Seabird keeping tree snakes in place (6)
I believe the answer is:
petrel
'seabird' is the definition.
(I know that petrel is a type of oceanic bird)
'tree snakes in place' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
an anagram of 'tree' is 'etre' which is within the answer.
'place' could be 'pl' (abbreviation used in postal addresses) and 'pl' is found within the leftover letters.
This accounts for all the letters.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
'keeping' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for petrel that I've seen before include "Seabird (that may be stormy)" , "Mother Carey's chicken" , "Seabird that flies far from land" , "Bird that sounds like fuel" , "Seabird sounds like fuel" .)