Galapagos Dark-Rumped Petrel

The Galapagos Petrel is an endemic marine bird that nests in areas of high humidity in the highlands of five islands of the Galapagos Archipelago . In the past, the petrel population was severely affected by introduced mammals. These introduced animals depredated and altered the nesting colonies, placing the petrel in the category of Critically Endangered species listed in the Red Book of Threatened Birds. One of the greatest threats to the population of petrels is the presence of the Black Rat , an introduced species that is the principal cause of mortality of eggs and hatchlings of the species. Introduced plants have also altered and restricted the nesting habitat. The reproductive period of the petrels covers about eight months of the year. A study carried out in 2002 showed an egg-laying period between March to the end of October, with a peak occurring during the first two weeks of August.

The Galapagos Dark-Rumped Petrel is classified as Critically Endangered (CR), facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

Predation: Galapagos dark-rumped petrel predation can be reliably attributed to ship rats (Harris 1970). Last Modified: 6/01/2005 12:42:36 p.m. issg logo logo nbii logo iucn logo uoa logo The Global Invasive Species Database is managed by the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) of the IUCN Species Survival Commission. More