Audubon’s Shearwater  Puffinus lherminieri

Texas Coastal / Offshore Status: Rare to uncommon in offshore Gulf of Mexico waters in summer and fall (August – September). Less common than Cory’s Shearwater.

Habitat: pelagic waters of the Gulf of Mexico, usually where the water depth is greater than 100 fathoms. Unlike Cory’s, this species is very rarely seen in the relatively shallow waters over the continental shelf. Audubon’s Shearwater prefers warmer waters than Manx Shearwater.

Similar Species: Audubon’s Shearwater most closely resembles Manx Shearwater. Audubon’s differs from Manx, by having relatively shorter wings, longer tail, and most importantly black undertail coverts.

(1) TOS Handbook of Texas Birds; by Mark W. Lockwood and Brush Freeman (2005)
(2) Lower Texas Coast Status from Brad McKinney’s annotated checklist (updated 2009).

Seasonal Occurrence Graph

Texas Pelagics Sightings Distribution

This map shows the geographic distribution of Audubon’s Shearwater found in Offshore Texas (and Gulf of Mexico)
Click on the box in the upper left of the map to view the map legend.
Click on each sighting symbol and the data label will appear showing the time, date and the number of birds seen.
Click on the symbol on the top right of the map to view a larger map.

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