shearwater

[ sheer-waw-ter, -wot-er ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

any of several long-winged petrels of the genus Puffinus that appear to shear the water with their wing tips when flying low.

shearwater

/ ˈʃɪəˌwɔːtə /

any of several oceanic birds of the genera Puffinus, such as P. puffinus ( Manx shearwater ), Procellaria, etc, specialized for an aerial or aquatic existence: family Procellariidae, order Procellariiformes (petrels)

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First recorded in 1665–75; shear + water

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C17: so named because their wings seem to clip the waves when they are flying low

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Strange as it might seem, it just might help those shearwaters survive strong storms.

After a while, a handful of shearwaters appear in the air above the Cat Balou.

So, in order to understand what happened, first you need to know how a flock of birds—like thousands of shearwaters—fly and move together.

It is a similar bird to the Sooty Shearwater, but is considerably darker and the under coverts are whitish.

The common name, however, is retained and the species stands 95, Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus).

The Great Shearwater is far less abundant than the preceding species, and may indeed be considered a rarity.

The Great Shearwater differs little in habits, as far as they are known, from the other species.

The Manx Shearwater comes next in size, but it is a dark-plumaged bird on the upper parts, only white below.

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