From Opus

Photo by Momo
South Plaza (Galapagos), Ecuador, January 2009

Puffinus subalaris

[edit] Identification

Has dark brown upperparts, undertail and partial underwing. The rest of the underparts is white. Sometimes, the underparts have also a dark colour. Both sexes and juvenile after fledging are alike.
It's a slender-bodied shearwater, about 29 to 31 cm in length and a wingspan of 63 cm. 123 to 225 g in weight.

[edit] Similar Species

Manx Shearwater is slightly larger with longer more-pointed wings, and white undertail coverts.
Cory's Shearwater is much larger with much lighter brown body and wings, heavy yellow bill and white tail band.
Great Shearwater is much larger with lighter body, smudgy brown belly, neat cap, narrow pointed wings and white tail band.

[edit] Distribution

Breeds on the Galapagos Islands.
Largely sedentary, although individuals are commonly seen as far as the Oaxacan coast of Mexico.

[edit] Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species.
It's still considered to be a subspecies of Audubon's Shearwater by some authorities.

[edit] Habitat

Tropical waters.

[edit] Behaviour

[edit] Breeding

It is a colonial breeder, nesting in small burrows and crevices in rocks. One egg is laid and incubated by both parents for 50; the young fledge 70 days later.

[edit] Diet

The Galapagos shearwater is a gregarious species and will feed at sea with other shearwaters and boobies. It flies low over the water and feeds on squid, fish and offal

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2010. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2010. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/Clements%206.5.xls/view

1. Paper by Austin et al. (2004) describing phylogeny of small shearwaters

• List of references

[edit] External Links