Species

Justification
This poorly known seabird breeds on only a few moderately small islands; on a number of these there are introduced predators and the population is therefore thought to be declining. It is consequently classified as Near Threatened.

Taxonomic source(s)
AOU. 1998. Check-list of North American birds. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.
Brooke, M. De L. 2004. Albatrosses and petrels across the world. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Christidis, L.; Boles, W. E. 1994. The taxonomy and species of birds of Australia and its territories. Royal Australasian Ornithologists' Union, Melbourne.
Christidis, L.; Boles, W. E. 2008. Systematics and taxonomy of Australian birds. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Australia.
SACC. 2006. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.html.
Sibley, C. G.; Monroe, B. L. 1990. Distribution and taxonomy of birds of the world. Yale University Press, New Haven, USA.
Stotz, D. F.; Fitzpatrick, J. W.; Parker, T. A.; Moskovits, D. K. 1996. Neotropical birds: ecology and conservation. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Turbott, E. G. 1990. Checklist of the birds of New Zealand. Ornithological Society of New Zealand, Wellington.

Distribution and population
Pterodroma inexpectata is endemic to New Zealand. It breeds on islands off Fiordland, the Solander Islands, Foveaux Strait islands, islands around Stewart Island (including Titi islands, Codfish, Big South Cape Islands, and islets in Port Pegasus) and the Snares Islands (Marchant and Higgins 1990, Heather and Robertson 1997). It once bred throughout the North and South Islands, and possibly the Chatham, Bounty, Antipodes and Auckland Islands (Marchant and Higgins 1990, Heather and Robertson 1997). There are c.10,000+ pairs on each of Big South Cape and Main Islands (Heather and Robertson 1997), and the Codfish population was estimated at 300,000-400,000 pairs in 1996 (Taylor 2000). It migrates to the north Pacific as far as the subarctic front and Bering Sea and in summer can range as far south as the pack ice (Marchant and Higgins 1990, Heather and Robertson 1997).

Population justification
Brooke (2004)

Trend justification
There are no data, the species is thought to be declining due to the depredations of introduced predators on the breeding grounds.

Ecology
It breeds in burrows on remote offshore islands and otherwise ranges widely at sea.

Threats
Weka Gallirallus australis have been introduced to several colonies, and have caused significant losses on Codfish (Taylor 2000). Black rat Rattus rattus is present on Big South Cape Island, and may have a severe impact on breeding success. Some populations are on islands that are regularly harvested for Sooty Shearwater Puffinus griseus chicks, and the impact of trampling of burrows and incidental take is not known (Heather and Robertson 1997, Taylor 2000).

Conservation actions underway
None is known.

Conservation actions proposed
Monitor suitable colonies to assess population trends. Complete pest plan to prevent and enable rapid responses to new species introductions. Eradicate G. australis from Big Solander Island, and G. australis and R. rattus from Big South Cape Island, on agreement with owners. Asses the impact of the P. griseus harvest on populations.

References
Marchant, S.; Higgins, P. J. 1990. Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic birds, 1: ratites to ducks. Oxford University Press, Melbourne.

Heather, B. D.; Robertson, H. A. 1997. The field guide to the birds of New Zealand. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.

Taylor, G. A. 2000. Action plan for seabird conservation in New Zealand. Department of Conservation, Wellington.

Further web sources of information
View photos and videos, and hear sounds of this species from the Internet Bird Collection

Text account compilers
Mahood, S., McClellan, R., O'Brien, A., Taylor, J.

IUCN Red List evaluators
Butchart, S., Symes, A.

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2013) Species factsheet: Pterodroma inexpectata. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 25/05/2013. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2013) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 25/05/2013.

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife

To contribute to discussions on the evaluation of the IUCN Red List status of Globally Threatened Birds, please visit BirdLife's Globally Threatened Bird Forums.

Additional resources for this species

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