Fluttering Shearwater

About the Fluttering Shearwater

The fluttering shearwater (Puffinus gavia) is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. It is endemic to New Zealand and migrates to Australia and the Solomon Islands. Its natural habitats are open seas and rocky shores. It has been known as Forster's shearwater in the past.

This is a medium to small-sized shearwater with a dark-brown-and-white body. The upper parts, including neck, wings and tail, are uniformly dark brown. The face and neck have a grey-brown colour gradually fading into white below the eye. The under body, from chin to the under-tail, is white except for a dark thigh patch that can be seen in flight. The bottom wing is commonly white while the axillary area is covered in grey-brown fur. Under light conditions, the appearance is different. The fluttering shearwater has pinkish-brown legs and feet with dark webs, and the feet extend beyond the tail in flight. The bill is long and thin with dark colour. The tail is fan-shaped and short in flight and it has mixed colours – dark brown and white.

Moulting starts from late January and the dark upper surfaces fade to mid-brown quickly. The colour of birds close to moulting (February to April) is... Wikipedia →