Audubon's Shearwater

Audubon's shearwater (Puffinus lherminieri) is a common tropical seabird in the petrel family. Sometimes known as the dusky-backed shearwater, the specific epithet honours the French naturalist Félix Louis L'Herminier. Certain populations are known variously as Baillon's shearwater, tropical shearwater, Bannerman's shearwater, Mascarene shearwater and Persian shearwater; some of these are considered distinct species by various authors. If they are all placed in P. lherminieri, the North Atlantic little shearwater (otherwise often separated as P. baroli) is generally included here too. Thus, these small shearwaters form a cryptic species complex.