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Razorbill (Alca torda) — photo 1 of 4
© Walter Baxter  CC BY-SA 2.0

Auks · Shorebirds

Razorbill

Alca torda

Summer visitor

How to recognize it

  • 38–43 cm, slightly larger than a pigeon

  • Black back and head, white underparts

  • In winter the head and face turn white

  • Thin white line from eye to bill, thick bill with vertical grooves

About the species

Razorbills spend most of their time at sea, and on land they come in only to breed. They swim low in the water, then dive with their wings half-folded to catch fish, often working alone rather than in a group.

Their call is a harsh, braying sound that carries over busy colonies. Pairs stay together for life, and both parents take turns guarding the nest and carrying food to the chick. Young leave the nest by jumping from cliff ledges and follow the adult to sea.

Look for them on rocky North Atlantic coasts, offshore in winter, and around islands, cliffs, and boulder-strewn shores. They feed mainly on schooling fish such as capelin, sandeels, sprats, herring, and juvenile cod, and they may also take crustaceans and worms.

Where to find

  • Along stone quays and harbor walls — especially where there are cracks and ledges over the water, Razorbill may sit tight at the edge and dive for small fish.

  • By old bridges, embankment walls, and granite steps on the waterfront — look for a black-and-white shape that pauses on the stone and then drops straight under.

  • In large estuaries and wide canal mouths, where the water is a bit less salty and fish are thicker, watch the channel edge for quick repeated dives.

  • On coastal cliffs and breakwaters outside the city — in crevices and hollows, where calls carry and a pair takes turns at the same niche.

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