CreatureData

Townsend's shearwater

Puffinus auricularis C. H. Townsend, 1890

CRCritically Endangeredbirds

The townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis) is a species in the family Procellariidae, order Procellariiformes. Recorded adults weigh 350.8 g to 468 g and live up to 29.9 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Critically Endangered.

Townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis)
Photo: Don Faulkner · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the townsend's shearwater

Weight
350.8 g – 468 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Wingspan
76 cm – 83 cmsrc for Wingspan
Lifespan
29.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
50.9 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
marinesrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
51 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
1src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
4.5 years – 5.47 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Generalistsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Partialsrc for Migration
Conservation status
Critically Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the townsend's shearwater?

TOWNSEND'S SHEARWATER · WINGSPAN 83 CMADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 83 cm, the recorded maximum wingspan of the townsend's shearwater is about 49% of the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the townsend's shearwater live?

Not recorded

What is the townsend's shearwater?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

Townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis) is a rare seabird of the tropics from the family Procellariidae.

From the Wikipedia article “Townsend's shearwater” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Townsend%27s_shearwater&oldid=1384019000), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the townsend's shearwater endangered?

The townsend's shearwater is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Critically Endangered species. What the categories mean.

How is the townsend's shearwater classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderProcellariiformes
  5. familyProcellariidae
  6. genusPuffinus
  7. SpeciesPuffinus auricularis C. H. Townsend, 1890

Synonyms Puffinus auricularis auricularis, Puffinus puffinus auricularis

Other names and names in other languages (46)
  • 'A'oEnglish
  • Newell's shearwaterEnglish
  • جلم ماء تاونسندArabic
  • جلم الماء تاونسندArabic
  • baldriga de TownsendCatalan
  • buřňák sokorrskýCzech
  • buřňák TownsendůvCzech
  • aderyn drycin TownsendWelsh
  • MexicoskråpeDanish
  • Mexicansk SkråpeDanish
  • TownsendsturmtaucherGerman
  • Townsend-SturmtaucherGerman
  • SokorpufinoEsperanto
  • sokora pufinoEsperanto
  • Pardela de SocorroSpanish
  • Pardela de Islas RevillagigedoSpanish
  • Pardela de RevillagigedoSpanish
  • Pardela de TownsendSpanish
  • valgelaik-tormilindEstonian
  • کبوتر دریایی تاونسندPersian
  • meksikonpikkuliitäjäFinnish
  • Puffin de TownsendFrench
  • tamnoleđi zovojCroatian
  • Townsendov zovojCroatian
  • Towsend-vészmadárHungarian
  • Berta di TownsendItalian
  • オオセグロミズナギドリJapanese
  • Taunsendo audronašaLithuanian
  • Taunsenda vētrasputnsLatvian
  • Townsend-pijlstormvogelDutch
  • Townsends PijlstormvogelDutch
  • mexicolireNorwegian
  • burzyk białorzytnyPolish
  • pardela-de-townsendPortuguese
  • fura-bucho-de-socorroPortuguese
  • Kakikakiray
  • Сокоррский буревестникRussian
  • Таунсендов буревестникRussian
  • víchrovník mexickýSlovak
  • Zovoj sa ostrva Sokoro i KlarionSerbian
  • socorroliraSwedish
  • townsendliraSwedish
  • Townsend YelkovanıTurkish
  • буревісник гавайськийUkrainian
  • 汤氏鹱Chinese
  • 湯氏鸌Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the townsend's shearwater

Other species in the same genus Puffinus.

CompareTownsend's shearwater vs Manx shearwaterTownsend's shearwater vs Balearic shearwaterTownsend's shearwater vs Sargasso shearwaterTownsend's shearwater vs Little shearwater

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the townsend's shearwater?

An adult townsend's shearwater weighs 350.8 g – 468 g and has a wingspan of 76 cm – 83 cm, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the townsend's shearwater endangered?

The townsend's shearwater is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.

How long does the townsend's shearwater live?

The townsend's shearwater has a recorded lifespan of 29.9 years.

What kind of animal is the townsend's shearwater?

The townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis) belongs to the family Procellariidae in the order Procellariiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

Embed a card for this animal on your own site

Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.

Preview the card

APA

CreatureData. (2026). Townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/townsends-shearwater

MLA

“Townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/townsends-shearwater.

BibTeX
@misc{townsends_shearwater_2026,
  title = {Townsend's shearwater (Puffinus auricularis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/townsends-shearwater},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}