Petrel: a bird of bad weather and a symbol of the sea

Air wings are cut across the expanses of Antarcticasymbol of the revolution - the petrel. This amazing bird since ancient times inspired poets and writers to create outstanding works. So who is the petrel? The bird, which we have always been associated with something formidable and rampant?

It nests in very harsh places: on the entire coast of the Antarctic, the South Shetland Islands, on the islands of South Georgia and Prince Edward.

Of course, there are nests in the Falklandislands. In addition, the petrel also lives on the shreds of land that has been lost in the cold waters. This bird is unpretentious, and therefore it can endure even very difficult conditions.

Есть огромное количество представителей данного species whose body sizes range from 15 cm to a meter. But when they say "petrel", most often imagine a huge bird with a large wingspan.

This is a giant petrel, whose body length reaches 85-90 cm, and its wingspan is a record two meters.

At first glance you can seea massive head and a short, slightly curved beak. He, by the way, is so hard that he allows his owner to easily bite the bones of the same penguins. If you look at the beak from the inside, then through its upper arch a long and flat tube is drawn, divided into two parts by an internal partition. These are the nasal passages.

Yes, one of the few feathered that possessbeautiful pet smell is a petrel. The bird cannot compete in its sharpness with dogs or pigs, but it smells the smell of potential prey perfectly.

Special mention deserve powerful legs. Between the three fingers, a taut leathery membrane is stretched on them, and the fourth is laid aside and atrophied to a state of a small tubercle.

Oddly enough, walking is not included in the numberfavorite petrel lessons: on land, it looks like a very fattened and awkward duck. But he swims great, and flies even better: there were cases when these amazing creatures crossed the oceans, never even sitting on sailing ships.

The nest begins in late November. And again, ahead of all the birds - he, the petrel. The bird does not care at all about creating even a decent nest, hatching an egg directly on the ground.

The chick is born after a long two months.Four more of him tirelessly take care of both parents. The young petrel reaches sexual maturity only in 5-7 years. Given that the life span of this species is about half a century, 7 years is not so long.

This bird of the petrel family deserved amongsailors of past years of dual glory. On the one hand, people have always admired his ability to soar in the air for days, accompanying ships. On the other - they are not too pleased with the extensive table of this species of birds. The fact is that the petrels feed on fish, but do not refuse the corpses of seals, whales, penguins ... and people thrown on the beach in waves.

Whatever it was, but it is these creationsare among the generally recognized symbols of the sea and related professions. Most of the species of this family are listed in the Red Book, among them is the giant petrel. The bird, whose photo allows to be convinced of the beauty and majesty of this representative of the feathered world, needs to be protected by a person, otherwise the future generations will not see it anymore.