Birds
Common Diving-petrel
Pelecanoides urinatrix · also called diving petrel
Flying underwater with its own wings before bursting straight back into the air without ever pausing to swim on the surface, a common diving-petrel blurs the line between flying and diving more completely than almost any other seabird.
Overview
The common diving-petrel, Pelecanoides urinatrix, is a compact, wing-propelled diving seabird native to ocean and coastal habitat across scattered islands throughout the Southern Hemisphere. Its underwater flight technique, rapid water-to-air transition, and stocky, dive-adapted body make it one of the more physically specialised small seabirds found anywhere in the Southern Ocean region.
A bird that never stops flying
Whether cutting through open air or pursuing prey beneath the waves, the common diving-petrel relies on the same wing-powered flight the entire time, one of relatively few seabirds to blur the boundary between flying and swimming so completely.
Status
Least Concern, remaining widespread and generally stable across suitable breeding islands, though some colonies face localised pressure from introduced predators.
Common Diving-petrel: common questions
How does the common diving-petrel fly underwater?
This species uses its wings to fly underwater in pursuit of prey, a swimming technique shared with penguins and a small number of other diving seabirds, rather than paddling with its feet alone.
What is unusual about how the common diving-petrel takes off?
This species can burst directly out of the water into full flight without pausing to swim on the surface first, a rapid transition between swimming and flying that is unusual among diving seabirds generally.
Why does the common diving-petrel have such a stocky body?
This species has a compact, stocky body and short wings, a build suited to underwater swimming rather than the long-distance gliding flight typical of many other seabirds found in the same region.
Why does the common diving-petrel only visit its nest at night?
This species typically visits its burrow nest only under cover of darkness, a behaviour that helps reduce the risk of predation from larger birds that might otherwise target it or its eggs and chicks during daylight hours.