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10

Razorbill (Alca torda) Alternate name(s): German name(s): "Tordalk" Size: 38-43 cm; wing span 60-70 cm Weight: 505-890 g

Europe: Family Group 10 Family Group 10 Table Great Skua Caspian Gull Great Black-backed Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull American Herring Gull European Herring Gull Yellow-legged Gull Audouin's Gull Slender-billed Gull Iceland Gull Common Gull Ring-billed Gull Black-headed Gull Bonaparte's Gull Mediterranean Gull Little Gull Sabine's Gull Black-legged Kittiwake Caspian Tern Sandwich Tern Gull-billed Tern Common Tern Arctic Tern Little Tern Forster's Tern Whiskered Tern Black Tern White-winged Black Tern Atlantic Puffin Razorbill Common Guillemot Black Guillemot Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names European birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Razorbills are large auks. Both sexes look alike and both have identical breeding and eclipse plumage. During the breeding season the plumage is all black-and-white. Except for a narrow white loral stripe and a narrow white wing bar, the entire head, neck and back are black. The front, from the chest down, is white. In eclipse the ear coverts, throat and chin turn white. The irises are dark. The strong, blunt bill is black with a white vertical stripe. The legs and feet are dark-grey. First-winter Razorbills roughly resemble non-breeding adults, but with a much smaller bill.

Taxonomy, classification See Razorbill at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Razorbill is available HERE . There are two extant races of Razorbills. Their overall range encompasses the northern Atlantic Ocean, including the North Sea, parts of the adjacent Arctic Ocean and large parts of the coastlines of both oceans, from about the Hudson Bay in Canada to just beyond the North Cape in northern Scandinaiva. They also enter the Baltic Sea and, outside the breeding season, the western Mediterranean Sea. In Europe Razorbills breed along the northern coastline of Bretagne, around most of the coastline of the British Isles (except the eastern parts), on the islands around Scotland towards Iceland, on some German North Sea islands, the south-western coastline of Norway and along the northern Scandinavian coastline, including the northern side of the Kola peninsula. Razorbills also breed along parts of the northern Baltic Sea coastline. Outside the breeding season they are mostly outside the Arctic circle, with a range encompassing the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean, including the North Sea, the southern Baltic Sea, the waters around the British Isles, along the European West coast and all the way around Iberia. They enter the western Mediterranean, as far as Corsica and the Balearic islands. Razorbills are a marine species that spends much of its life in open water and comes to rocky coasts and islands only to breed.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "torda" M. Eaton reports spotting Razorbills, nominate race "torda", at Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, in June 2018. J. Pires found Razorbills, race "torda", in the Sado estuary, Portugal, in January 2023. More of them were found at Papoa, near Cape Carvoeiro, Peniche, Portugal, also in January 2023.

Photos

Race "torda"

ADULT

BREEDING

Sex unknown

Frontal view of Razorbills in breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, June 2018]

Lateral view of Razorbills in breeding plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, June 2018]

Lateral view of a group of Razorbills in breeding plumage riding a wave (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, June 2018]

Flock of Razorbills in breeding plumage on open water (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, June 2018]

Razorbills can often be found in flocks with other auks, such as Atlantic Puffins and Common Guillemots
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Skjervoy, near Tromso, Norway, June 2018]

NON-BREEDING

Sex unknown

Lateral view of a Razorbill in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sado estuary, Portugal, January 2023]

Near-dorsal view of a Razorbill in non-breeding plumage (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Sado estuary, Portugal, January 2023]

Near-dorsal view of a Razorbill in non-breeding plumage in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Papoa, near Cape Carvoeiro, Peniche, Portugal, January 2023]

Near-dorsal/ventral view of a Razorbill in non-breeding plumage in flight (photo courtesy of J. Pires)
[Papoa, near Cape Carvoeiro, Peniche, Portugal, January 2023]

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

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