14 Jan 2023
THE PETREL STATION TRIP REPORT
Had an awesome day at 'The Petrel Station' on our latest pelagic seabird trip out of Tutukaka (in northern New Zealand). Conditions on the day were mostly fine, with a good wind (12 knots) and a 1.5m swell.
The highlights of the trip were:
9 Black-winged Petrels
at least 100 New Zealand Storm Petrels off the back of boat (most we've ever seen :)
at least 250 Cook's Petrels streaming past during the day (also most we've ever seen)
During the trip we saw 19 different seabird species, and enjoyed watching just short of 40,000 stunning seabirds in total! The full seabird species list is below.
If you’re interested in coming out to The Petrel Station then check out the upcoming trip dates and get in touch – it’s always a great day out.
Here’s the full trip results from the day:
Seabirds seen:
1 x Buller's Albatross (Mollymawk)
2,200 x Fairy Prion
250 x Cook's Petrel
4 x Pycroft's Petrel
9 x Black-winged Petrel
3 x Grey-faced Petrel
55 x Black Petrel
60 x Flesh-footed Shearwater
35,000 x Buller's Shearwater
50 x Fluttering
100 x New Zealand Storm-Petrel
15 x White-faced Storm-Petrel
1,000 x Australasian Gannet
25 x Grey Ternlet
1 x Caspian Tern
300 x Red-bill Gull
2 x Black-backed Gull
36 x Pied Shag
1 x Black Shag
Other marine life included:
2 x Sunfish
2 x Flying Fish