The Black Guillemot differs in many respects from the other Auks and it is never found in vast colonies, though several pairs will often breed in close proximity. Some hole or recess in a cliff or among broken rocks on a steep slope is chosen and two eggs are deposited, which are whitish spotted with grey and brown and elliptical in shape. Both sexes take part in the incubation, and the young are said not to leave the nest until they are fully fledged. Their food consists of fish and crustaceans, which they obtain by diving.
The sexes are alike in plumage, and in summer are of a uniform sooty brown all over, with the exception of a patch on the wing, which is white. Bill black. Legs vermilion red.
In winter the crown is black marked with white, the back barred with black and white, and the rest of the plumage white. The young resemble the adults in winter but are rather whiter. Length 14 in.; wing 6·5 in.
THE LITTLE AUK
Mergulus alle (Linnæus)
This species is an inhabitant of Arctic seas, breeding in Greenland, Spitzbergen, and Franz Josef Land, but it does not occur in Arctic America nor to the east of the Kara Sea. In winter it migrates southwards and a few are found round our northern shores every year, but in severe winters it often occurs in considerable numbers, and many storm-driven birds are found in a dying condition far inland.
There is a small white spot over the eye, but otherwise the plumage is sooty black on the upper parts. The under parts are white, but in summer the chin and throat are black. Length 8·5 in.; wing 4·65 in.
BLACK GUILLEMOT
Uria grylle
Summer (below). Winter (above)
PUFFIN
Fratercula arctica (Linnæus)
One of the most fascinating points in connection with this quaint bird is that for at least six months in every year we know nothing, or comparatively nothing, of its habits or whereabouts.