Northern and Southern Giant Petrel courtship and breeding

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.

Northern Giant Petrel(Macronectes halli)
Afrikaans: Grootnellie, 12 000 Breeding pairs
Southern Giant Petrel(Macronectes giganteus)
Afrikaans: Reusenellie, 30 000 Breeding pairs

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.

Mixed Breeding Pair of Northern Giant and Southern Giant Petrels (Images co Michelle Jones)

We noticed these two different species of Giant Petrels in what looked like a courtship display. Mixed Southern(greenish bill tip) and Nothern Giant Petrels(reddish bill tip) species have been recorded on both Southe Georgia and Marion Islands. We saw this natural behaviour in the deep with the Pelagic birding in Cape Town with Zest for Birds and the Hooked on Africa Fishing Charters team in May 2022.

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.

Mixed Breeding Pair of Northern Giant and Southern Giant Petrels, this is one of the surviving chicks that formed part of this study (Images co Michelle Jones)

Some information received from

Michelle Jones :
Of the eight confirmed mixed species
In Giant Petrel nests that we monitored, two chicks have survived to fledge.
Most nests failed before hatching. The hybrid chicks look pretty much the same as the NGP chicks. In addition to the metal rings that all chicks in the monitoring colonies get, we have also given the hybrid chicks colour rings so they will be easily noticeable should they return to breed. Michelle Most-excellent Jones
The Mixed species images co Michelle Jones

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.

Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay

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Northern and Southern Giant Petrels in a courtship display, witnessed on a Zest for Birds Pelagic off Hout Bay.