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Cassin's Auklet
last update: Mar 24, 2009 11:02 AM
Latin name: Ptychoramphus aleuticus
Population: 2.5-5 million individuals
Cites classified: Least Concern
Where found: North American Pacific coast from the Baja California peninsula to the Aleutian Islands.
Age/ life expectancy: 6 years
Wingspan: 34 cm
Length: 23-25 cm
Weight: 150-200 g
Mating/Breeding: The Cassin's Auklet nests in burrows on small islands, and in the southern area of its range may be found in the breeding colony year round. It either digs holes in the soil or uses natural cracks and crevices to nest in, also readily using man-made structures. Pairs will show a strong loyalty towards each other and to a nesting site for many years. Both the parents incubate the egg, returning to swap shifts at night to avoid being taken by predators such as the Western Gull or Peregrine Falcon. The egg is incubated for 40 days, the small chick is then fed nightly for 35 days by both parents, who bring regurgitated food in a special gular pouch, often referred to in the literature as a sublingual pouch. The chick fledges alone and makes its way to the sea.
Eggs: one, white egg
Hibernation: no different winter habitat
Hunting Habits: It feeds by diving underwater beating its wings for propulsion, hunting down large zooplankton, especially krill. It can dive to 30 m below the surface, and by some estimates 80 m.
Feed on: small fish and krill
Predators: large gulls, foxes, and rats
Colour/Body: Its plumage is generally dark above and pale below, with a small white mark above the eye. Its bill is overall dark with a pale spot, and its feet are blue. Unlike many other auks the Cassin's Auklet lacks dramatic breeding plumage, remaining the same over most of the year.
- Cassin's Auklet is the only alcid known to produce two broods in a single breeding season, at least in the southern part of the range where birds may be seen at nesting colonies every month of the year.
