Sooty Shearwater

Sooty Shearwater

Puffinus griseus

Silhouette: Juan Carlos Jerí · PhyloPic

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Rakiura National Park
296 Verified sightings at Rakiura National Park From 2019 to 2026
2,086 Verified sightings across all 32 parks From 2019 to 2026
February Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Sooty Shearwater

The sooty shearwater (Ardenna grisea) is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand, it is also known by its Māori name tītī, and is harvested by Māori people for muttonbird, like its relatives the wedge-tailed shearwater (A. pacificus) and the Australian short-tailed shearwater (A. tenuirostris).

The sooty shearwater was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin under the binomial name Procellaria grisea. The shearwater had been briefly described in 1777 by James Cook in the account of his second voyage to the Pacific, but without a valid scientific name; and also in 1785 the English ornithologist John Latham had described a museum specimen, again without giving it a scientific name. The sooty shearwater is now placed in the genus Ardenna, that was described in 1853 by Ludwig Reichenbach. The genus name Ardenna was used to refer to a seabird by Italian naturalist Ulisse Aldrovandi in 1603, and the specific epithet grisea is medieval Latin for "grey". The species is considered to be monotypic; no subspecies are recognised.

It appears to be particularly closely related to the great shearwater (A. gravis... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Rakiura National Park

Buller's Shearwater

Buller's Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus bulleri

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Short-tailed Shearwater

Short-tailed Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus tenuirostris

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Fluttering Shearwater
LC

Fluttering Shearwater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Puffinus gavia

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Antarctic Petrel
LC

Antarctic Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Thalassoica antarctica

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Cape Petrel
LC

Cape Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Daption capense

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Northern Giant Petrel
LC

Northern Giant Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Macronectes halli

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Mottled Petrel
NT

Mottled Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pterodroma inexpectata

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Cook's Petrel
VU

Cook's Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pterodroma cookii

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Fairy Prion
LC

Fairy Prion

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pachyptila turtur

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
White-chinned Petrel
VU

White-chinned Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Procellaria aequinoctialis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Broad-billed Prion
LC

Broad-billed Prion

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Pachyptila vittata

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Westland Petrel
EN

Westland Petrel

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Procellaria westlandica

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kenai Fjords National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
2 Rakiura National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
~10%
3 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~10%
4 Fiordland National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
~10%
5 Península Valdés 🇦🇷 Argentina
~10%
6 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
7 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
8 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
9 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
10 Wrangell-St. Elias National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
11 Paracas National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
<5%
12 Galápagos Islands 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
13 Tierra del Fuego National Park 🇦🇷 Argentina
<5%
14 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
15 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
16 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
17 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
18 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
19 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
20 Katmai National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
21 Cabo Pulmo National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
Insufficient data
22 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
23 Freycinet National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
24 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
25 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
26 El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
Insufficient data
27 Abel Tasman National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
28 Bahía de Loreto National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
Insufficient data
29 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
Insufficient data
30 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
31 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Insufficient data
32 Royal National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Sooty Shearwater in Rakiura National Park?

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Sooty Shearwater sighting in Rakiura National Park, based on 296 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Sooty Shearwater in Rakiura National Park?

February has the highest sighting rate for Sooty Shearwater in Rakiura National Park in our monthly data.

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