So Cal Pelagic Birding
Pelagic Trips And Deep Water Expeditions

Short-tailed Albatross  Once common year round in SoCal.  Population decimated by plume hunters; it hovered on the edge of extinction from 1933 - 1950.  Gradual recovery began in the second half of the 20th century.  From 1898 to 1977 there were no well-supported records for California, but 11 accumulated from 1977 to 2002  (Unitt, 2004).  The first of the century was  seen 90 miles west of San Diego on 28 Aug 1977 (Roberson website).  One seen near Santa Barbara Island 19 Feb – 22 Mar, 2002 (Unitt, 2004) and Santa Cruz Island 5 Jul 2005 (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  One found recently dead at Morro Bay 5 Aug 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).  One immature 16 km sw of Morro Bay 19 Apr 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  One first-year photographed (and accepted by CBRC) 230 nm sw San Nicholas Island 16 Jan 2007 (Sheffield, L., pers comm).

Laysan Albatross  A regular visitor well offshore during late fall and winter (Hamilton et al, 2007).  Most commonly observed in deep water Sept – Feb (Sullivan, 2005).  Breeds on Hawaiian Islands as well as Islas Guadulpe, Mexico 240 miles south of San Diego (Gallo-Reynoso & Figueroa-Carranza, 1996).  One found dead on Torrey Pines beach San Diego on 8 Mar 2000 (Unitt, 2004). 4 were seen at the San Juan Seamount from Searcher 28 April 2006  (Compton, D., 2 May 2006).

Black-footed Albatross  Probably present year around in SoCal deep water; most frequent April - Sep along the Santa Rosa - Cortes Ridge.  It is rare closer to shore than San Clemente Island (Unitt, 2004).  May be absent late fall and early winter  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).   Seen on nearly every Searcher deep water pelagic April - September, e.g. (10) 7 Sep, 2005; (4) 5 Sep 2007; (6) 15-16 Apr 2005; (27) 28-29 Apr 2006 (Searcher Trip Reports, 2003-2007).  3 seen on an Audubon trip from Santa Barbara to the San Juan Seamount 21 July 2007 (Feenstra, 9 Aug 2007).

Shy Albatross  The first sighting of Shy Albatross in California was in SoCal from Pt. Piedras Blancas, San Luis Obispo County on May 28, 1996.  That record narrowly missed endorsement by the CBRC with seven members voting to accept the record (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  Seen offshore up and down the west coast in deep water.  About 10 records since 1996 (Sullivan).  One photgraphed 9 miles offshore Pt. Arena, Mendocino County 24 Aug 1999.  Seen July 29 - Sep 10, 2000 at Cordell Bank, Monterey Co and  27 July 2001 Bodega Canyon, Monterey Co. 

Light-mantled Albatross  One record off Cordell Bank, California 17 July 1994 (Hamilton, et al, 2007).

The Realm Of The Albatross

At the continental shelf break in 1000 fathom waters, Laysan and Black-footed Albatross are regular in SoCal.  Short-tailed has been seen in deep water three times since 2002.  These waters are outside the range of 12 hour day trips.  Our overnight deep-water trips will be looking to re-sight Short-tailed or add a fourth species of Albatross as a SoCal recent record.  The shelf drop-off near the far offshore banks like Tanner and Cortez is where to find these deep water specialties, and that’s where we plan to be. 

Mottled Petrel   Very rare visitor Nov – Mar in Southern California well offshore along the edge of the continental shelf (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).   Six SoCal records include 4 winter (Nov-Feb), one in April 1993  (Hamilton, et al, 2007) and another photographed 6 April 2006 off San Nicholas Island.

