Northern Giant Petrel

Macronectes halli

These giant petrels are the vultures of the sea. They feed on things like dead fish, seals, whales anything they can scavenge. Sailors have many names for them, often unflattering like "Stinkpot" or "Bone Shaker".

But like vultures on land they play an invaluable role recycling the dead back to the living. As petrels they are related to albatross also and get as big as the lesser albatross with wingspans over 2 meters. They are also tube nosed birds, a group of open ocean birds that have tubes on their bill to exude excess salt. Essentially they never have to drink fresh water, able to exude a saline solution through those tubes.

Also of note is that thick bill, used for pulling, cracking, and slicing off flesh. Usually we only see them on the wing zig-zagging over the open waves. This is the closest I've been to one, curiously sitting on the water investigating our boat.