2
Distribution
breeds Volcano Islands (far southern Japan); disperses westward to Arabian Sea, Seychelles, and off eastern African coast, eastward to western Micronesia, seas of eastern Indonesia, and off northwestern Australia
Data Sources
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.