Hawaiian  (Dark-rumped) Petrel seen from Searcher September 6, 2006 (Hunefeld, 8 Sep 2006) and could be seen anytime April – September over deep water.  11 of 14 accepted records in the state are June-September, remaining 3 records are spring – April & May (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  One photographed by S.N.G. Howell at the Cordell Bank 9 Aug 2005.  One seen from shore at Point Dume Los Angeles 12 Aug 2006. (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007). One from research trip off Pescadero 23 May 2007 (Sheffield, L., pers comm)

Cook’s Petrel   Nests off New Zealand and disperses to the North Pacific.  Species regular off northern Baja, Mexico (Howell & Webb, 1995) and in the Califorina Current mostly from April to November (Howell et al, 1996).  Regular in ABA waters well offshore near the interface between the warm waters of the North Pacific and the cold waters of the California Current (Roberson, D. & Bailey, S.F., 1991).  Records from April – Nov, peaking June - August.  One on 10 Sep 2005 at the Cortez Bank (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  One on 9 May 2007 near Cordell Bank (pers comm, L.Sheffield). Seen regularly from Searcher since 2003 when deep water charter expeditions began.  Dozens seen by Searcher crew on fishing trips June - August 2007 in deep water off the Baja and San Diego Coast, e.g. "several" on 25 July 2007 at US/Mexico border; unspecified number 12 Aug 2007 in US waters; 2 near 60-mile bank 16 Aug, 2007 (Searcher Blog, 2007) GPS coordinates and other sightings listed in Searcher Blog.

Stejneger’s Petrel  Nests on the Juan Fernandez Islands off Chile, possibly migrating in a clockwise loop north, passing east of Japan, then back south through the eastern Pacific and offshore California Oct – Nov (Sullivan, 2005).  Occurs in deep water in early spring or summer as well, with three  accepted records for our region, one in November, two in July, all 150 - 190 nmi sw of San Miguel Island (Hamilton, et. al, 2007).  Thought to be most likely at San Juan Seamount (McGrath, T., pers comm.).

Bulwer’s Petrel   Nests on Hawaiian Islands. Accepted record July 1998 Monterey Bay.  Seen September 4, 2003 off San Clemente Island (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005) and probably in the Santa Barbara Channel September 5, 2007 (Smith, 31 Oct 2007). 

Cory’s Shearwater  Seen repeatedly 15 miles south of San Diego on the Los Coronados Islands, Baja, Mexico from March 2005 through September, 2007, e.g.  Seen on "Middle Rock" 22 Aug 2007 (Povey, 22 Aug 2007). Seen in San Diego waters 21 miles offshore Point Loma San Diego on September 4, 2007 (Povey, 4 Sep 2007).

Streaked Shearwater  Abundant in the northwestern Pacific.  Multiple sightings off Monterey Sep-Oct, 2006-2007 including one photographed 30 Sep 06 off Cypress Point, Monterey Bay by Brian Sullivan.  Seen in SoCal waters near Santa Cruz Island on September 7, 2002 between Santa Barbara and the San Juan Seamount (Hamilton, et al, 2007).

Greater Shearwater  Rare late summer - early fall visitor to the northeast Pacifoc.  Seen 9 times off the west coast, seven California records, 4 accepted, one not submitted.  (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  6 of the 9 records are from Aug-Sep, one each for Jan, Feb, June.  One photographed in Monterey Bay 15 Oct 06 by S.N.G. Howell

Flesh-footed Shearwater   Breeds in Australia and New Zeland.  Regular summer visitor from Gulf of Alaska to Northern California.  Rare visitor to SoCal’s deep water April to November.  2 seen 31 Mar 1996 ten nm west of the Coronados Islands (Radamacher & McCaskie, 2006). One off Santa Barbara 24 Sep 2005 and again on 16 Oct 2005 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  Seen in deep water on most Searcher trips (Searcher Trip Reports,  2003-2007), e.g. a total of 3 were seen on the April 2006 Searcher deep-water: 1 near San Clemente Island and 2 between the Rodriguez and San Juan Seamounts (Compton, 2 May 2006). 

