Tufted puffin Latin "fratercula", friar, a reference to the black and white plumage which resembles monastic robes. The specific name "cirrhata" is Latin for "curly-headed", from "cirrus", a curl of hair. The vernacular name "puffin" – puffed in the sense of swollen – was originally applied to the fatty, salted meat of young birds of the unrelated species, the Manx shearwater ("Puffinus puffinus"), formerly known as the "Manks puffin". It is an Anglo-Norman word (Middle English "pophyn" or "poffin") used for the cured carcasses. The Atlantic puffin acquired the name at a much later stage, possibly because of its similar nesting habits,
Shearwater Shearwater 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. These birds are most common in temperate and cold waters. They are pelagic