Shearwaters and Petrels form a large group of highly oceanic birds some of which cover vast distances on migration from the Northern to the Southern hemispheres and vice versa. The larger Shearwaters have long pointed wings which enable them to glide over the waves for long periods with hardly a wingbeat. Including the smaller Storm Petrels there are 97 separate species of which 15 species have occurred around the coast of Britain. During the migration months of August to October, Cory's and Great Shearwaters sometimes pass headlands in large numbers, as do the smaller Manx Shearwaters, which is the only species to breed in the UK. Among the Manx there is usually a few of the darker Balearic Shearwaters, and recently there have been reports of the (Mediterranean) Yelkouan Shearwater in Cornish waters. Sooty Shearwaters are the only other "shear" regularly seen off Cornwall. In August 2001 a Fea's Petrel was seen about 100Km SW of Scilly from the RMV Scillonian during the annual pelagic trip from Penzance. A few days previously, it had been seen 12 Kms S of Scilly; the first accepted record. Since then there have been reports of birds seen off the main Cornish coast. Little Shearwater is also a rare sighting off the Cornish coast.
The smaller European Storm Petrel and Leach's Storm Petrel breed in this country; the only time they ever come to shore. Of the rarer Storm Petrels, only Wilson's is likely to be seen in UK waters; Madeiran and Swinhoe's are mega rarities.
The Northern Fulmar is a common resident breeding bird around the Atlantic coast and less pelagic than the shearwaters and petrels.