Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged
seabirds. There are more than 30
species of shearwaters, a few larger ones in the genus
Calonectris and many smaller species in the genus
Puffinus. The
Procellaria petrels and
Bulweria were believed to belong to this group, but are only distantly related based on more recent studies, while the
Pseudobulweria and
Lugensa "petrels" are more closely related. The genus
Puffinus can be divided into a group of small species close to
Calonectris and a few larger ones more distantly related to both. One thing that can be agreed upon about taxonomy of
Procellariidae is that it is in a state of flux.