The mottled petrel was discovered in the South Pacific Ocean during Cook's second voyage. A painting was made by George Forster and a description drawn by his father J.R. Forster. It has been variously depicted since then by Buller, Godman and Mathews.
According to Oliver, the mottled petrel formerly bred "in the central mountains ranges of the North Island, Kaimanawa, Ruahine, and Ruapehu, and throughout the whole of the South Island including Banks Peninsula" but the introduction of rats, first by Maori and then by Europeans, saw their demise on the mainland. Now the mottled petrel is common only around Stewart Island, its outlying islands and the Snares.
The mottled petrel is a summer breeder, returning in late October to clean out the nests and mate, laying in December. At Snares they mate for life and return to the same nest every year.
They feed mainly on squid and small fish. All observers have reported the usual call of the mottled petrel as a high pitched te-te-te-te rapidly and continuously repeated when the bird is in flight. It has another quite different call, a deep resonant bugle note.
Formerly, the Korure was taken in large numbers in inland breeding places in the North Island.
