Bird - Northern Giant Petrel - Australian Antarctic Territory postcard stamp

• Postcard

   

• Picture / Image:  Northern Giant Petrel - postcard with corestponding stamp of the Australian Antarctic Territory
• Publisher:  Australia Post
• Postally used:  maxi card
• Stamp:  Australian Antarctic Territory 85c
• Postmark(s):  First Day of Issue 1992 cds
• Sent to:  n/a
• Notes / condition: 

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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The northern giant petrel (Macronectes halli), also known as the Hall's giant petrel, is a large predatory seabird of the southern oceans. Its distribution overlaps broadly with the similar southern giant petrel, though it overall is centred slightly further north.

The northern giant petrel along with its counterpart, the southern giant petrel, make up the Macronectes genus. They come from the Procellariiformes order, which are referred to as tube-nosed seabirds, due to their unique nose structure. All tube-noses have tubular nostrils, and all Procellariidae have the openings on top of the upper portion of the bill. Procellariiformes also have between seven and nine distinct horny plates for their bill, and petrels have one of these plates that form the hooked portion of their upper bill called their maxillary unguis. They produce a stomach oil made up of wax esters and triglyceridesthat is stored in the proventriculus. This can be sprayed out of their mouths as a defence against predators as well as an energy rich food source for chicks and for the adults during their long flights.^[3] Finally, they also have a salt gland that is situated above the nasal passage and helps desalinate their bodies, due to the high amount of ocean water that they imbibe. It excretes a concentrated saline solution from their nostrils.^[4]

Macronectes giganteus can be broken down as makros a Greek word meaning "long" or "large" and nēktēs meaning "swimmer". Northern giant petrel starts with "northern" referring to their habitat being further north than their counterpart the southern giant petrel, and "petrel" refers to Saint Peter and from the story of him walking on water, which refers to how they run on top of the water as they are getting airborne.^[5]

The northern giant petrel averages 90 cm (35 in) in length, with a range of 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in), possessing a wingspan of 150 to 210 cm (59 to 83 in). Size is somewhat variable and this species is broadly the same size as its southern sister species. The largest-bodied colony is in the South Georgia Islands, where 56 males averaged 4.9 kg (11 lb) and 43 females average 3.72 kg (8.2 lb).^[6] The smallest-bodied are on the Chatham Islands, where 19 males averaged 3.66 kg (8.1 lb) and 21 females averaged 2.83 kg (6.2 lb).^[7] Overall, weight for the species can range from 2.5 to 5.8 kg (5.5 to 12.8 lb).^[6][7] Its plumageconsists of grey-brown body with lighter coloured forehead, sides of face, and chin. Its bill is between 90 and 110 mm (3.5–4.3 in) long, being slightly longer on average than the southern giant petrel, and is pinkish yellow with a brown tip, and its eyes are grey. The tarsus of the northern giant petrel is slightly longer on average than the southern species as well, but the southern has longer wings on average.^[7] The juvenile of this species is completely dark brown and lightens as it ages. It can be differentiated from the similar coloured southern giant petrel by the top of the bill, which on the southern is green