Snow Petrel

The Snow Petrel is a small, dainty tubenose seabird with plumage that is entirely pure white from head to tail, offset only by a small black bill, dark eyes, and black feet, giving it an almost ghostly appearance against the ice and open water of its Antarctic home.

This species holds one of the most extreme breeding distributions of any bird, nesting on exposed rock outcrops and nunataks within the Antarctic continent itself, sometimes hundreds of kilometers from open water, in some of the coldest and most remote breeding sites used by any bird species.

Snow Petrels are closely associated with pack ice throughout the year, rarely straying far from ice-covered or ice-adjacent waters even outside the breeding season.

Key field marks

• Entirely pure white plumage
• Small black bill and dark eyes
• Black feet, visible in flight and at rest
• Compact, dove-like flight with quick wingbeats

Similar species

• No other Antarctic seabird is entirely white; even the rare white morph of the Southern Giant Petrel shows scattered dark flecking, unlike the Snow Petrel's uniformly clean white plumage.
• Distant white shapes on ice are sometimes confused with resting Snow Petrels, but the bird's small size and black bill and feet confirm identification at closer range.

Snow Petrels breed on ice-free rock outcrops and nunataks across Antarctica and on a few subantarctic islands, including sites deep within the continental interior, farther south than almost any other bird species nests. Nests are tucked into rock crevices offering shelter from wind and predators.

The species remains closely tied to pack ice and cold Antarctic and Southern Ocean waters throughout the year, rarely venturing far north of the ice edge even outside the breeding season.

Voice

At breeding sites, Snow Petrels give a range of chattering, cackling, and cooing calls, particularly during disputes over nest crevices and during courtship interactions.

Feeding

They feed on krill, small fish, and squid picked from open leads in the pack ice or the sea surface, and will also scavenge carrion such as seal or penguin remains when available.

Nesting and breeding

Pairs nest in rock crevices on ice-free outcrops, sometimes at very high elevations and far inland, laying a single egg. Both parents share incubation and chick-feeding duties, and chicks can spit stomach oil at intruders in defense.