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Short-tailed Shearwater (Ardenna tenuirostris) Alternate name(s): "Slender-billed Shearwater", "Bass Strait Muttonbird", "Tasmanian Muttonbird", "Short-tailed Petrel", "Yolla", "Moonbird" Size: 40-45 cm; wing span 0.9-1.0 m Weight: 480-720 g

Australia: Family Group 3 Family Group 3 table Southern Fulmar Antarctic Petrel Cape Petrel Mottled Petrel Black-winged Petrel Providence Petrel Grey-faced Petrel Kermadec Petrel Soft-plumaged Petrel Tahiti Petrel Buller's Shearwater Wedge-tailed Shearwater Flesh-footed Shearwater Sooty Shearwater Short-tailed Shearwater Fluttering Shearwater Hutton's Shearwater Little Shearwater Antarctic Prion Slender-billed Prion Fairy Prion Southern Giant-Petrel Northern Giant-Petrel Light-mantled Albatross Wandering Albatross Southern Royal Albatross Northern Royal Albatross Black-browed Albatross Campbell Albatross Buller's Albatross Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross Shy Albatross Common Diving-Petrel Wilson's Storm-Petrel New Zealand Storm-Petrel White-faced Storm-Petrel Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Short-tailed Shearwaters are medium-sized seabirds with an overall dark-brown plumage. The only exception from this homogeneous colour is the possibility that some (not all) have grey or greyish-brown underwing coverts. The legs and feet are grey. Their tail is short, with the feet reaching the end of the tail or slightly beyond.

Taxonomy, classification See Short-tailed Shearwater at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range 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 the Short-tailed Shearwater is available HERE . Short-tailed Shearwaters are a strongly migratory species. In the southern autumn, Short-tailed Shearwaters migrate northwards, from Australia/New Zealand to far-eastern Asia (in particular to Japan, Kamchatka and the Aleutian islands), from where they will depart again in the northern autumn, migrating southwards along the American West coast, crossing the Pacific Ocean towards Australia, New Zealand and the Southern Ocean in time for the next breeding season. During the southern summer Short-tailed Shearwaters are usually found in Australian waters, along the south coast of WA, SA, VIC, NSW and along the east coast as far north as southern QLD. They are endemic breeders that nest mostly on offshore islands in Bass Strait and along the coastline of Tasmania. Short-tailed Shearwaters are found on the open seas, coastal waters and, during their breeding season, on offshore islands.

Sightings Click here for sighting information We first spotted Short-tailed Shearwaters off headlands at both Point Plomer, Limeburners Creek NP, and Crescent Head, NSW, in October 2013. B. Hensen reports spotting Short-tailed Shearwaters off Cape Banks, La Perouse, NSW, in November 2013. At the time of the October/November 2013 sightings, they were seen hunting closer to shore than normal, providing photo opportunities from land. During the spring 2013 migration to their breeding grounds in the south, many thousands of Short-tailed Shearwaters did not make it and washed up on beaches. We thank B. Hensen and A. Richardson for their help with the identification of this species. M. Eaton reports finding Short-tailed Shearwaters on a pelagic off Eaglehawk Neck, near Hobart, TAS, in September 2021. C. Pears spotted Short-tailed Shearwaters a few km off Adventure Bay, Bruny Island, TAS, in January 2023.

Photos

ADULT

Sex unknown

Short-tailed Shearwaters on coastal water (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Cape Banks, La Perouse, NSW, November 2013]

Short-tailed Shearwaters on coastal water (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Cape Banks, La Perouse, NSW, November 2013]

Near-lateral view of a Short-tailed Shearwater in low flight, almost touching the water with its wing tip; note the feet protruding beyond the end of the short tail, which is an identifying characteristic of the species
[Limeburners Creek NP, NSW, October 2013]

Lateral view of a Short-tailed Shearwater in flight
[Limeburners Creek NP, NSW, October 2013]

View of the underwing pattern of a Short-tailed Shearwater in flight; note that the amount of white visible on the underwing can vary and is not a good diagnostic tool
[Limeburners Creek NP, NSW, October 2013]

View onto the upperwing pattern of a Short-tailed Shearwater (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Cape Banks, La Perouse, NSW, November 2013]

Near-dorsal view onto the upperwing pattern of a Short-tailed Shearwater in flight
[Limeburners Creek NP, NSW, October 2013]

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Thu, 12 January 2023, 7:07 +00:00