Large seabird (approx 51 cm or 20 in). Elongated body and narrow wings. The only shearwater with homogeneous plumage of dark brown tone, both in the upperparts and in the underparts. Silvery grey stripe visible at the bottom of the wings in flight.
Marine environment
Species of austral reproduction (southern hemisphere). It moves northward outside the breeding season. Pelagic species except when nesting.
Species considered a rarity in the province. The Sooty Shearwater breeds in the southern hemisphere October. Colonial. This seabird excavates nests in burrows, like rabbits, and deposits an egg in them. Its diet consists of fish and cephalopods.
Very rare species on the coast of Malaga. Its entry into the Mediterranean is considered exceptional, its observation being more likely when located as close to the Strait of Gibraltar as possible. In the province it has been watched in Punta de Calaburras (Mijas).
The Sooty Shearwater inspired Alfred Hitchcock with his famous film "The birds". An episode of poisoning in a population of shearwaters in the Bay of Monterrey (California) in 1961 caused a large number of these birds to die, falling from the air in a group and regurgitating the fish they contained in their crops. This macabre spectacle gave the idea to the director, who at that time resided in that area.
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