24 September 2017
THE PETREL STATION TOUR REPORT
This was the inaugural seabird tour out to The Petrel Station pelagic, which left from Tutukaka and then ventured out past the Poor Knight Islands to the explore the deep trench area beyond, with 10 of us onboard for the journey.
Highlights of the tour were:
Approx 30 New Zealand Storm Petrels – we had them, and some White-faced Storm Petrels, hopping and flitting around the boat often just a couple of metres from us - magical.
16 Albatross / Mollymawks and 7 Northern Giant Petrels - always a majestic sight
Big rafts of Bullers Shearwaters intermixed with Fluttering Shearwaters, Red Billed & Black Backed Gulls
Lots of Little Shearwaters
During the tour we saw 21 different seabird species, and just over 7,000 stunning seabirds in total! A fantastic day out. This was a great start to The Petrel Station seabird tours :) If you’re interested in coming out to The Petrel Station then check out the upcoming tour dates and get in touch – it’s always a great day out.
Here’s the full tour results from the day:
Seabirds seen:
6 x Wandering Albatross
8 x White-capped Albatross
2 x Black-browed Albatross (Campbell)
7 x Northern Giant-Petrel
210 x Fairy Prion
9 x Cook's Petrel
18 x Grey-faced Petrel
6,000 x Buller's Shearwater
200 x Fluttering Shearwater
1 x Flesh-footed Shearwater
4 x Sooty Shearwater
36 x Little Shearwater
30 x New Zealand Storm-Petrel
8 x White-faced Storm-Petrel
120 x Australasian Gannet
70 x Common Diving-Petrel
2 x White-fronted Tern
2 x Little Blue Penguin
275 x Red-billed Gull
20 x Black-backed Gull
25 x Pied Shag
Learn more about the seabird species seen on this tour:
Albatross • Petrels • Shearwaters • Storm Petrels • Prions • Skuas • Other Seabirds
Other marine life included:
2 x Brydes Whales
1 x Huge Whale Spout (possible Blue)