Streaked shearwaters poop only while flying over the ocean

Defecating from the air may help the birds stay clean

A brown bird with a white head is centered in the photo as it flies over seawater in the open ocean.

Streaked shearwaters (one shown) are pelagic birds that spend much of their time in the western Pacific Ocean. Video footage shows that these birds poop almost exclusively from the air.

Yusuke Goto

This seabird poops on the fly.