diving petrel

diving petrel, any of five species of small seabirds of the sub-Antarctic regions that constitute the family Pelecanoididae (order Procellariiformes). Although their nearest relatives are the storm petrels, shearwaters, and albatrosses, diving petrels differ from these long-winged forms and instead resemble the smaller auks of the Northern Hemisphere, a classic example of convergent evolution. Like the auks, black-and-white diving petrels are short-winged and heavy-bodied and use their wings for propulsion underwater. The smallest and most...