Pink-footed Shearwater  Common in SoCal from March to October.  Numbers increase sharply from March to May, then decrease sharply from September to November.  Usually present in small numbers November - March. Some years there are two peaks, in May and August/September (Unitt, 2004).  23 seen between San Deigo and Los Coronados Islands 22 Aug 2007.  (Povey, 2007).   Thousands seen some days in the Channel Islands e.g. 2098 seen between Santa Barbara and the San Juan Seamount 8 Sep 2007 (Feenstra, 25 Sep 2007).  2 seen along 9-mile bank 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008).  One seen at 9-mile bank 10 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Wedge-tailed Shearwater  Regular off the coast of Mexico south of Cabo San Lucas. Have been found as far north as Oregon.  Given this species abundance and range, the state’s total of 4 accepted records seems low (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  Nine other records include 5 from SoCal.  Most sightings Aug-Dec.

Buller’s Shearwater  Uncommon to rare fall visitor from July – November, most common around the Channel Islands (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  "Dozens" were seen on a Los Angeles Audubon charter 20 Sep 2003 (Heindel, 2003).  One seen from La Jolla Cove by many observers on December 1, 2007. 

Sooty Shearwater  Arrives in April, peaks in May, remains common through September, then decreases through December (Unitt, 2004) e.g. 669 seen from an LA Audubon charter 8 Sep 2007 (Feenstra, 25 Sep 2007).   560 visible from the Newport Beach pier 28 Jul 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).  486 were seen on a day trip from San Diego to the Los Coronados Islands 11 Jun 2007  (Hunefeld, 12 Jun 2007).  One seen near Coronados Islands 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008).

Short-tailed Shearwater  Breeds near Australia, disperses to the North Pacific and Bering Sea.  Occurs regularly in California waters mid-October to mid-March.  (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  3 seen off Oceanside on 3-hour Audubon pelagic trip 10 Mar 2007 (Walens, 11 Mar 2007); one seen on Audubon pelagic 26 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 26 Jan 2008).   Nine seen 31 Mar 2007 at the 9-mile bank approx 15 miles offshore San Diego (McCaskie, 31 Mar 2007).  2-3 seen at 9-mile bank 9-10 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Manx Shearwater   Winter visitor seen annually off SoCal, more recent sightings over the past decade suggest population increase and range expansion. Most likely Sept – May (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  The first record for San Diego was 16 miles offshore Oceanside 28 Apr 2004 (Unitt, 2004).  One seen and well photographed about 5 miles west of Point Loma San Diego on a San Diego Bird Festival trip 10 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Black-vented Shearwater   Abundant fall and winter visitor (Sept – May) off the coast of San Diego where much of the population can often be found in early winter.  Most abundant Sept – December, but its movements vary from year to year (Unitt, 2004).  Thousands often counted from shore, especially La Jolla Cove, in November/December.  3000 seen offshore from Point Loma 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008), but only 7 total seen on 2 Bird Festival pelagics 9-10 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Wilson’s Storm-Petrel  Rare off the California coast late summer and fall.  Annual in small numbers off Monterey, less frequent in SoCal (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  One seen at Cherry Banks on an LA Audubon trip September 6, 2003.  One seen 80 km s. of San Clemente Island 31 July 2005 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).

Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel  Rare off SoCal but occasionally irruptive.  One seen at Cortes Bank on an LA Audubon trip September 6, 2003.  7 were recorded 24 April 2006 on a Los Angeles Audubon charter in SoCal expedition waters. One found dead near Oceanside 11 May 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  A total of 7 were seen from Searcher April 27-29, 2006: 2 in the Channel Islands, 4 at the San Juan Seamount and 1 at the Cortez Bank (Compton, D., 2 May 2006) and (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).

Leach’s Storm-Petrel  Common April – October, usually well offshore (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).

Ashy Storm-Petrel   Endemic to California and Baja, Mexico waters (Sullivan, 2005).  One of the rarest storm-petrels in the world. Fairly common April – October, mostly in the northern Channel Islands (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005), e.g. 11 seen by a Los Angeles Audubon charter on 8 Sep 2007 (Feenstra, 25 Sep 2007).

Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel  10 records in SoCal, May – October, only four accepted – bring a camera (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  Species is common in southern Baja. 

