Southern Giant Petrel
Southern Giant PetrelSouthern Giant PetrelSouthern Giant PetrelSouthern Giant Petrel

Southern Giant Petrel

Macronectes giganteus

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
<5% · Rare
overall probability at Table Mountain National Park
41 Verified records at Table Mountain National Park
June Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's active during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

The southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus), also known as the Antarctic giant petrel, giant fulmar, stinker, and stinkpot, is a large seabird of the southern oceans. Its distribution overlaps broadly with the similar northern giant petrel, though it overall is centered slightly further south. Adults of the two species can be distinguished by the colour of their bill-tip: greenish in the southern and reddish in the northern. Wikipedia →

<5% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Giant Petrel sighting in Table Mountain National Park, based on 41 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

Closest Relatives at Table Mountain National Park

Northern Giant Petrel
LC

Northern Giant Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Macronectes halli

<5% · Rare
White-chinned Petrel
VU

White-chinned Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Procellaria aequinoctialis

5–10% · With luck
Sooty Shearwater

Sooty Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus griseus

<5% · Rare
Great Shearwater

Great Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus gravis

<5% · Rare
Manx Shearwater
LC

Manx Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus puffinus

<5% · Rare
Antarctic Prion
LC

Antarctic Prion

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pachyptila desolata

<5% · Rare
Soft-plumaged Petrel
LC

Soft-plumaged Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pterodroma mollis

<5% · Rare
Great-winged Petrel
LC

Great-winged Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pterodroma macroptera

<5% · Rare
Scopoli's Shearwater
LC

Scopoli's Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Calonectris diomedea

<5% · Rare
Southern Fulmar
LC

Southern Fulmar

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Fulmarus glacialoides

<5% · Rare
Cape Petrel
LC Endemic

Cape Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Daption capense

<5% · Rare
Blue Petrel
LC

Blue Petrel

Bird

Halobaena caerulea

Insufficient data

📅 Monthly Probability

<5
Jan
<5
Feb
<5
Mar
<5
Apr
<5
May
<5
Jun
<5
Jul
<5
Aug
<5
Sep
<5
Oct
<5
Nov
<5
Dec

☀️ When They're Spotted

Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)

☀️Diurnal
☀️🌙🌙12am6am12pm6pm12am

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is)  ·  parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Probability
1 Península Valdés 🇦🇷 Argentina
70–80%
2 Tierra del Fuego National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
10–20%
3 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
4 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
5 Rakiura National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
<5%
6 Fiordland National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
<5%
7 Royal National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
8 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
9 Ningaloo Marine Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
10 Abel Tasman National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
11 Great Otway National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
12 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Southern Giant Petrel in Table Mountain National Park?

About 1% of wildlife watchers report a Southern Giant Petrel sighting in Table Mountain National Park, based on 41 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Southern Giant Petrel in Table Mountain National Park?

June has the highest sighting rate for Southern Giant Petrel in Table Mountain National Park in our monthly data.

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