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Sooty Shearwater
(Ardenna grisea)
: "New Zealand Muttonbird", "Ghost Bird", "King Muttonbird",
"Sombre Shearwater"
German name(s): "Dunkler Sturmtaucher"
Size: 40-51 cm; wing span 0.95-1.1 m
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Similar species |
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Sooty Shearwaters are medium-sized seabirds with an overall
dark-brown plumage.
The only exception from this homogeneous colour is
that they have grey or greyish-brown underwing coverts.
The legs and feet are grey. The feet
reach slightly beyond the end of the tail.
Their main characteristic is that in flight they can often
be seen with wingtips bowed upwards.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Sooty
Shearwater at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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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 Sooty Shearwater is available
HERE
.
Sooty Shearwaters are a global, long-distance migratory pelagic species.
They are at home anywhere on the open seas on both the southern and the
northern hemisphere, EXCEPT the central and
northern Indian Ocean and all enclosed waters, such as the Mediterranean,
the Baltic Sea and waters between the major groups of islands in
South-east Asia (Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea).
Their breeding grounds are on the southern hemisphere, on
islands
of the southern Pacific Ocean and the southern Atlantic Ocean.
In Europe, Sooty Shearwaters are present only outside their
breeding season, when roaming the open seas and coastal
waters. They can be found in waters off western Europe,
anywhere from Gibraltar in the South, via the North Sea,
to near-coastal north-western Norway in the North. They
do not enter the Baltic Sea.
Sooty Shearwaters are found mostly on the open seas, but
also in coastal waters and, during their breeding season,
on offshore islands.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
J. Pires
reports spotting Sooty Shearwaters 5 NM off Sagres, Algarve,
Portugal, in October 2018 and again in October 2019 and October 2020.
All sighting and photographic information presented on this
page has kindly been contributed by J. Pires.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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Near-lateral view of Sooty Shearwater
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2020]
Lateral view of Sooty Shearwater
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[5 NM off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2018]
Lateral view of Sooty Shearwater
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2020]
Near-dorsal view of Sooty Shearwater
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[5 NM off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2018]
Dorsal view of Sooty Shearwater
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[5 NM off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2018]
Near-lateral view of Sooty Shearwater in flight
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]
Near-lateral view of Sooty Shearwater in flight
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]
Near-dorsal view of Sooty Shearwater in flight
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]
Dorsal view of Sooty Shearwater in flight
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2019]
Comparison of a Sooty Shearwater, back, and a
Great Shearwater,
front
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[5 NM off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2018]
Overview of different species of shearwaters hunting in
coastal waters off the south-western tip of Iberia
(photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Off Sagres, Algarve, Portugal, October 2018]
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.