Sooty shearwater © Chris Gomersall/2020VISION
Sooty shearwater
Scientific name: Ardenna grisea
These globe-spanning seabirds can often be seen offshore in autumn, shearing low over the waves.
Top facts
Stats
Length: 43-46cmWingspan: 97-106cm
Weight: 650-978g
Conservation status
Classified in the UK as Green under the Birds of Conservation Concern 5: the Red List for Birds (2021).
When to see
July - November (occasionally seen outside of this period)About
Sooty shearwaters are elegant seabirds that roam widely around the world's oceans. In the UK, they can often be seen in late summer and autumn by looking out to sea from prominent headlands, especially on the east coast. They're most likely to be seen when there is a strong, onshore wind, pushing birds towards the land.The birds we see in the UK breed on islands in the South Atlantic, close to Antarctica. Their breeding season takes place over our winter, then in spring the sooty shearwaters set off on an epic transequatorial migration, covering around 30,000km as they cross the Atlantic. They make their way up into the North Atlantic, then head northwest and follow the east coast of North America, before crossing east to the waters around the UK. As autumn arrives, the adults start to head south again, back to their breeding grounds.
What to look for
An athletic looking seabird, with long, narrow wings. It is a dark, sooty brown all over, apart from a silvery-white flash on the underside of each wing. It has a long, slender, blackish bill with prominent nostrils that identify it as one of the 'tubenoses'.The sooty shearwater has a powerful flight, combining bursts of fast wingbeats with glides on stiff, straight wings. In high winds, it glides in long, graceful arcs, shearing low over the water and then high into the air.