AUK OR RAZORBILL 191 



in which the beak is ornamented by brilliant colours, the entire horny 

 sheath is annually shed, just as are the horns of the prongbuck among 

 mammals. Brilliant-hued crests and tufts of feathers on the sides of 

 the head are also characteristic of some of the puffins. The young 

 remain on the nesting-ledges for some time after hatching. The 

 characters of the single family Alcida; may be taken to be the same 

 as those of the group generally. 



In the typical section of the family, which includes the razorbill 

 and its immediate allies, the feathers on the face extend at least as 

 far forwards as the hind margin of the nostril ; the nostril itself being 

 either completely exposed or overhung, and to some extent hidden, 

 by thick velvety feathers, which sometimes reach its front edge. The 

 razorbill and the great auk, which alone constitute the genus Alca, 

 show the last-mentioned feature in regard to the feathering of the 

 region in the neighbourhood of the nostrils ; and are further character- 

 ised by the presence of distinct transverse groovings or flutings on the 

 sides of the much-compressed and deep beak, of which the upper half 

 is strongly curved downwards towards the tip. 



The razorbill, which is one of the most abundant of British sea- 

 birds, inhabits both coasts of the North Atlantic, breeding in Iceland 

 and the Faroes, on the coast of Norway as far north as latitude 69', 

 and thence probably as far east as the island of Jan Mayen, while to 

 the southward the coast of Brittany apparently forms the limit of its 

 breeding-range. On the American side of the Atlantic the breeding- 

 area is stated to extend in Greenland as far north as latitude 70'', and 

 includes the coasts of Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Greenland. In 

 winter razorbills wander as far south on the eastern side of the 

 Atlantic as the Mediterranean and even the Canary Islands, and on 

 the western side to the shores of New England. In the British Isles 

 these birds breed from the Shetlands in the north, to Cornwall in the 

 south, almost wherever cliffs suitable to their habits occur ; the Bass 

 Rock, and Bempton Cliffs in Yorkshire, as well as the Fame Islands, 

 being well-known resorts ; the Channel Islands also coming within 

 their breeding-area. In Ireland, where it is comparatively rare in 

 winter, the razorbill is found breeding wherever there are crags of any 

 size, as the species does not confine itself to the precipitous cliffs 

 favoured by its cousin the guillemot. Favourite Irish resorts are the 

 cliffs of Moher in Clare, the Blasket and Skellig rocks off Kerry, the 

 Bull Rock off the coast of Cork, and the cliffs of Waterford, where 

 this bird is found to the exclusion of the guillemot. 



The peculiarly shaped beak, grooved and striped with white, 