Black Storm-Petrel  Common visitor April – October, our most commonly seen storm-petrel (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  560 visible from the Newport Beach pier 28 Jul 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).  96 between San Diego and Los Coronados Islands  22 Aug 2007 (Povey, 2007).

Least Storm-Petrel  Irregularly rare to fairly common August – October when a few are usually present in the southern part of our region (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  13 seen between San Deigo and Los Coronados Islands 22 Aug 2007.  (Povey, 2007). 

Ringed (Hornby’s) Storm-Petrel  The only North American record was well photographed on  2 Aug 2005 about 40 km ssw of Santa Rosa Island (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).   

Tristram’s Storm-Petrel   One captured and photographed on Southeast Farallon Island San Francisco 22 April 2007.  One seen on a Los Angeles Audubon pelagic charter in SoCal expedition waters on July 21, 2007 by Todd McGrath, S. N.G. Howell, Jon Feenstra, Big Dave Pereksta, et. al.  (Feenstra, 9 Aug 2007).

Red-tailed Tropicbird   About 14 records for Southern California, mostly Aug – Oct, mostly in deep waters west of San Clemente Island.  One was seen 6 Sep 2003 on a Searcher expedition.  One was 291 km sw of San Nicholas Island on 28 Sep 2005 and another was 342 km wsw of San Miguel Island 9 Nov 2005 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).

Red-billed Tropicbird  A SoCal specialty, nesting off the coast of Baja, Mexico.  Uncommon summer and fall visitor to So Cal waters, but also seen regularly on April Searcher trips, e.g. (5) 26 Apr 2003; (7) 23 Apr 2004; (2) 28 Apr 2006; (1) 16 Apr 2007 (Searcher Trip Reports, 2003-2007).   One seen from San Clemente Island 4 July 2005 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  2 near the "Mushroom" 29 April 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  5 at San Clemente Island 29 Jul 2006 and one 16 km s. of there 30 Jul 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).   2 seen 4 Sep 2006 off San Diego with the closest being 19 km W of LaJolla, and 3 more 21 Oct 2006 within one km east of San Clemente Island. One seen 19 May 2007 near San Clemente Island (pers comm, L.Sheffield).  3 seen Sep 4, 2007 17-24 miles off shore San Diego (Povey, 22 Aug 2007). 

Masked Booby  Eleven SoCal records, ten since 1992 (Hamilton, et al, 2007).  Most records Nov - Feb; 2 in June.  One on breakwater to Los Angeles harbor 14 Oct 2006 was the 13th recorded in California (McCaskie and Garrett, 2006). One seen with the Brown Booby colony on Los Coronados Islands Mexico (15 miles south of San Diego) on December 4, 2007 (Hunefeld, 5 Dec 2007) and again on 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008).

Blue-footed Booby  Breeds in the Gulf of California.  Most (7 of every 8) in SoCal seen at Salton Sea.  Most records July - Oct suggesting post-breeding dispersal.  One seen at San Clemente Island November 17, 2002 (Hamilton, et al, 2007). One seen with Brown Booby colony on the Los Coronados Islands February – April, 2007. 

Red-footed Booby  Very rare visitor.  Most recent records include (1) 100 nmi sw San Nicolas Island 14 Oct 2000, (1) LaJolla 20 Jul 2002, (1) Anacapa Island Ventura Co 17-20 Oct 2003 (Hamilton, et. al, 2007). An imm. caught on the beach at Camp Peldleton San Diego Co 5 Aug 2006 and another seen 5 km wnw of Palos Verdes Los Angeles Co 14 Oct 2006 increases to ten the number recorded in SoCal (McCaskie and Garrett, 2006).

Brown Booby  Breeding colony (31 seen including downy chicks on 20 March 2007) 15 miles south of San Diego on the Los Coronados Islands since 2002, population increasing.  Seen repeatedly from shore near the Tijuana River mouth and La Jolla and offshore (eleven miles offshore along the 9-mile Bank) San Diego throughout 2006-2007.  30 were seen on a day trip from San Diego to the Los Coronados Islands (Hunefeld, 5 Dec 2007).  22 seen on a trip from San Diego to the islands on 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008).

