Puffinus

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Puffinus
Puffinus gavia - SE Tasmania.jpg
Fluttering shearwater, Puffinus gavia
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Procellariiformes
Family: Procellariidae
Genus: Puffinus
Brisson, 1760
Type species
Procellaria puffinus (Manx shearwater)
Brünnich, 1764
Species

See text

Synonyms

Puffinus is a genus of seabirds in the order Procellariiformes that contains about 20 small to medium-sized shearwaters. Two other shearwater genera are named: Calonectris , which comprises three or four large shearwaters, and Ardenna with another seven species (formerly often included within Puffinus).

Contents

The taxonomy of this group is the cause of much debate, and the number of recognised species varies with the source.

The species in this group are long-winged birds, dark brown or black above, and white to dark brown below. They are pelagic outside the breeding season. They are most common in temperate and cold waters.

These tubenose birds fly with stiff wings, and use a shearing flight technique to move across wave fronts with the minimum of active flight. Some small species, such as the Manx shearwater, are cruciform in flight, with their long wings held directly out from their bodies.

Many are long-distance migrants, perhaps most spectacularly the sooty and short-tailed shearwaters, which perform migrations of 14,000 km or more each year.

Puffinus shearwaters come to islands and coastal cliffs only to breed. They are nocturnal at the colonial breeding sites, preferring moonless nights to minimise predation. They nest in burrows and often give eerie contact calls on their night-time visits. They lay a single white egg.

They feed on fish, squid and similar oceanic food. Some will follow fishing boats to take scraps, notably the sooty shearwater; these species also commonly follow whales to feed on fish disturbed by them.

Taxonomy

The genus Puffinus was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 with the Manx shearwater (Puffinus puffinus) as the type species. [1] [2]

Traditionally, Puffinus has been grouped with the Procellaria and Calonectris shearwaters. However, more recent results [3] [4] [5] have determined that the genus is apparently paraphyletic and while in part very close to Calonectris, forms a clade with the genera Pseudobulweria and Lugensa , which were formerly presumed to be gadfly petrels, and can be divided in what has been called the "Puffinus" and the "Neonectris" group after notable species; the latter has been separated as a distinct genus named Ardenna . [6] [7] The former is taxonomically confusing, with species having been split and remerged in the last years. [4] [5]

Puffinus is a Neo-Latin loanword based on the English "puffin". The original Latin term for shearwaters was usually the catchall name for sea-birds, mergus . [8] "Puffin" and its variants, such as poffin, pophyn and puffing, [9] referred to the cured carcass of the fat nestling of the shearwater, a former delicacy. [10] The original usage dates from at least 1337, but from as early as 1678 the term gradually came to be used for another, unrelated, seabird, the Atlantic puffin, an auk. [9] The current English name was first recorded in 1835 and refers to the former nesting of this species on the Isle of Man. [11]

Extant species

The genus Puffinus contains the following 21 species: [12]

