Muttonbirding
Encyclopedia
Muttonbirding is a seasonal harvesting activity, which may be recreational or commercial, of the chicks of petrel
s, especially shearwater
species, for food, oil and feathers. Although the hunting of petrels and other seabirds has occurred in numerous places since prehistoric times, and there is evidence that many island populations have become extinct as a result, ‘muttonbirding’ usually refers now to the more sustainable and regulated harvesting of shearwaters in Australia
and New Zealand
. These include the Short-tailed Shearwater
, also known as the Yolla or Australian Muttonbird, in Bass Strait
, Tasmania
, and the Sooty Shearwater
, also known as the Titi or New Zealand Muttonbird, in the far south of New Zealand.
, around Rakiura
(Stewart Island), is managed entirely by Rakiura Māori. There is some evidence that this harvest has been occurring since at least the 17th century.
s, particularly petrel
s in the genus Puffinus
, called Shearwater
s, where the young birds are harvested for food and oil by being extracted by hand from the nesting burrows before they fledge. Some species are:
Petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group...
s, especially shearwater
Shearwater
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds. There are more than 30 species of shearwaters, a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris and many smaller species in the genus Puffinus...
species, for food, oil and feathers. Although the hunting of petrels and other seabirds has occurred in numerous places since prehistoric times, and there is evidence that many island populations have become extinct as a result, ‘muttonbirding’ usually refers now to the more sustainable and regulated harvesting of shearwaters in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. These include the Short-tailed Shearwater
Short-tailed Shearwater
The Short-tailed Shearwater or Slender-billed Shearwater , also called Yolla or Moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in Australian waters, and is one of the few Australian native birds in which the chicks are commercially harvested...
, also known as the Yolla or Australian Muttonbird, in Bass Strait
Bass Strait
Bass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland, specifically the state of Victoria.-Extent:The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Bass Strait as follows:...
, Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, and the Sooty Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
The Sooty Shearwater is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori name tītī and as "muttonbird", like its relatives the Wedge-tailed Shearwater and the Australian Short-tailed Shearwater The Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus) is...
, also known as the Titi or New Zealand Muttonbird, in the far south of New Zealand.
Australia
Licenced commercial harvesting of Short-tailed Shearwater chicks on the coast and islands of Tasmania began in 1903, although it had long been a traditional form of subsistence harvesting by Tasmanian Aborigines and European settlers there. However, by the late 20th century the industry was declining due to falling demand for the product and reduced interest by younger indigenous people in the main area of activity, the islands of the Furneaux Group.New Zealand
The harvesting of Sooty Shearwater chicks on 36 islands, known as the Titi or Muttonbird IslandsTiti/Muttonbird Islands
The Tītī or Muttonbird Islands are located near Stewart Island/Rakiura in the far south of New Zealand.There are three chains, all of them simply referred to as the Muttonbird or Tītī islands. The northeastern chain is located in Foveaux Strait, to the northeast of Stewart Island, between it and...
, around Rakiura
Stewart Island/Rakiura
Stewart Island/Rakiura is the third-largest island of New Zealand. It lies south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. Its permanent population is slightly over 400 people, most of whom live in the settlement of Oban.- History and naming :...
(Stewart Island), is managed entirely by Rakiura Māori. There is some evidence that this harvest has been occurring since at least the 17th century.
Muttonbirds
Muttonbird may refer to various seabirdSeabird
Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same environmental problems and feeding niches have resulted in similar adaptations...
s, particularly petrel
Petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group...
s in the genus Puffinus
Puffinus
Puffinus is a genus of seabirds in the order Procellariiformes. It comprises about 20 small to medium-sized shearwaters. There are two other shearwater genera: Calonectris, which comprises three large shearwaters, and Procellaria with another four large species...
, called Shearwater
Shearwater
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds. There are more than 30 species of shearwaters, a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris and many smaller species in the genus Puffinus...
s, where the young birds are harvested for food and oil by being extracted by hand from the nesting burrows before they fledge. Some species are:
- Short-tailed ShearwaterShort-tailed ShearwaterThe Short-tailed Shearwater or Slender-billed Shearwater , also called Yolla or Moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in Australian waters, and is one of the few Australian native birds in which the chicks are commercially harvested...
, a seabird that nests in south-eastern Australia, particularly in the Furneaux Group of islands in eastern Bass StraitBass StraitBass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland, specifically the state of Victoria.-Extent:The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Bass Strait as follows:... - Sooty ShearwaterSooty ShearwaterThe Sooty Shearwater is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori name tītī and as "muttonbird", like its relatives the Wedge-tailed Shearwater and the Australian Short-tailed Shearwater The Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus) is...
, a seabird that nests mainly in New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and islands in the South Atlantic OceanAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area... - Wedge-tailed ShearwaterWedge-tailed ShearwaterThe Wedge-tailed Shearwater, Puffinus pacificus is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It is one of the shearwater species that is sometimes referred to as a Muttonbird, like the Sooty Shearwater of New Zealand and the Short-tailed Shearwater of Australia...
, found throughout the tropical and subtropical parts of the IndianIndian OceanThe Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and Pacific OceanPacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
s - Manx ShearwaterManx ShearwaterThe Manx Shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx Shearwaters were called Manks Puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters...
, breeding in the North Atlantic region, was harvested in historical times - Cape Verde ShearwaterCape Verde ShearwaterThe Cape Verde Shearwater , or Cagarra locally, is a medium-large shearwater, a seabird in the petrel family Procellariidae. It is a breeding endemic of the Cape Verde archipelago of Macaronesia in the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of West Africa.-Taxonomy:The Cape Verde Shearwater was originally...
, breeding in the Cape VerdeCape VerdeThe Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...
archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean, has declined because of over-harvesting - Grey-faced petrel (Pterodroma macroptera gouldi)
- Providence PetrelProvidence PetrelThe Providence Petrel is a species that burrows in one location; isolated Lord Howe Island, some 800km from the Australian mainland in the Tasman Sea....
s, harvested to extinction on Norfolk IslandNorfolk IslandNorfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
in the early 19th century but still existing on Lord Howe IslandLord Howe IslandLord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...
, were known as 'muttonbirds' or 'flying sheep'
Further reading
- Adam-Smith, Patsy. (1965). Moonbird People. Rigby: Adelaide. (About the Furneaux group of islands in Bass Strait, the muttonbirds that inhabit them and the people who make their living from them).
External links
- Keep the Titi Forever
- Migration of sooty shearwater from New Zealand to the north Pacific - TerraNature article
- Muttonbird recipes
- Muttonbirding in New Zealand
- Stop muttonbird slaughter - AACT article
- A Seaweed Pantry - Tales from Te PapaTales from Te PapaTales From Te Papa is a television series of mini-documentaries about objects from the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and the activities of the Museum staff. The series is a partnership between Television New Zealand and the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa...
Episode 100 - A short YouTube video about muttonbirding