Black Guillemot
Cepphus grylle
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Distribution Britain 383 (+27.8%) Ireland 90 (-28.6%)
Numbers breeding: Britain 36,500 Ireland 3,000 adults European status: 100,000 (20% in Britain and Ireland =2) British population trend: possible increases How likely are you to record it? 4 squares (0.1%) Ranked 167= |
These auks nest in much smaller colonies than the others and feed close by on small fish taken in the shallow waters that they like. In the past the breeding area has fluctuated, back and forth, but has remained largely the same. South of the Moray Firth there are few on the east coast but some bred, many years ago, in Yorkshire. On the west there are numerous recent colonies in south-west Scotland and the scattered colonies along the east coast of Ireland are mostly new and may be increasing. A handful of pairs now breed in Anglesey and there is a good population on the Isle of Man. About three quarters of the British and Irish birds breed in Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles and the current survey, Seabird 2000, will produce a much better estimate of breeding numbers than we have had before. As has been proved several times in Orkney and Shetland, these birds are vulnerable to oil pollution and recovery takes ten years or more. These birds may be in an expansion phase at the moment.
From
The
State of the Nations Birds
Copyright © 2000 by Chris Mead