Red-necked Phalarope  Very common spring and fall visitor.  Peak abundance is mid April – early June and August – October (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005). 

Red Phalarope  Irregular fall, winter and spring visitor.  Most likely seen in numbers in fall, but a few can be found in winter and spring on most pelagic trips.  The most pelagic of the 3 phalaropes, rarely found on land except when driven in by storms (Unitt, 2004).   2 seen on a trip from San Diego to the islands on 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008).

South Polar Skua  Uncommon spring (May-June) and fall (September – early November) migrant  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  Most frequent in spring (Unitt, 2004).  2 were seen on a Los Angeles Audubon trip to the channel islands on June 5, 2007.  Most often found far offshore at deep water locations like the Tanner and Cortes Banks.

Pomarine Jaeger  Common spring (April – May) and fall (late Aug – early November) migrant (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).   25-30 were seen on 3-hour Audubon birding/whale trip out of Oceanside Harbor on March 10, 2007 (Walens, 11 Mar 2007); 6 on another like pelagic on 26 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 26 Jan 2008).  56 were seen on a Los Angeles Audubon one-day deep-water trip on April 21, 2007.  Occasional Poms remain throughout the summer (Unitt, 2004). 

Parasitic Jaeger  Fairly common spring (mid April – late May) and fall (late August – October) transient, uncommon winter visitor, rare in summer (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005). 12-15 were seen on 3-hour Audubon pelagic from Oceanside 10 Mar 2007 (Walens, 11 Mar 2007); 6 on another like pelagic on 26 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 26 Jan 2008).  

Long-tailed Jaeger   Uncommon fall transient (mid August – early October).  Rare later in fall and very rare in spring (May).  One seen April 17, 2007 more than 100 miles west of San Diego from Searcher (Searcher, 2007).  Generally seen singly, but 9 were seen 100 miles offshore near the Cortes Bank on October 13, 1971 (Jehl, 1973) and 2 at or near the San Juan Seamount April 28, 2006.

Black-legged Kittiwake  Irregular late fall and winter visitor (November – March).  Two were seen on a San Diego bird festival trip to the Los Coronados Islands on February 11, 2001.  One was seen offshore San Diego on the annual San Diego Field Ornithologists New Year’s Day pelagic trip on January 1, 2003.  4 were seen in deep water on a Los Angeles Audubon day trip on April 21, 2007 (Feenstra, 22 Apr 2007).  One seen on Bird Festival pelagic off San Diego 9 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Sabine’s Gull  Uncommon spring (mid-April to early June, most common in May) and fairly common fall migrant (mid August to mid October) offshore.  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  More than 1,000 were seen in on a Los Angeles Audubon day trip on April 21, 2007.  One was seen eleven miles off shore San Diego on June 11, 2007.  Two were seen 100 miles offshore at the Cortes Bank on September 16, 2006.

Xantus’s Murrelet  Most numerous in SoCal waters during the species breeding season from March – July.  245 seen in the Channel Islands off Los Angeles on June 9, 2007.  20 seen between San Diego and the Coronados Islands 11 Jun 2007.  2 seen between San Diego and the Coronados islands 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008). A total of 20 seen on 2 trips between San Diego and Coronados Islands 9-10 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Craveri’s Murrelet  Irregularly common to rare in SoCal, late July – early Oct, far offshore  None are seen in many years.  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005). "Many" were seen on a Los Angeles Audubon Pelagic 20 Sep 2003 (Heindel, 2003).  One found dead on beach in Coronado 19 May 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).

Ancient Murrelet  Winter visitor arriving Oct-Nov.  Numbers build from Nov - Jan, then decline Feb-Mar. They occur in SoCal in small numbers in many years, even rarely in summer.  (Sealy & Carter, 2004). Seen by many offshore from LaJolla (San Diego) Nov-Dec 2007 and one was well photographed from a boat 15 Dec 2007 on the Christmas bird count less than 2 miles off Point Loma (San Diego).

