There had been several sightings of Short-tailed Shearwaters along the bridge crossing Kuwait Bay. The first two birds were recorded on 11 May, followed by an exceptional count of 24 individuals on 17 May.

Following these observations, Omar suggested a pelagic trip on 13 June. The participants were Omar Al-Shaheen, Humoud Al Shayji, Talal Almuwaizri, Mohammad Alazmi, and Abdulrahman Al-Sirhan. We searched offshore for four hours, and during the final 30 minutes of the trip we finally located a single Short-tailed Shearwater.

Separating Short-tailed Shearwater from Sooty Shearwater is not straightforward. In addition to its smaller size, the Short-tailed Shearwater has a shorter, finer bill, a steeper forehead, a smaller head, and a shorter neck.

The underwing pattern is one of the most useful identification features. In Short-tailed Shearwater, the underwing coverts are relatively uniform, with a diffuse, subdued pale panel. The secondary coverts are slightly paler than the primary coverts, producing only weak contrast across the underwing.

In contrast, Sooty Shearwater shows a much more striking underwing pattern, with a well-defined whitish panel formed by the underwing coverts. The primary coverts are paler than the secondary coverts, creating a stronger and more contrasting appearance.