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Buller's Shearwaters are large shearwaters. Except for a very narrow dark edge around the entire wings their underparts are all-white. The upperparts are grey, with black wing tips and outer half of the tail. The cap is darker grey than the rest of the back. Across the upperwings they have an "U" shaped pattern, similar to those of prions. However, the "U" on the back of Buller's Shearwater is incomplete, with a gap on the rump. The feet, which are usually well hidden in flight, do not project beyond the end of the wedge-shaped tail.

The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org .

The global distribution of Buller's Shearwater is available HERE .

Buller's Shearwaters are a migratory species that is found around New Zealand, across the Tasman Sea to south-eastern Australia, as far northward as the Coral Sea (Great Barrier Reef) and all across the Pacific Ocean, where they are found around most of the Pacific island nations. They have a stronghold on the West coast of North America and are also found off the coast of Chile.

Buller's Shearwaters reach the Australian coastline in an area from about Fraser Island, QLD, in the North to the southern tip of Tasmania in the South. They are also found regularly in the Coral Sea (on the Great Barrier Reef), but they only rarely cross the Bass Strait to go further westward.

Buller's Shearwaters are pelagic birds that spend much of their time out on the open ocean but are also found in coastal waters. They breed on islands off the North Island of New Zealand.

M. Roderick reports spotting a Buller's Shearwater off Swansea, NSW, in December 2017. All photographic and sighting information presented on this page has kindly been contributed by M. Roderick.