Providence Petrel

Providence Petrel (Pterodroma solandri) is a medium-sized grey-brown gadfly petrel with long pointed wings and paler patterning on the underwing. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It travels across the south-western Pacific in search of squid, fish and crustaceans and returns to oceanic islands to breed in burrows. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).