Flesh-footed Shearwater vs Northern Fulmar
Ardenna carneipes compared with Fulmarus glacialis
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Flesh-footed Shearwater | Northern Fulmar |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Ardenna carneipes | Fulmarus glacialis |
| Order | Procellariiformes | Procellariiformes |
| Family | Procellariidae | Procellariidae |
| Conservation Status | Near Threatened | Least Concern |
| Length | — | 47.0 cm (18.5 in) |
| Wingspan | 62.0 cm (24.4 in) | 107.0 cm (42.1 in) |
| Weight | 649.0 g (22.89 oz) | 750.0 g (26.46 oz) |
| Diet | -- | Fish, squid, crustaceans, offal from fishing vessels, and zooplankton. Feeds by surface-seizing and shallow plunge-diving. |
| Clutch Size | 1 | 1 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Northern Fulmar
Open ocean and sea cliffs. Breeds on cliff ledges and grassy slopes on northern coastlines. Pelagic outside breeding season.
Song & Call Comparison
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Northern Fulmar
A nasal, cackling 'kak-kak-kak-kak' or grunting 'uh-uh-uh' at the nest and colony. Less melodic than petrels. In flight gives occasional single nasal calls.
Geographic Range & Migration
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Northern Fulmar
North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans. Breeds from the Arctic south to Britain, France, and New England.
Conservation Status
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Northern Fulmar
How to Tell Them Apart
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Northern Fulmar
Light morph: white head and underparts with grey wings and back. Dark morph: entirely grey. Tube-nosed bill and stiff-winged flight distinctive at sea.
Yellowish hooked bill with prominent tubular nostrils on top
About These Birds
Flesh-footed Shearwater
41–45 cm, wingspan 99–107 cm. All-dark sooty-brown with pale flesh-coloured feet and yellowish bill base. Breeds southern Indian Ocean islands and SW Australia; ranges to North Pacific. Near Threatened; bycatch concern. Feeds on fish and squid; follows fishing vessels.
Northern Fulmar
The northern fulmar is a long-lived seabird that can survive over 40 years. It defends its nest by projectile-vomiting a foul-smelling stomach oil at intruders, which can mat the feathers of predators and cause fatal loss of waterproofing. Fulmars have expanded their breeding range dramatically southward over the past two centuries.