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Friends of Midway Atoll

Friends of Midway Atoll

Preserving, protecting, and restoring the biological diversity and historic resources of Midway Atollal Wildlife Refuge

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Home/Explore & Learn/Plants & Wildlife/Birds/Wedge-tailed Shearwater

Wedge-tailed Shearwater

Hawaiian name: ʻUaʻu Kani

Scientific name: Puffinus pacificus

Photo credit: Wieteke Holthuijzen
  • Life Span: > 20 years
  • Wingspan: 97-104 cm (38-41 in)
  • Breeding Ecology:
    • 1 egg/clutch, 1 egg/year
    • Burrow nester
    • Monogamous
    • Philopatric (returns to nest in the same area each year)
  • Breeds from Madagascar in the western Indian Ocean to the Revillagigedo Islands by Mexico.
  • Breeds in Main Hawaiian Islands; evidence for former large concentrations in MHI.
  • Population on Midway Atoll increased from 5,000 in 1922 to 62,000 in 1945 despite habitat destruction during World War II. Population decreased to about 3,000, probably due to predation by Black Rats (Rattus rattus).
  • Currently, the breeding population is estimated at about 1,000 individuals by USFWS.

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Friends of Midway Atoll

17 Katrina Lane
San Anselmo, CA 94960

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