Birds of the Arctic Codexery

Crested auklet

A small seabird with elaborate ornaments and a citrus scent.

Last updated

The global population exceeds 8.2 million individuals, and the species is listed as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[1] German zoologist Peter Simon Pallas first described the crested auklet under the name Alca cristatella in a 1769 publication.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. ClassAves
  4. OrderCharadriiformes
  5. FamilyAlcidae
  6. GenusAethia
  7. SpeciesAethia cristatella

Named by (Pallas, 1769)

Close relatives

Other species of Aethia with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Crested auklet (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 344015 (CC BY 4.0)

Conservation status

Least Concern (LC)

  1. LC▲ this species
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX
Population trend
Not held in our sources — see the assessment
Assessment published
2020

Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category

How big is it?

Size comparison: Crested auklet and a personA 0.5 m long crested auklet drawn to scale next to a 1.8 m tall person. Schematic shapes, not a likeness.0.5 m1.8 m

Largest length in the source, 0.5 m, next to a 1.8 m person.

Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Crested auklet

Where the crested auklet has been recorded

Where the crested auklet has been recorded84 mapped locations from 16,733 GBIF occurrence records

Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (16,733 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 11 inland records left out (institution coordinates).

Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain)

Biology and range

The crested auklet's body length spans 18 to 27 cm, its wingspan ranges from 34 to 50 cm, and its weight falls between 195 and 330 g.[3] Black forward-curving feathers on the forehead form the distinctive crest for which the crested auklet is known.[4] The number of narrow forward-curving feathers in these forehead crests is highly variable, ranging from two to twenty-three.[4] The northern Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea are the primary regions where crested auklets are found.[1]

What the specialist sources record

The Tree of Life Web Project includes Aethia cristatella within the genus Aethia, alongside Aethia psittacula, Aethia pusilla, and Aethia pygmaea.[5] GBIF Backbone Taxonomy records Aethia cristatella (Pallas, 1769) as an accepted species within the family Alcidae.[6] GBIF holds 18,068 occurrence records for this taxon as of 9 October 2026.[6]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Crested auklet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: BirdLife International, "Aethia cristatella", 2020 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Crested auklet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pallas, "Spicilegia zoologica: quibus novae imprimis et obscurae animalium species iconibus, descriptionibus atque commentariis illustrantur", Prostant apud Gottl. August. Lange, 1769; Jobling, "Key to Scientific Names in Ornithology", Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive, 2018; "Check-list of Birds of the World", Harvard University Press, 1934, p. 357 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Crested auklet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (1992), . (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Crested auklet" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Jones, "Mutual sexual selection in a monogamous seabird", Nature, March 1993, p. 238–239; Jones, "Experimental evidence for a mutual inter- and intrasexual selection favouring a crested auklet ornament", Animal Behaviour, 1999, p. 521–528; del Hoyo, Elliot, "Handbook of the Birds of the World Vol. 3", Lynx Edicions, 1996 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. "Aethia", Tree of Life Web Project. facts only, no text reused. tolweb.org
  6. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Aethia cristatella (taxon key 2481295). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Crested auklet (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Same family (Alcidae)

Atlantic puffin Fratercula arcticaBlack guillemot Cepphus grylleCommon murre Uria aalgeLittle auk Alle alle

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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