Murphy's Petrel

Very little is known about this species of Petrel. It occurs in the South Pacific, nesting on rocky islets and cliffs off tropical oceanic islands in the Austral, Tuamotu, and Pitcairn island groups. The bird has been recorded off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands and well off the Pacific Coast of the United States.

The Murphy's Petrel is classified as Near Threatened (NT), is close to qualifying for or is likely to qualify for a threatened category in the near future.

Murphy's Petrel (Pterodroma ultima) is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is 38-41 cm in size, with a 97 cm wingspan. Very little is known about this species of Petrel. It occurs in the South Pacific, nesting on rocky islets and cliffs off tropical oceanic islands in the Austral, Tuamotu, and Pitcairn island groups. The bird has been recorded off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands and well off the Pacific Coast of the United States. More

Murphy's Petrel: Breeds in the Pitcairn Islands, the Tuamotu Archipelago, the Austral Islands, and the Gambier Islands. Seen annually far offshore, along the Pacific coast of Mexico, California, Oregon, and Washington. Pelagic, only comes ashore to breed. Voice Text Generally silent Interesting Facts * The Murphy’s Petrel is a rare species with very little known about it. More

Murphy's Petrel is thought to be a regular spring visitor offshore California, although it may not be present every year. All three of these records were found on "regular" Shearwater Journeys' trips, not long-distance trips. More

Murphy's Petrel: Emits acute cries on breeding grounds; silent at sea. Similar Species Murphy's Petrel: Herald Petrel Dark Morph lacks white at the base of the bill. Dark-rumped Petrel has white on face, throat, and breast. . Home | Search | Browser | Expert | Forum | Store | My Whatbird | Help | Site Map © 2002 - 2007 www.whatbird.com All rights reserved. More

Murphy's Petrel 40cWith a conservation status of "near threatened”, Murphy’s Petrel is indeed a rare species with very little known about it. The first specimen was collected from Pitcairn’s Oeno Island in 1922, but it was not until 1949 that Robert Murphy, a seabird biologist, described the species. Murphy applied the scientific name ultima which was rash in retrospect, as in 1963 its status as ultimate was lost with the description of Barau’s Petrel. More

necessarily annual, an ABA Code-3 Murphy's Petrel was found and photographed on a Monterey Bay pelagic trip on 23 May. A whir of cameras could be heard while leaders and participants were careful to separate this bird from the larger Great-winged Petrel. More

Murphy's Petrel was found near Newport, Oregon. Subsequently, through the 1980's, a couple more Murphy's Petrels washed up on Oregon's shores, and California birders discovered that Murphy's Petrels were the most common spring seabird more than 50 miles off California. Wahl's sighting of Solander's Petrel in 1981 was not generally accepted. Since that time, Murphy's Petrel records continued to increase. Murphy's Petrels were removed from the California Review list, with over 100 accepted records. More

Murphy's Petrels offshore, all on board had high hopes for seeing this enigmatic Pterodroma. We were not disappointed! We saw the usual nearshore species, including Brandt's, Pelagic, and Double-crested Cormorants, Wandering Tattler, and Pigeon Guillemot. Pacific Loons were migrating just offshore. Seas were low, and never amounted to much more than a Beaufort 2-3 most of the day, making it one of the finer May trips. More

A Murphy's Petrel (Pterodroma ultima) rests on a rock on Ducie Atoll, Pitcairn Islands. Field Notes: Although petrels are typically borrow-nesters, on Ducie they nest atop the ground in prodigious numbers, highest in the world. No large rats or feral cats are present to devastate their populations, as is true for seabirds on most islands worldwide. More