The Collaborative International Dictionary
Petrel \Pe"trel\, n. [F. p['e]trel; a dim. of the name Peter, L.
Petrus, Gr. ? a stone (
--John i. 42); -- probably so called
in allusion to St. Peter's walking on the sea. See
Petrify.] (Zo["o]l.)
Any one of numerous species of longwinged sea birds belonging
to the family Procellarid[ae]. The small petrels, or Mother
Carey's chickens, belong to {Oceanites}, {Oceanodroma},
{Procellaria}, and several allied genera.
Diving petrel, any bird of the genus Pelecanoides. They chiefly inhabit the southern hemisphere.
Fulmar petrel, Giant petrel. See Fulmar.
Pintado petrel, the Cape pigeon. See under Cape.
Pintado petrel, any one of several small petrels, especially Procellaria pelagica, or Mother Carey's chicken, common on both sides of the Atlantic.
WordNet
n. large brownish petrel chiefly of Antarctic seas [syn: giant fulmar, Macronectes giganteus]
Wikipedia
Giant petrels form a genus, Macronectes, from the family Procellariidae, which consists of two species. They are the largest birds of this family. Both species are restricted to the Southern Hemisphere, and though their distributions overlap significantly, with both species breeding on the Prince Edward Islands, Crozet Islands, Kerguelen Islands, Macquarie Island and South Georgia, many southern giant petrels nest further south, with colonies as far south as Antarctica. Giant petrels are aggressive predators and scavengers, inspiring another common name, the stinker. South Sea whalers used to call them gluttons.
Usage examples of "giant petrel".
You will recall that last time, when the giant petrel covered me with oil, you said I might be excused.
During this time a thin gleam broke through the fog, and although Stephen could not distinguish anything but a single giant petrel he did have the pleasure of seeing even greater masses of ice fall from the high cliffs above the low-lying mist, masses the size of a house that either shattered at the foot of the mountain or plunged straight into the sea, sending up vast fountains of water: scores of these monstrous great blocks.
These little birds abound in the pack-ice, but the blue-grey southern fulmar and the Antarctic petrel were also to be seen, and that unwholesome scavenger, the giant petrel, frequently lumbered by.