Storm petrel

European storm petrels of the family Hydrobatidae.

Wilson's storm petrel, of the family Oceanitidae.

Storm petrel may refer to one of two bird families, both in the order Procellariiformes, once treated as the same family.

Up and down! - up and down!
From the base of the wave to the billow’s crown,
And amidst the flashing and feathery foam
The stormy petrel finds a home, -
A home, if such a place may be
For her who lives on the wide, wide sea.

O’er the deep! - o’er the deep!
Where the whale and the shark and the sword-fish sleep, -
Outflying the blast and the driving rain,
The petrel telleth her tale — in vain!

From "The Stormy Petrel" poem by Barry Cornwall^[1]

The two families are:

• Northern storm petrels (Hydrobatidae) are found in the Northern Hemisphere, although some species around the Equator dip into the south.

• Southern storm petrels (Oceanitidae) are found in all oceans, although only white-faced storm petrel (breeding in the North Atlantic, in addition to the Southern Ocean) and Wilson's storm petrels (on migration) are found in the Northern Hemisphere.

References

1. A Library of Poetry and Song: Being Choice Selections from The Best Poets. With An Introduction by William Cullen Bryant, New York, J.B. Ford and Company, 1871, p. 354.