I looked something up between Short-tailed & Sooty, and I came up with these info which may help identify this shearwater.
Sooty Shearwaters have a longer, stout bills. The darker chin is not contrasty with rest of the lower body. Primaries reach only to tail when sitting still. The white underwing is most prominent on the median primary coverts. The white median primary coverts & median secondary coverts contrast strongly with the dark flight feathers. The wings & tail appear longer when compared with Short-tailed.
Though there are many variations in plumage within Short-tailed Shearwaters, Short-tailed have a much paler tone to it's body in general, with a near all pale underwing. Including pale primaries. It will also have a paler throat and breast when compared with Sooty. Tail and wings appear shorter then Sooty Shearwater.
All the features of this bird suggest a Sooty Shearwater to me. The dark body and dark flight feathers are very clearly shown in the photos. The tail also look long to me in the photos.
I am not entirely sure
...But experts advice will be better than my observation from second hand information...
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Last edited by kmatthew at 25/04/2009 18:13 ]
