Wedge-Tailed Shearwater Approach

This clip shows a pair of wedge-tailed shearwaters (Puffinus pacificus) as imaged with a camera sensitive to near infrared light. The shearwaters appear out of the night sky at a distance of about 100 meters, and fly along the coast directly towards the camera. This clip demonstrates the application of high-resolution cameras to image nocturnal seabird activity. The recording was taken in near complete darkness but objects are made visible with supplementary near infrared illumination that is not visible to birds. The clip was recorded on Oahu Island, Hawaii, in September 2011.