Wedge-tailed Shearwater

Basic Description

In warm parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, Wedge-tailed Shearwaters skim above the waves on long, relatively broad wings, plucking fish and squid from the surface. They breed on remote ocean islands, where they add an eerie element with haunting, moaning calls emanating from their nest burrows during the dark of night. After raising a single chick, these large shearwaters return to the sea for the rest of the year. Wedge-tailed Shearwaters come in both light and dark morphs—light birds are grayish-brown above and whitish below, while dark morphs are brown overall.