Cook's Petrel

Tītī, Cook’s petrel, is a small endemic gadfly petrel with a grey back, white face and swift, twisting flight. A dark M crosses the upperwings, while the white underwing carries a narrow dark leading edge and stronger black at the wrist. Pycroft’s petrel is slightly smaller and usually shows a broader dark underwing bar.

It breeds mainly on Hauturu/Little Barrier and Whenua Hou/Codfish islands, and birds range across the Pacific outside the breeding season. Birds take squid, fish and crustaceans and visit burrows only after dark; each pair raises one chick.

Cook’s petrel is At Risk — Relict (NZ Threat Classification). Cats and rats once devastated colonies, while lights disorient fledglings and fisheries pose an offshore risk. Hauraki Gulf pelagic trips often encounter birds from Hauturu during the breeding season.