Christmas Shearwater

Puffinus nativitatis Streets, 1877

≈36 cmLength76 cmWingspan356 gWeight

This dark shearwater is smaller than Sooty Shearwater, with legs and feet projecting beyond the tail tip in flight.

Busiest months: March and August · Most records: U.S. Outlying Islands, Kiribati, Pitcairn Islands

Looks like Sooty Shearwater, Short-tailed Shearwater

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Blackish-gray overall with a rusty-brown tinge, slightly paler below
Underwing dark brown
Bill and eyes dark, legs and feet brownish-gray
Legs and feet project beyond tail tip in flight

Male, female and young

Sexes similar; fledged juveniles are also similar.

Similar species

Sooty Shearwater

Very similar, but Christmas Shearwater is smaller and has dark brown underwings.

Short-tailed Shearwater

Very similar, but Christmas Shearwater is smaller and has dark brown underwings.

Where and when it's recorded

Christmas Shearwater has been recorded at 17 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 7 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Midway Atoll NWR – Eastern IslandU.S. Outlying Islands162 records
Christmas IslandKiribati18 records
Motu TapuKiribati7 records

More places

Midway Atoll NWR – Sand IslandU.S. Outlying Islands7 records
Ducie IslandPitcairn Islands6 records
Pitcairn IslandPitcairn Islands6 records
Wake IslandU.S. Outlying Islands6 records
Oeno IslandPitcairn Islands5 records
TetiaroaFrench Polynesia2 records
Lanyang River Estuary IBATaiwan (China)2 records

Countries and regions with the most records

U.S. Outlying Islands Kiribati Pitcairn Islands French Polynesia China Fiji Marshall Islands

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The Christmas shearwater or ʻaoʻū (Puffinus nativitatis) is a medium-sized shearwater of the tropical Central Pacific. It is a poorly known species due to its remote nesting habits, and it has not been extensively studied at sea either.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Christmas Shearwater?

The Christmas Shearwater is about ≈36 cm long, with a wingspan of 76 cm and weighs around 356 g.

Where does the Christmas Shearwater live?

Its breeding range: Pacific Ocean: islands of Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Lehua and Ka'ula (northern, southwest of Ni'hau, west of Kauai), Moku Manu (O'ahu; Hawaiian Islands), Line, Austral, Marquesas, Gambier, Pitcairn, Easter (=Eastern) groups and islands Salas y Gomez (eastern Polynesia). It is most often recorded in U.S. Outlying Islands, Kiribati and Pitcairn Islands.

When is the best time to see the Christmas Shearwater?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in March and August (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Christmas Shearwater endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Christmas Shearwater as Least Concern.

What does the Christmas Shearwater eat?

Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.

What family is the Christmas Shearwater in?

It belongs to the family Petrels, Shearwaters, Diving Petrels (Procellariidae), order Procellariiformes.

At a glance

Length: ≈36 cm
Wingspan: 76 cm
Weight: 356 g
Habitat: Ocean
Diet: Fish, shrimp & shellfish
Lifestyle: Varied
Migration: Partial migrant
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 236 mm
Tail: 86 mm
Bill: 29 mm
Tarsus: 41 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Pacific Ocean: islands of Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Lehua and Ka'ula (northern, southwest of Ni'hau, west of Kauai), Moku Manu (O'ahu; Hawaiian Islands), Line, Austral, Marquesas, Gambier, Pitcairn, Easter (=Eastern) groups and islands Salas y Gomez (eastern Polynesia)

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2