ImageScientific nameCommon nameDistribution
Puffinus nat.JPG Puffinus nativitatis Christmas shearwater tropical Central Pacific.
Manx Shearwater.JPG Puffinus puffinus Manx shearwater north Atlantic Ocean in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, France, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Azores, Canary Islands, and Madeira
Ma - Puffinus yelkouan.jpg Puffinus yelkouan Yelkouan shearwater eastern and central Mediterranean.
Puffinus mauretanicus.jpg Puffinus mauretanicus Balearic shearwater Morocco and Algeria
Puffinus bryani Bryan's shearwater Hawaiian Islands
Black-vented Shearwater, Cabo San Lucas harbor, Baja California del Sur, Mexico, 25 February 2014 (12921391404).jpg Puffinus opisthomelas Black-vented shearwater Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California
Puffinus auricularis Townsend's shearwater Cerro Evermann on Isla Socorro in the Revillagigedo Islands, Mexico, though formerly present on Clarion Island and San Benedicto.
NEWELL'S SHEARWATER (4-27-2018) holo-holo boat, coast and lehua island, out of port allen, kauai co, hawaii - (2) (41352713635).jpg Puffinus newelli Newell's shearwater Hawaiian Islands
Puffinus myrtae Rapa shearwater islets of Rapa in the Austral Islands of French Polynesia
Puffinus gavia - SE Tasmania.jpg Puffinus gavia Fluttering shearwater New Zealand and migrates to Australia and the Solomon Islands.
Hutton's shearwater (DOC).jpeg Puffinus huttoni Hutton's shearwater New Zealand
Audobon's Shearwater.jpg Puffinus lherminieri Sargasso shearwater (formerly Audubon's shearwater)Indian Ocean north to the Arabian Sea, throughout the north-west and central Pacific, in the Caribbean, and parts of the eastern Atlantic.
Puffinus persicus Persian shearwater southern Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Somali coast across the south of the Arabian Peninsula to the Gulf of Oman, Pakistan and western India
Petrel de Barau .jpg Puffinus bailloni Tropical shearwater or Baillon's shearwatereastern Indo-Pacific ; western Indian Ocean
Puffinus subalaris.jpg Puffinus subalaris Galápagos shearwater Galápagos Islands
Puffinus bannermani Bannerman's shearwater Volcano Islands in the Ogasawara Group to the southwest of Japan
Puffinus heinrothi Heinroth's shearwater the Bismarck Archipelago and northern Solomon Islands
Barolo Shearwater.jpg Puffinus assimilis Little shearwater Australia & New Zealand
Puffinus elegans Subantarctic shearwater Tristan da Cunha, islands of the southern Indian Ocean and New Zealand Subantarctic Islands
Puffinus baroli Barolo shearwater Azores and Canaries
Puffinus boydi Boyd's shearwater Cape Verde

Phylogeny

Phylogeny of the genus based on a study by Joan Ferrer Obiol and collaborators published in 2022. Only 14 of the 21 recognised species were included. [13]

Puffinus

Christmas shearwater, Puffinus nativitatis

Fluttering shearwater, Puffinus gavia

Hutton's shearwater, Puffinus huttoni

Audubon's shearwater, Puffinus ihermineri

Barolo shearwater, Puffinus baroli

Boyd's shearwater, Puffinus boydi

Manx shearwater, Puffinus puffinus

Balearic shearwater, Puffinus mauretanicus

Yelkouan shearwater, Puffinus yelkouan

Little shearwater, Puffinus assimilis

Subantarctic shearwater, Puffinus elegans

Tropical shearwater, Puffinus bailloni

Black-vented shearwater, Puffinus opisthomels

Newell's shearwater, Puffinus newelli

Fossil record

Comparison between P. olsoni and P. puffinus Puffinus.png
Comparison between P. olsoni and P. puffinus

Several fossil species which became extinct long ago are also known. The proportion of larger ("Neonectris") species apparently was larger before the Pliocene, i.e. before marine mammals diversified:

"Puffinus" arvernensis (Early Miocene of France) is now considered a primitive albatross of the fossil genus Plotornis . Some other species like P. conradi and P. pacificoides have been reclassified as those of Ardenna . [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Procellariiformes</span> Order of birds

Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, the petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still called tubenoses in English, procellariiforms are often referred to collectively as the petrels, a term that has been applied to all members of the order, or more commonly all the families except the albatrosses. They are almost exclusively pelagic, and have a cosmopolitan distribution across the world's oceans, with the highest diversity being around New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puffin</span> One of several species of seabird

Puffins are any of three species of small alcids (auks) in the bird genus Fratercula. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among rocks or in burrows in the soil. Two species, the tufted puffin and horned puffin, are found in the North Pacific Ocean, while the Atlantic puffin is found in the North Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shearwater</span> Seabird

Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds in the petrel family Procellariidae. They have a global marine distribution, but are most common in temperate and cold waters, and are pelagic outside the breeding season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petrel</span> Seabird

Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the phylogenetic order Procellariiformes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Procellariidae</span> Family of seabirds which includes petrels, shearweters and prions

The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the diving petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes, which also includes the albatrosses and the storm petrels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manx shearwater</span> Species of bird

The Manx shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx shearwaters were called Manks puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters. The Atlantic puffin acquired the name much later, possibly because of its similar nesting habits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balearic shearwater</span> Species of bird

The Balearic shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. Puffinus is a Neo-Latin loanword based on the English "puffin" and its variants, that referred to the cured carcass of the fat nestling of the Manx shearwater, a former delicacy. The specific mauretanicus refers to Mauretania, an old name for an area of North Africa roughly corresponding to Morocco and Algeria. The Balearic Shearwater is listed critically endangered by the IUCN and is one of Europe's most endangered seabirds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great shearwater</span> Species of bird

