#pelecanoides

I dislike this beak. It doesn't look like mine and it's really weird, specially where the nostrils are located; but almost all procellariiformes have this beak, which I find... weird ??

I've discarded almost all white, grey and single-colored birds from my research. I'm pretty confident in saying that my coat is brownish (between caramel or dark brown) with white markings (above AND below the back), something like my pfp (pfp + 2 other examples below)

the beak I'm looking for actually looks more like Charadriiformes birds than Procellariiformes, but I've searched Charadriiformes a bit and I didn't find any bird that interested me — plus the diversity between Charadriiformes is really big, the birds on this order can be really different. Anyways, some beak examples:

as you can see, no weird nostrils and a small-medium beak. The only sub-family in Procellariidae that has this trait are the diving petrels. Look at these cuties !!

I feel a little connected to the northen ocean, but these critters only live in the southern. I don't see a problem with this though; they kind of fit everything else (size, appearence, beak, eggs etc). They look just a little silly ! But that's fine !! It's weird because I really thought I was from Procellariidae, not Pelecanoides. The weird beak is bothering me enough for me to discard the possibility of being a Procellariidae-only bird - or any other sub-family except the Pelecanoides. (for context, Pelecanoides is a sub-family of Procellariidae)

shearwaters are a possibility too, but I'm pretty inclined to being a diving petrel. researching birds that look so similar and having so few online information about them is exhausting, but at the same time really fun. I feel like a bird searching for bugs or worms to feed it's hatchlings. I wish I was at the beach again, July/August was pretty fun. I meditated a lot about my nonhuman identities.

NEW SPECIES ALERT:  RESEARCHERS FOUND A HIGHLY ENDANGERED PETREL SPECIES IN NEW ZEALAND

A new species of diving petrel has been found on the predator-free Whenua Hou off the coast of Stewart Island in Southern New Zealand. The seabird was named the Whenua Hou Diving Petrel (Pelecanoides whenuahouensis). This species is highly endangered since the entire population has been estimated at 150 birds, all living on a 1 km sand strip.

Few time ago, researchers considered this species as South Georgian Diving Petrels (Pelecanoides georgicus) a species with no conservation problems, but the present study shown differences in the birds’ size, shape and color as well. Together, these differences are enough to identify them as a separate species based on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species criteria.

The researchers believe that the species survival will depend on vigilant biosecurity to prevent invasive species from reaching the island. Limiting human activity will also help preserve the fragile sand dune ecosystem. The extremelly small population itself is highly threatened by storm events; one such event in 2003 led to the collapse of many dunes, killing many birds. They are also threatened by the advance of coastal forest and invasive grasses and herbs over the dunes, as well as sea level rise due to climate change. 

Photo: Whenua Hou Diving Petrel held by researcher Johannes Fischer. Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Referencen (Open Access):  Fischer et al., 2018. Analyses of phenotypic differentiations among South Georgian Diving Petrel (Pelecanoides georgicus) populations reveal an undescribed and highly endangered species from New Zealand. PLOS ONE

[2592/11080] Common diving petrel - Pelecanoides urinatrix

Order: Procellariiformes (tubenoses) Family: Procellariidae (petrels, prions and shearwaters) Genus: Pelecanoides (diving petrels)