The white-chinned petrel (Procellaria aequinoctialis) also known as the Cape hen and shoemaker, is a large shearwater in the family Procellariidae.

In 1747 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a description of the white-chinned petrel in the second volume of his A Natural History of Uncommon Birds.

He used the English name "The great Black Peteril" and based his hand-coloured etching on a preserved specimen that had been brought to London.

Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Procellaria aequinoctialis and cited Edwards' work.

This can be sprayed out of their mouths as a defence against predators and as an energy rich food source for chicks and for the adults during their long flights.

[8] Finally, they also have a salt gland that is situated above the nasal passage and helps desalinate their bodies, due to the high amount of ocean water that they imbibe.

This large petrel is sooty-black and has some white on its throat and chin, more so in the Indian Ocean sector than the Atlantic.

Mortality of both adults and chicks due to longline fisheries has caused the IUCN to classify it as vulnerable.

[10] Unintentional death at the hands of longline fisheries has proven to be a major contributor to the overall population decline.

[10] To assist in reversing the decline in population it has been proposed to continue and extend monitoring studies, trying to eliminate most invasive species, promote adoption of best practice mitigation measures at all fisheries within the range via ACAP, FAO, CCAMLR.