Scopoli's Shearwater

Overview

Scopoli's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea) is a seabird in the petrel family Procellariidae that breeds on rocky islands and steep coasts in the Mediterranean. Outside the breeding season, it migrates to forage in the Atlantic, specifically in regions associated with major upwellings such as the Canary Current and the Benguela Current. The species is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Identification

• 45–52 cm in length with a wingspan of 112–122 cm.
• Upperparts are brownish-grey with darker brown wings and fringes of lighter brown; underparts are mostly white with a brown border, particularly on the trailing edge of the wing.
• Bill is pale yellow with a dark patch near the tip; legs and feet are a pale flesh colour.
• The underside of the wing shows more white on the primary feathers at the wingtip, especially the outermost large feather, distinguishing it from the similar Cory's shearwater.

Habitat

Breeding occurs on islands in the Mediterranean ranging from the Chafarinas Islands in the west to the Dodecanese in the east, with the largest colony on the rocky island of Zembra. During the non-breeding season, the birds migrate through the Strait of Gibraltar to winter in the south-east Atlantic, foraging off the coasts of West Africa and Namibia. They typically return to the Mediterranean by the end of February.

Diet

The bird mainly feeds on small fish, but also consumes cephalopods and crustaceans. It forages by skimming over the surface or surface feeding, rarely plunging completely beneath the water, and occasionally follows whales and tuna to catch small fish or scavenge discards from fishing vessels.

Did you know?

The species name diomedea refers to Diomedes, a Greek hero whose distraught friends were turned into white seabirds after his death. The generic name Calonectris combines the Ancient Greek word for 'good' or 'noble' with a term meaning 'swimmer'.