shearwater

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

shearwater
    n 1: long-winged oceanic bird that in flight skims close to the
         waves

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Shearwater \Shear"wa`ter\, n. [Shear + water; cf. G.
   wassersherer; -- so called from its running lightly along the
   surface of the water.] (Zool.)
   Any one of numerous species of long-winged oceanic birds of
   the genus {Puffinus} and related genera. They are allied to
   the petrels, but are larger. The Manx shearwater ({Puffinus
   Anglorum}), the dusky shearwater ({Puffinus obscurus}), and
   the greater shearwater ({Puffinus major}), are well-known
   species of the North Atlantic. See {Hagdon}.
   [1913 Webster]