New Caledonian storm petrel

The New Caledonian storm petrel (Fregetta lineata) is a species of bird in the family Oceanitidae.

New Caledonian storm petrel
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Procellariiformes
Family:	Oceanitidae
Genus:	Fregetta
Species:	F. lineata
Binomial name
Fregetta lineata (Peale, 1848)
Synonyms
Pealea lineata (Ridgway, 1886)

Distribution and habitat

It is an endemic breeder to New Caledonia, and has a wider nonbreeding range throughout the Coral Sea and the South Pacific, as far east as the Marquesas.^[1]

At-sea observations continue to occur of the east coast of Australia, however the location of a breeding colony is yet to be discovered. On 26 September 2014, a juvenile F. lineata was discovered on the shore of mainland New Caledonia, in an inhabited area. This is the only definite record of F. lineata on land and indicates a likely nearby breeding location.^[1]

Taxonomy

Described in 1848, the New Caledonian storm petrel, alongside the closely related New Zealand storm petrel (F. maoriana) which shares a similar streaked coloration, was long thought to merely be an aberrant member of another storm petrel species. The recognition of the New Zealand storm petrel as a valid species prompted a reevaluation of the New Caledonian storm petrel, and it was thus revived as a distinct species in 2022.^[1] It is thought to be critically endangered, with an adult population of only 100 - 1,000 pairs.^[2]