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Guillemot Uria aalge   [Pontoppidan, 1763]
Other Names Trends & Distribution Breeding & Survival Biometrics Books & Links
Order: Charadriiformes Family: Alcidae
BTO Codes: GU, GUILL EURING No: 6340
Number in Britain: 1.3 million individuals (Summer)
Conservation Status:
UK: AMBER
European: Not a species of concern
Global: Least Concern
Links to: Images   Videos   Sound  

Status in UK: (A)  Migrant/Resident Breeder, Winter Visitor
Subspecies: aalge (RBW), albionis (RBW) recorded in Britain (of 5 subsp. in the world)
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Length: 40 cm Wingspan: 67 cm Weight: M/F: 690 g    
Scientific name from: Gr.: ouriaa waterbird mentioned by Athenaeus and Danish: aalge=auk (from ON alka)
World Distribution: n&w Europe, n Asia, North America
Habitat: Coastal cliffs, otherwise pelagic
Diet: Mostly fish, usually taken from depths up to 60m
TitBit: The Guillemot has perhaps the smallest nesting territory any British bird, extending a beak length round its nest (about 5cm) and its egg is so shaped as to roll in circles, rather than off the narrow cliff edge on which it is laid  
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Population and Distribution
Population Trend: No population trend available
Distribution: Atlas Maps    (Help with the New Atlas)   
British Population Size:
    Summer: 1.3 million individuals in 1998-02
    First Record: 12th Century [Fossil evidence from
    Latest Survey: Mitchell, P.I. et al. (2004) Seabird populations of Britain and Ireland Poyser, London
    Conservation Status: AMBER because Localised Breeding Population, Important Breeding Population
   Previous Assessments: 2002-2007 AMBER     1996-2001 AMBER  
   Races of Concern: aalge AMBER (Rare or Localised), albionis AMBER (Rare or Localised)
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
    No habitat data from BBS
European Population Size:
    Summer: 2 to 2.7 million pairs
Population Assesment from Birds in Europe
Distribution in Europe
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of: WBD(I*), Bern(III)
Survey Results: Seabird 2000 (warning: link to large pdf)
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Breeding and Survival
Egg Size: 82 x 50 mm Egg Weight: 108.0 g (of which 11 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records: 2
Clutch Size: 1 eggs
Incubation: 28- 37 days by the: Male + Female
Fledging: 18 - 25days as: Altricial, downy
First Clutches Laid: Unavailable
Number of Broods: 1

Number Ringed: 11488
Adult Survival: 0.949       
Juvenile Survival: No data
Age at First Breeding: 5 years Typical Lifespan: 24 years
Maximum Recorded Age: 31yr 9m   (Sweden: 38yr 0m)
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Biometrics
Ring Size: Special
Wing Length Adult: 203.3 ± 7.2 Range 194 - 211 mm, N =691
Juvenile: Insufficient Data.
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
Weight Adult: 890.9 ± 73.79 Range 770.0 - 1010 g , N =994
Juvenile: Insufficient Data.
Male: Insufficient Data
Female: Insufficient Data
Source:
British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Ringing Scheme data
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Other Names
Common Guillemot, Common Murre
Gaelic: Eun-dubh-an-sgadain Welsh: Gwylog
Danish: Lomvie Dutch: Zeekoet
Finnish: Etelänkiisla French: Guillemot de Troďl
German: Trottellumme Hungarian: Vékonycsoru lumma
Icelandic: Langvía Irish: Foracha
Italian: Uria Norwegian: Lomvi
Polish: Nurzyk zwyczajny Portuguese: Arau-comum
Spanish: Arao común Swedish: Sillgrissla
Local Names: Loom
Collective Noun: Loomery (breeding colony)
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For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
   Gaston, A. 1998 The auks Oxford University Press, Oxford [598.618 GAS]
   Nettleship, D. & Birkhead, T.R. 1985 The atlantic Alcidae Academic Press, London [598.618 NET]
   Birkhead, T. 1993 Great auk islands Poyser, London [998 BIR]
See Also:
All About Birds (Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
Gough, G.A. et al. (1998) Patuxent Bird Identification Infocenter
Wikipedia entry
State of the Nations Birds by Chris Mead
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides.com
Selected scientific papers published 1980-2005
Find more papers on Google Scholar
Find more papers on Scirus

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Email: birdfacts@bto.org

These data should be cited as:
Robinson, R.A. (2005) BirdFacts: profiles of birds occurring in Britain & Ireland (v1.24, June 2009). BTO Research Report 407, BTO, Thetford (http://www.bto.org/birdfacts)

 

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