Marbled Murrelet  Rare winter vagrant.  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005). Up to 3 seen at Point Piedras Blancas 20-26 Mar 2005. (McCaskie & Garrett, 2005).  One at Vandenberg Airforce Base 12 Aug 2006 and one in Santa Barbara 31 October 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).

Cassin’s Auklet  Resident.  Always some to be seen on pelagic trips, but numbers fluctuate.  Fairly common November – June.   417 seen 11 Jun 2007 between San Diego to the Los Coronados Islands (Hunefeld, 12 Jun 2007).  49 seen between San Diego and the Los Coronados Islands 5 Dec 2007 (Hunefeld, 5 Dec 2007). 300 seen at 9-mile bank 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008). 1500 seen at 9-mile bank 9 Feb 2008 (Hunefeld, 10 Feb 2008).

Parakeet Auklet  Very rare winter visitor in SoCal deep water.  May be regular over deep water.  7 SoCal records from Jan - Apr (Hamilton, et. al, 2007).  An 8th record: 7 birds were well photographed on a Los Angeles Audubon day trip off Santa Barbara on 21 Apr 2007.

Crested Auklet  Accidental June & July. Breeds in western Alaska.  4 records for Baja, Mex and California. 3 accepted: Baja, Mexico 7 Jul 1980,  Monterey 16-17 Jun 1979, Bodega Head 24 Jun 1995.  Not accepted: Marina del Rey (LA County) 4 Jul 1973.  (Hamilton, et. al., 2007)  This pattern of sightings  suggests a pattern of summer vagrancy off the southern Pacific coast.    

Rhinoceros Auklet  Common in winter in the northen waters of SoCal, Oct – May  (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  Rare to common off San Diego, may be missing entirely in some years.   April Searcher trips yield about 25 per trip  (Searcher, 2003-2007).  18 seen on Los Angeles Audubon trip out of Santa Barbara 21 Jul 2007 (Feenstra, 9 Aug 2007); 27 seen on 8 Sep 2007.  The winter of 2007-2008 brough an influx to San Diego: scores counted Dec 2007 flying south past Stan's Bench at LaJolla Cove San Diego, 93 on 18 Dec 2007 alone (Hunefeld, 18 Dec 2007).  An amazing 175 were seen on San Diego Field Ornithologist's New Year's Day pelagic half-day trip 1 Jan 2008. Again, 175 were seen on a day trip from San Diego to the Los Coronados Islands by way of the 9-mile bank on 19 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 19 Jan 2008). 45 were seen on an Audubon pelagic from Oceanside 26 Jan 2008 (Hunefeld, 26 Jan 2008).  

Tufted Puffin  Rare and irregular Jan – June.  (1) immature seen May 2002 in the Channel Islands (McGrath & Feenstra, 2005).  One at Point Piedras Blancas 28 Apr 2005 and one dead on Coronado beach 27 Apr 2005. (McCaskie & Garrett, 2005).  One near Santa Cruz Island 5 Jun 2005 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).  One 16 km off Refugio Santa Barbara 22 Apr 2006 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2006).

Horned Puffin   Nests principally in Alaska and winters far out to sea (Unitt, 2004).  An irregular and irruptive vagrant Jan – Jun.  Between April and June, 1975 and 1976, they numbered in the thousands near San Miguel Island (Hamilton et al, 2007).  The first records in more than a decade came in the spring of 2007 when they were seen repeatedly throughout Southern California.  Found dead on beach in Oxnard 22 May 2007 and Tijuana River mouth 3 May 2007 (McCaskie & Garrett, 2007).  Second year seen 9 May 2007 near Cordell Bank and alternate-plumage adult 17 May 2007 between Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz Islands (pers comm L.Sheffield).

Ainley, D.G., and Manolis. B. 1979.  Occurrence and Distribution of the Mottled Petrel. Western Birds 10:113-123.

Compton, D.  Highlights of Searcher pelagic trip, 26-30 April 2006.  SDBirds Listserv, 2 May 2006 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/8987

Dunlap, E. 1988.  Laysan Albatross Nesting on Guadalupe Island, Mexico. American Birds 42:180-181.

