Macaronesian/Little Shearwater

Greater Shearwater

Greater Shearwater

One of the last frontiers of birding is extreme pelagic birding, where birders go out on a boat to offshore waters to find seabirds. We have seen seabirds such as the Greater Shearwater, see photos above, when we went on a pelagic birding trip in the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia.
Increasingly, birders are finding mega-rare seabirds on such trips. One such rarity recently found was a Macaronesian/Little Shearwater, seen by many NH birders and others on a pelagic birding trip off the coast of Massachusetts. This shearwater is currently classified by the American Ornithologist's Union as a Little Shearwater (Puffinis assimilis baroli) but the British Ornithologist's Union and others now classify this bird as a Macaronesian Shearwater (p. baroli).

To see lots of photos, click here.

To read a description of the event from the NH. Birds listserve, click here.

To see a map of where this sighting occurred, as well as past sightings of mega-rare seabirds, click here.

You can have the excitement of seeing interesting seabirds by going on such trips. To see a list of the American Birding Association Directory of Pelagic Trips click here.
Also check with your local bird club, or birding organization, most of whom run such trips.