ML618613645

Observation details

Minimum count/max seen simultaneously - photos and video. Maybe as many as 4 (3 northbound, 1 southbound) but keeping it conservative in case of some recirculation as at least one was hanging around foraging off the jetty for a while. Medium-sized, uniformly dark shearwaters dynamic-soaring quite close off the end of the jetty at times, offering excellent scope views of plumage and structure. Critically studied in the field to eliminate similar species - all seen showed contrastingly bright underwing flashes, with an evenly balanced structure (head and tail projection close to equal). Flight was buoyant on high shearing arcs tilting to vertical at the top, with short bursts of steady, even, flexed wingbeats at the bottom of the arc - unlike the shallow, stiff, erratic flapping of Short-tailed Shearwater. Photos show the typical long-billed and gently sloped head structure of Sooty, as well as the bright underwing flashes. Clearly not long-tailed enough for Wedge-tailed Shearwater. Details and photos submitted to TBRC for review.