Thick-billed Murre
A species of Murres, Also known as Thick-billed Guillemot Scientific name : Uria lomvia Genus : Murres
Thick-billed Murre, A species of Murres
Also known as:
Thick-billed Guillemot
Botanical name: Uria lomvia
Genus: Murres
Content
Description People often ask General Info
Description
Since the extinction of the great auk in the mid-19th century, the murres are the largest living members of the Alcidae. The thick-billed murre and the closely related common guillemot (or common murre, U. aalge) are similarly-sized, but the thick-billed still bests the other species in both average and maximum size. The thick-billed murre measures 40–48 cm (16–19 in) in total length, spans 64–81 cm (25–32 in) across the wings and weighs 736–1,481 g (26.0–52.2 oz). The Pacific race (U. l. arra) is larger than the Atlantic race, especially in bill dimensions. Adult birds are black on the head, neck, back and wings with white underparts. The bill is long and pointed. They have a small rounded black tail. The lower face becomes white in winter. This species produces a variety of harsh cackling calls at the breeding colonies, but is silent at sea. They differ from the common murre in their thicker, shorter bill with white gape stripe and their darker head and back; the "bridled" morph is unknown in U. lomvia - a murre has either a white eye-stripe, or a white bill-stripe, or neither, but never both; it may be that this is character displacement, enabling individual birds to recognize conspecifics at a distance in the densely packed breeding colonies as the bridled morph is most common by far in North Atlantic colonies where both species of guillemots breed. In winter, there is less white on the thick-billed murre's face. They look shorter than the common murre in flight. First year birds have smaller bills than adults and the white line on the bill is often obscure, making the bill an unreliable way to identify them at this age. The head pattern is the best way to distinguish first-year birds from common murres. 
Size
46 cm (18 in)
Colors
Black
White
Life Expectancy
29 years
Nest Placement
Cliff
Feeding Habits
Thick-billed Murre primarily consume small fish, squid, shrimp, and crustaceans, using their wings to propel and feet to steer during underwater 'flights'. They dive as deep as 689 feet but generally feed at around 60 feet. They catch prey with their bill and eat while submerged. Their diet includes walleye pollock, different cod species, Atka mackerel, capelin, herring, and various small sea creatures. For foraging, thick-billed Murre may travel over 100 km from nesting sites, exhibiting strong and costly flight due to short wings, and utilize unique physiological adaptations to avoid diving sickness.
Habitat
Thick-billed Murre thrive in sub-arctic and arctic marine environments, with a preference for cold waters below 8°C. Their breeding habitat includes coastal cliffs and headlands in the High Arctic, favoring sites with direct sea access and abundant prey due to sea ice edges and varying sea floor topography. Outside breeding seasons, thick-billed Murre are pelagic, often found over continental shelves and slopes in deep water, and uniquely adapt to winter within pack ice regions.
Nest Behavior
Thick-billed Murre does not build a traditional nest. Egg laying occurs once per season, with both parents participating in incubation and chick rearing on precarious cliff sites.
Nest Characteristics
Thick-billed Murre nests are minimalist, with a single egg laid directly on cliff ledges, in crevices, or caves by the ocean. Occasional pebbles arranged around the egg are cemented by guano, aiding in egg retention.
Dite type
Piscivorous
People often ask
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Behavior
Thick-billed Murre display a fascinating spectrum of behaviors, particularly evident in their communal nesting on steep Arctic cliffs, often shoulder-to-shoulder with other seabirds. There's minimal courtship; instead, pairs formed at sea preen together, reinforcing bonds. They share parental responsibilities equitably, alternating between foraging and incubating. Remarkably, thick-billed Murre engage in extended commutes up to 100 miles to gather food for their chicks. Notably, thick-billed Murre exhibit a peculiar 'gravity-assisted' fledging, with young taking a daring plunge into the ocean, guided thereafter by the dedicated male until self-sufficiency. Outside breeding, they are solitary foragers yet congregate in food-rich areas and occasionally on sea ice. Mature at four years, thick-billed Murre exhibit affinity to their breeding colonies throughout their life, but interact minimally when not breeding.
Distribution Area
The thick-billed murre is distributed across the polar and sub-polar regions of the Northern Hemisphere where four subspecies exist; one lives on the Atlantic and Arctic oceans of North America (U. l. lomvia), another on the Pacific coast of North America (U. l. arra), and two others that inhabit the Russian arctic (U.l.eleonorae and U.heckeri).
Species Status
Although declines have been observed in many parts of their range, the thick-billed murre is not a species of concern as the total population is estimated to contain between 15 and 20 million individuals worldwide. Egg harvesting and hunting of adult birds are major threats in Greenland, where populations fell steeply between the 1960s and 1980s. In the Barents Sea region, the species has declined locally, due to influences associated with polar stations in Russia. Fisheries may also be a threat, but because thick-billed murres are better able to use alternative food sources the effect of over-fishing is not as severe as on the common murre. Pollution from oil at sea exerts another major threat. Murres are among the seabirds most sensitive to oil contamination. Incidental mortality brought on by entanglement with fishing gear is also an important cause of population decline. Thick-billed murres are closely associated with sea-ice throughout the year. Consequently, some scientists believe that climate change may be a threat to this Arctic-breeding species. However the species seems adaptable. Populations at the southern edge of their range switched from feeding on ice-associated Arctic cod to warmer-water capelin as ice break-up became earlier. Dates for egg-laying advanced with the earlier disappearance of ice. The growth of chicks is slower in years when ice break-up is early relative to egg-laying by the murres. In extremely warm years, mosquitoes and heat kill some breeders.
Scientific Classification
Phylum
Chordates Class
Birds Order
Shorebirds Family
Alcidae Genus
Murres Species
Thick-billed Murre 
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