Fork-tailed Storm Petrel

In North America, it breeds on islands on the Aleutian Islands off Alaska, and on islands along the coasts of British Columbia in Canada and the Pacific Northwest in the United States. The Fork-tailed Storm-petrel also breeds on the Kuril Islands off Kamchatka. This bird breeds in rock crevices or small burrows in soft earth and lays a single white egg. Like most petrels, its walking ability is limited to a short shuffle to the burrow. It is a colonial nester.

The Fork-tailed Storm Petrel is classified as Least Concern. Does not qualify for a more at risk category. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category.

Fork-tailed Storm Petrel bones appeared in castings or lay scattered in Glaucous- winged Gull (Larus glaucescens) colonies. We released 31 adult Fork-tailed Storm- Petrels singly during the day in one colony to observe the reaction of these potential predators; the storm-petrels were ignored. Bailey (pers. comm.), however, released an adult petrel that was immediately taken by a Glaucous-winged Gull. More