A visit by a sooty

This is one of the most abundant birds in the world. Sooty Shearwaters seen off our West Coast breed mainly on islands in the cool southwestern part of the Pacific Ocean. They raise their single chicks there and then migrate northward to spend the Southern Hemisphere winter on the warm seas of the North. Most that appear off the East Coast breed around Tierra del Fuego. After breeding, they begin a great circular migration around the Atlantic Ocean, arriving off the East Coast of North America in May, continuing on to Europe, then down the west coast of Africa, and returning to their nesting islands in November. Near shore and at the edge of the continental shelf, flocks of hundreds of thousands may be found at good feeding places. These flocks are worth inspecting closely because they often contain other, less common shearwaters.


This fellow was sent to us from the USF&W in Kodiak. It only had a short stop over before it was sent to the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward.

Now, everyone go to WoodSong and wish Cindy a Happy 50th Birthday.