Great Auk

Pinguinus impennis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Great Auk Pinguinus impennis bred on remote rocky islands across the North Atlantic, including eastern Canada, Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, the British Isles and Denmark, and it ranged in the non-breeding season to the eastern USA and the western and central Mediterranean. It was a flightless auk and the only living member of its genus. The bird nested in crowded colonies on bare rock, laying a single egg, and both adults shared incubation. It was also known as the penguin or garefowl, and it became extinct in the mid-19th century after human exploitation.

Order

Charadriiformes

Family

Alcidae — Auks

Breeding range

North America, Palearctic: n North Atlantic coasts: e Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Faroe Is., British Isles and Denmark

Nonbreeding range

to e USA and w, c Mediterranean