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Feenstra, J.  LA Audubon pelagic report.  CalBirds Listserv, 9 Aug 2007. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/message/6491

Feenstra, J..  Los Angeles Audubon Pelagic Trips. LACoBirds Listserv, 25 Sep 2007.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LACoBirds/message/5021

Fisher, J., 2008.  Birds of the Season. Western Tanager.  Los Angeles Audubon Vol 74 Mar/Apr 2008. 

Gallo-Reynoso, J.P. and Figueroa-Carranza, A.L. 1996.  The Breeding Colony Of Laysan Albatrosses On Isla De Guadalupe, Mexico. Western Birds 27:70-76

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Heindel, M.  9-20-03 Condor XP pelagic.  CalBirds Listserv, 21 Sep 2003. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/message/2512

Howell, S.N.G., Spear, L. B.  and Pyle, P.  1994. Identification of Manx-type Shearwaters in the eastern Pacific. Western Birds 25(4): 169-177.

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Howell, S.N.G., Webb S. and Spear, L. B.  1996.  Identification at sea of Cook's, De Filipppi's, and Pycroft's Petrels.  Western Birds 27:57-64 

Hunefeld, T. San Diego Manx Shearwater
CalBirds listserv 10 Feb 2008 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/message/7019 

Hunefeld, T. Rhino auklets continue on today's Oceanside pelagic  CalBirds listserv 26 Jan 2008 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CALBIRDS/message/7006

Hunefeld, T. Pelagic Report:: Masked & Brown Booby, Sooty, Pink-footed, Xantus  SDBirds Listserv  19 Jan 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/12514

Hunefeld, T.  LaJolla: Rhinos, Murre, Fulmar, Whales  SDBirds Listserv  18 Dec 2007
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/12299

Hunefeld, T.   The Searcher, A Petrel and a Kite. SDBirds Listserv, 8 Sep 2006.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/9412

Hunefeld, T.   A Trip To Los Coronados.  SDBirds Listserv, 12 Jun 2007.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/11021

Hunefeld, T.   Brown Booby at 9-mile bank in US; Masked Booby at Los Coronados Islands.  SDBirds Listserv, 5 December 2007. 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/12207

Jehl, J. R., Jr. 1973.  Late Autumn Observations of Pelagic Birds Off southern California.  Western Birds 4:45-52

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McCaskie, G. (31 Mar 2007) Boat trip to the Los Coronados Islands. SDBirds Listserv.  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/10575

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2005.  Southern California Records Mar - May 2005. North American Birds 59:494

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2006.  Southern California Records Jun - Jul 2005. North American Birds 59:653

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2006.  Southern California Records Aug - Nov 2005. North American Birds 60:138

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2006.  Southern California Records Mar - May 2006. North American Birds 60:436

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2007.  Southern California Records June - July 2006. North American Birds 60:578

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2007.  Southern California Records Aug - Nov 2006. North American Birds 61:142

McCaskie, G., and Garrett, K. 2007.  Southern California Records Mar - May 2007. North American Birds 61:510

McGrath, T., and Feenstra, J.  2005.  Pelagic Birding in the Southern California Bight – Part II.  Western Tanager.  Los Angeles Audubon 71:6 July/August, 2005. 

Newcomer, M.W., and Sibler, G.K. 1989.  Sightings of the Laysan Albatross in the Northern Gulf of California, Mexico.  Western Birds 20:134-135

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Povey, D. 2007.  (22 Aug 2007) Islas Los Coronados.  SDBirds Listserv.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/11355

Povey, D. 2007.  (5 Sep 2007) Pelagic. SDBirds Listserv.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/11440

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Sullivan, Brian.  2005.  Albatrosses. National Geographic Complete Birds of North America.  Random House.  Pp 66-70

Unitt, P. 1984. The Birds of San Diego County. San Diego Society of Natural History. Memoir 13.

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Walens, S.  Oceanside Whale/birdwatching trip.  SDBirds listserv. 11 Mar 2007.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SDBIRDS/message/10455