ID Keys: Pale brown above, white underparts and face, white
underwings with dark flight feathers
The
Streaked Shearwater is a pelagic species found in eastern Asia southward to
Australia. It breeds on the coastline and nearby offshore islands of
southeastern Russia, Japan, Korea, and China. They are migratory and
move southward for the winter, wintering from southeastern Asia (Vietnam,
Phillipines, Indonesia) through the Australian region. They are but
rare vagrants to North America, with a handful of sightings off the
California and Oregon coasts, as well as Hawaii. Interestingly, in June of
2006, a carcass of a Streak Shearwater was found on the shores of a small
reservoir near Medicine Bow, Wyoming. They are not known to wander
inland, with a sighting of a bird at Red Bluff, California, representing the
only other inland sighting of the species in North America.
Habitat
Found in both pelagic and inshore waters
both during migration and during the summer breeding season. The
greatest breeding concentration are on offshore islands of Japan, with a
preference for those with forested slopes.
Diet
Feeds on fish and small squid
Behavior
Forages by flying over the water's
surface and dipping down to grab prey in flight through surface skimming, or
by making shallow plunges into the water in search of prey. Outside of
the breeding season, they primarily feed during the day, where they often
track schools of tuna and other predators that drive small fish prey near
the surface.
Nesting
Streaked Shearwaters are colonial
nesters, nesting on offshore islands or sometimes on protected shorelines in
eastern Asia. The nest itself is a burrow, often constructed on a forested
slope. A single egg is laid each breeding season, with both parents
helping to incubate the egg and raise the young.
Song
Usually silent while in flight, but vocal in
and around breeding colonies.
Migration
Migratory, with birds breeding on or
near the shorelines of Japan, Russia, China, and Korea, and moving to
southeastern Asia and Australia for the winter.
