There are many different Storm Petrels throughout the world. A common resident in the summer time in Nova Scotia is Leach's Storm-Petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa). The early birds to Nova Scotia arrive in April.
The Storm-Petrels are a common class of small to medium sized seabirds observed around the oceans of the world. About fifty per cent of the species are highly seasonal migrating in the summer months to the cold waters of the Arctic and Antarctic oceans and then moving toward the equator in the snow covered months.
Storm-petrels, better known to many as "Mother Carey's Chickens" or "Careys," caused problems to lighthouse keepers. The lighthouse keepers depended on rain water for their every day use. The keepers got their water by placing catch barrels beneath the roofs to catch the rain as it ran off the roofs. The birds flew over the lighthouses at night dropping excrement on the roofs. When it rained the water washed the excrement off the roof into the rain barrels and that contaminated the water. To control the bird problem lighthouse keepers acquired and released cats at night to kill the defenseless petrels.
Leach's Storm Petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa) Breeding Leach's Storm Petrel reach their destination off Nova Scotia in early April and stay around until early November. Some late stragglers hang around Nova Scotia later than November.
One of the world's most common sea bird species is Leach's Storm-Petrel. They breed and nest on small islands in the northern areas of the Pacific Ocean. The petrels ranged from Alaska to The Baja Peninsula and then scatter across the Eastern Pacific Ocean by the millions during the winter months.
Leach's Storm Petrels nest in colonies and build their nests on open ground at the end of a level tunnel up to one yard long. Usually the birds breed on the seashore of islands but occasionally some birds will breed along the shore of a peninsula.
After mating the female petrel lays one ivory white egg. The egg has a faint decoration of lavender at the greater end. The pair of birds have one clutch yearly. Both parents incubate the eggs for about six to seven weeks and the young birds fledge in about eight weeks.
Storm Petrels build their nests and mate on far off isles or barren mountainous country in South America where predators don't bother them. Two of the main predators for Storm Petrels are sea gulls or other large seabirds so most of the birds fly onto the shoreline to breed after dark. On the Farallon Islands off San Francisco, California Ashy and Leach's Storm Petrels arrive in the night time and most of the Ashy Storm Petrels nest on the Farallones.
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