The great shearwater is a large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It breeds colonially on rocky islands in the south Atlantic. Outside the breeding season it ranges widely in the Atlantic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little shearwater</span> Species of bird

The little shearwater is a small shearwater in the petrel family Procellariidae. Despite the generic name, it is unrelated to the puffins, which are auks, the only similarity being that they are both burrow-nesting seabirds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yelkouan shearwater</span> Species of bird

The yelkouan shearwater, Levantine shearwater or Mediterranean shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of the Manx shearwater.

<i>Calonectris</i> Genus of birds

Calonectris is a genus of seabirds. The genus name comes from Ancient Greek kalos, "good" and nectris, "swimmer".

<i>Bulweria</i> Genus of birds

Bulweria is a genus of seabirds in the family Procellariidae named after English naturalist James Bulwer. The genus has two extant species, Bulwer's petrel and Jouanin's petrel. A third species, the Olson's petrel, became extinct in the early 16th century; it is known only from skeletal remains. Bulwer's petrel ranges in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans, whereas Joaunin's petrel is confined to the northwestern Indian Ocean. Olson's petrel is known from the Atlantic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wedge-tailed shearwater</span> Species of bird

The wedge-tailed shearwater is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It is one of the shearwater species that is sometimes referred to as a muttonbird, like the sooty shearwater of New Zealand and the short-tailed shearwater of Australia. It is found throughout the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans, roughly between latitudes 35°N and 35°S. It breeds on the islands off Japan, on the Islas Revillagigedo, the Hawaiian Islands, the Seychelles, the Northern Mariana Islands, and off Eastern and Western Australia.

<i>Procellaria</i> Genus of birds

Procellaria is a genus of Southern Ocean long-winged seabirds related to prions, and within the order Procellariiformes. The black petrel ranges in the Pacific Ocean, and as far north as Central America. The spectacled petrel is confined to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Westland petrel to the Pacific Ocean. The white-chinned and grey petrel range throughout the higher latitudes of the Southern Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flesh-footed shearwater</span> Species of bird

The flesh-footed shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater. Its plumage is black. It has pale pinkish feet, and a pale bill with a distinct black tip. Together with the equally light-billed pink-footed shearwater, it forms the Hemipuffinus group, a superspecies which may or may not have an Atlantic relative in the great shearwater. These large shearwaters are among those that have been separated into the genus Ardenna. Recent genetic analysis indicates evidence of strong divergence between Pacific colonies relative to those in South and Western Australia, thought to be explained by philopatry and differences in foraging strategies during the breeding season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buller's shearwater</span> Species of bird

Buller's shearwater is a Pacific species of seabird in the family Procellariidae; it is also known as the grey-backed shearwater or New Zealand shearwater. A member of the black-billed wedge-tailed Thyellodroma group, among the larger shearwaters of the genus Ardenna, it forms a superspecies with the wedge-tailed shearwater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pink-footed shearwater</span> Species of bird

The pink-footed shearwater is a species of seabird. The bird is 48 cm (19 in) in length, with a 109 cm (43 in) wingspan. It is polymorphic, having both darker- and lighter-phase populations. Together with the equally light-billed flesh-footed shearwater, it forms the Hemipuffinus group, a superspecies that may or may not have an Atlantic relative in the great shearwater. These are large shearwaters which are among those that could be separated in the genus Ardenna.

<i>Ardenna</i> Genus of birds

Ardenna is a genus of seabirds in the family Procellariidae. These medium-sized shearwater species were formerly included in the genus Puffinus.

Pterodromoides is an extinct genus of fulmarine petrel dating from the Late Miocene. It contains a single species, P. minoricensis. Its fossil remains were first discovered at the Punta Nati palaeontological site on the island of Menorca in the Balearic archipelago of the western Mediterranean. An additional specimen from North Carolina, USA has also been referred to this species, suggesting it lived across the North Atlantic. It was described in 2001, with the authors justifying the creation of a new genus by the large orbitonasal opening and characters of the postcranial skeleton, despite the similarity of the cranial osteology to that of Pagodroma.

