Common murre

The common murre, also called the common guillemot, is a large auk in the family Alcidae with a circumpolar distribution across low-Arctic and boreal waters of the North Atlantic and North Pacific, breeding on rocky cliff shores and islands from Iceland and Scandinavia to California and Japan. It measures 38 to 46 centimeters long with a wingspan of 61 to 73 centimeters; in breeding plumage it is black on the head, back and wings with white underparts, a thin dark pointed bill and a small rounded black tail, while in winter it shows a white face with a dark mark behind the eye, and some North Atlantic birds show a white ring around the eye extending back as a line, known as the bridled form. It is an excellent diver, reaching depths of up to 180 meters, and breeds in dense colonies on bare rock ledges without building a nest. The IUCN lists it as Least Concern.