Gadfly petrel
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Gadfly
Related Category: Zoology: Invertebrates
name for various biting flies, especially those that attack livestock, e.g., the botfly and the horsefly.
The gadfly petrels: These are a considerable number of agile short-billed petrels in the genus Pterodroma which include the endangered Bermuda Petrel or Cahow and a considerable number of forms rendered extinct by human activity.
Gould's Gadfly Petrel, Collared Petrel, Sooty-capped Petrel, White-throated Petrel, White-winged Petrel, New Caledonian Petrel
Bird Family :
Procellariinae - Fulmars, petrels, prions & shearwaters ...
Fea's petrel is a medium-sized gadfly petrel (3) (4), whose local name, 'gon-gon', is said to come from the wailing or cackling call given near the colonies at night (3) (5).
The Galápagos Petrel (Pterodroma phaeopygia) is a large, long-winged gadfly petrel. The species was once known as the Dark-rumped Petrel, although recent taxonomic changes have eliminated that name from current use.
Holding its wings in a sickle shape and flying erratically in heavy winds, the Black-capped Petrel is typical of the gadfly petrels.
The procellariid family is usually broken up into four fairly distinct groups; the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters.
Most petrels breed in colonies on islands in the southern hemisphere.
A few of the gadfly petrels breed farther north on islands such as
Madeira, Bermuda, the West Indies, and the Hawaiian Islands.
The final large petrel species is another gadfly petrel, albeit a much larger one than the Cook's Petrel. The Grey-faced Petrel has all dark plumage with a lighter area around the face.
 See also: Petrel, Shearwater, Albatross, Seabird, Puffin
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