References

  1. Brisson, Mathurin Jacques (1760). Ornithologie, ou, Méthode Contenant la Division des Oiseaux en Ordres, Sections, Genres, Especes & leurs Variétés (in French and Latin). Paris: Jean-Baptiste Bauche. Vol. 1, p. 56, Vol. 6, pp. 129-130.
  2. Mayr, Ernst; Cottrell, G. William, eds. (1979). Check-list of Birds of the World. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Cambridge, Massachusetts: Museum of Comparative Zoology. p. 89.
  3. Austin, Jeremy J. (1996). "Molecular phylogenetics of Puffinus shearwaters: preliminary evidence from mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 6 (1): 77–88. Bibcode:1996MolPE...6...77A. doi:10.1006/mpev.1996.0060. PMID   8812308.
  4. 1 2 Heidrich, Petra; Amengual, José F. & Wink, Michael (1998). "Phylogenetic relationships in Mediterranean and North Atlantic shearwaters (Aves: Procellariidae) based on nucleotide sequences of mtDNA" (PDF). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology. 26 (2): 145–170. Bibcode:1998BioSE..26..145H. doi:10.1016/S0305-1978(97)00085-9.
  5. 1 2 Austin, Jeremy J.; Bretagnolle, Vincent & Pasquet, Eric (2004). "A global molecular phylogeny of the small Puffinus shearwaters and implications for systematics of the Little-Audubon's Shearwater complex". Auk . 121 (3): 847–864. doi:10.1642/0004-8038(2004)121[0847:AGMPOT]2.0.CO;2. S2CID   86177092.
  6. Penhallurick, John & Wink, Michael (2004). "Analysis of the taxonomy and nomenclature of the Procellariformes based on complete nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene". Emu . 104 (2): 125–147. Bibcode:2004EmuAO.104..125P. doi:10.1071/MU01060. S2CID   83202756.
  7. Remsen, J.V. (September 2014). "Proposal (647) to South American Classification Committee: Split Ardenna from Puffinus". South American Classification Committee. Retrieved 23 January 2016.
  8. Thompson, D'Arcy Wentworth (1918). "The Birds of Diomede". Classical Review. 32 (5/6): 92–96. doi:10.1017/S0009840X00011549. JSTOR   699721. S2CID   164153825.
  9. 1 2 "Puffin". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 14 December 2014.(subscription required)
  10. Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 323. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  11. "Manx". Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 14 December 2014.(subscription required)
  12. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Petrels, albatrosses". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  13. Ferrer Obiol, J.; James, H.F.; Chesser, R.T.; Bretagnolle, V.; González-Solís, J.; Rozas, J.; Welch, A.J.; Riutort, M. (2022). "Palaeoceanographic changes in the late Pliocene promoted rapid diversification in pelagic seabirds". Journal of Biogeography. 49 (1): 171–188. Bibcode:2022JBiog..49..171F. doi: 10.1111/jbi.14291 . hdl: 2445/193747 .
  14. Sangster, G.; Robb, M.S.; Mackin, W.A.; Bolton, M. (2024). "Vocalizations and species limits in the North Atlantic clade of small shearwaters (Procellariiformes: Puffinus)". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. blae008. doi:10.1093/biolinnean/blae008.
  15. Tennyson, A. J. D.; Salvador, R. B.; Tomotani, B. M.; Marx, F. G. (2024). "A New Diving Pliocene Ardenna Shearwater (Aves: Procellariidae) from New Zealand". Taxonomy. 4 (2): 237–249. doi: 10.3390/taxonomy4020012 . hdl: 10037/33366 .
  16. Wetmore, Alexander (1926). "Observations on fossil birds described from the Miocene of Maryland" (PDF). Auk . 43 (4): 462–468. doi:10.2307/4075132. JSTOR   4075132.
  17. Olson, Storrs L. (1985): Section X, H, 2. Procellariidae. In: Farner, D.S.; King, J.R. & Parkes, Kenneth C. (eds.): Avian Biology 8: 210–211. Academic Press, New York.
  18. Tennyson, Alan J.D.; Mannering, Al A. (January 2018). "A new species of Pliocene shearwater (Aves: Procellariidae) from New Zealand". Tuhinga. 29: 1–19.

Further reading