A cliff-nesting seabird with a distinctive laterally flattened "razor" bill, banded in white — the closest living relative of the extinct great auk; it dives deep for fish by flying underwater with its wings, nests on cliff ledges in large colonies alongside guillemots and puffins, and is an excellent indicator of North Atlantic fish stocks.
The razor bill
The razorbill is named for its bill — laterally compressed and deep, with a sharp ridge along the top and a distinctive white band and line across the face. This heavy bill is used to grip slippery fish underwater. The bill is proportionally larger than the guillemot’s and gives the razorbill a slightly more stout-headed appearance. In breeding season, a white line runs from the eye to the base of the bill.
Closest relative of the great auk
The razorbill is the closest living relative of the great auk (Pinguinus impennis), the large flightless North Atlantic auk driven to extinction by hunting in 1844. The great auk was truly flightless; the razorbill retains flight but, like all auks, uses its wings to “fly” underwater. If razorbills were scaled up to great auk size, they would be essentially flightless for the same aerodynamic reasons.
Cliff colonies
Razorbills nest on cliff ledges and in crevices in rocky sea cliffs and stacks, often in the same colonies as guillemots and kittiwakes. Unlike guillemots, which pack densely onto open ledges, razorbills tend to use more sheltered positions — crevices, overhangs, and boulder slopes. Britain holds approximately 70% of the world’s breeding razorbills.
Winter at sea
Outside the breeding season, razorbills are genuinely oceanic birds, spending winter entirely at sea in the North Atlantic. They moult their flight feathers simultaneously after breeding, becoming flightless for several weeks while the new feathers grow.
Find more birds by letter
Razorbill starts with R and ends with L. Browse other birds along the same letter.
Birds that contain a letter from "Razorbill":