Puffinus puffinus
The Manx Shearwater, *Puffinus puffinus*, is a medium-sized pelagic seabird renowned for its agile, low-level flight over ocean waves. Measuring 30-38 cm (12-15 in) in length with a wingspan of 76-82 cm (30-32 in) and weighing 350-500g (12-18 oz), it exhibits a striking bicolor plumage: sooty-black upperparts contrasting sharply with pure white underparts. Key field marks include its stiff-winged, 'shearing' flight where it banks steeply, often appearing to cut through the wave crests, and it...
Manx Shearwaters are strictly marine birds, spending the vast majority of their lives at sea in pelagic waters. They only come ashore during the breeding season, primarily on remote, predator-free islands and coastal cliffs, often nesting in excavated burrows or natural crevices.
Their diet primarily consists of small schooling fish such as sardines, sprats, and anchovies, supplemented by squid and various crustaceans. They forage by swimming just below the surface, shallow pursuit-diving, or surface-seizing prey.
At sea, Manx Shearwaters are highly social, forming large rafts on the water, especially during migration or around abundant food sources, but they forage individually or in smaller groups. On breeding islands, they exhibit a distinctly nocturnal activity pattern, returning to their burrows only ...
The Manx Shearwater exhibits a widespread breeding range across the North Atlantic, predominantly on offshore islands of the UK and Ireland, including significant populations on the Isle of Man, Skokholm, and Rum. Other breeding strongholds include Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and islands off the ...
Least Concern
- Manx Shearwaters are incredibly long-lived, with the oldest known individual recorded at over 50 years old. - They possess an extraordinary homing ability, capable of returning to their breeding burrows after being displaced thousands of kilometers away. - The species undertakes one of the long...