Flesh-footed Shearwater
Ardenna carneipes
Entirely the color of dark chocolate with a dark-tipped pink bill. Fairly large; similar in size and shape to Pink-footed Shearwater. Shorter-tailed and stockier than dark-morph Wedge-tailed Shearwater (which usually has dark bill). Also compare with dark Procellaria petrels such as Parkinson’s; note overall shape and differences in bill shape and pattern. Namesake foot color is difficult to see in normal field conditions. Fairly common over much of Pacific and Indian oceans; uncommon to rare off west coast of North America. Can be seen alone or with feeding congregations of other shearwaters. Breeds on islands off the coast of southern Australia and northern New Zealand. Not likely to be seen from land; stays further offshore.
Identification
The flesh-footed shearwater (Ardenna carneipes), also called sable shearwater, is a medium-large shearwater that mainly inhabits the Indo-Pacific. Its plumage is black with pale pinkish feet, and a pale bill with a distinct black tip. Together with the equally light-billed pink-footed shearwater, it forms the Hemipuffinus group, a superspecies which may or may not have an Atlantic relative in the great shearwater. These large shearwaters are among those that have been separated into the genus Ardenna. Recent genetic analysis indicates evidence of strong divergence between Pacific colonies relative to those in South and Western Australia, thought to be explained by philopatry and differences in foraging strategies during the breeding season. A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2021 found very little genetic difference between the flesh-footed shearwater and the pink-footed shearwater (Ardenna creatopus). The authors of the study suggested that these two taxa might be better considered as conspecific. The flesh-footed shearwater breeds in colonies, and has two main breeding areas; one in the southwest Pacific Ocean includes Lord Howe Island (22,654 pairs ), South Australia (about 1,800 pairs breeding on two islands) and northern New Zealand (13,000 pairs); the other population comprises no more than 36,000 pairs breeding on 42 islands along the coast of Western Australia from Cape Leeuwin to the Recherche Archipelago. Another 500 pairs breed on St Paul Island in the Indian Ocean. A record of birds on Astola Island of Pakistan in the Arabian Sea is unconfirmed. Recent evidence suggests populations are declining across much of the species' range. The species was recently listed as near threatened in Australia and nationally vulnerable in New Zealand, and has been recommended for listing under the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels. At the state level, the species is listed as vulnerable in Western Australia and New South Wales and rare in South Australia. The species occurs as a (boreal) summer visitor in the North Pacific Ocean, where potentially large numbers are taken as bycatch in fisheries. The species also suffers from climate related impacts and significant heavy metal contamination, the cause of which is not fully understood, but is likely due to the ingestion of significant quantities of plastic, which the birds mistake for food floating on the ocean surface.
Taxonomy
Genus: Ardenna; Family: Procellariidae; Order: Procellariiformes.
- Scientific name
- Ardenna carneipes
- Authority
- (Gould, 1844)
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Ardenna
Range and habitat
Breeding range: PO, IO : islets off St. Paul (c Indian Ocean), sw, s Australia, Lord Howe I. (e of Australia), North I. and Cook Strait (New Zealand). Non-breeding range: to Arabian Sea, e Malagasy region, n Pacific e of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk to Gulf of Alaska and w USA coast (rare).
- Breeding range
- PO, IO : islets off St. Paul (c Indian Ocean), sw, s Australia, Lord Howe I. (e of Australia), North I. and Cook Strait (New Zealand)
- Non-breeding range
- to Arabian Sea, e Malagasy region, n Pacific e of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk to Gulf of Alaska and w USA coast (rare)
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Socorro Mockingbird
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Abyssinian Wheatear
Oenanthe lugubris
A dark wheatear in which males and females are very different. Males are black above with a dark-streaked gray cap. There is individual and geographical variation in belly color, which can be either black or white. Females have a dark brown back and heavily streaked paler underparts. Both sexes have a buff undertail and a black-and-buff tail with a “T” pattern that is conspicuous in flight. Found in rocky areas with some trees and shrubs. White-bellied males can resemble other wheatears, but are distinguished by their black-and-buff tail. The song is a long, musical jumble of whistles and chatty notes.
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