Pigeon Guillemot

The Pigeon Guillemot is a distinctive small auk of the rocky North Pacific coastline, closely related to the Atlantic's Black Guillemot but distinguished by a dark wedge or bar interrupting the white patch on its wing. In breeding plumage, the body is overall sooty black, offset by bright coral-red legs and feet and a matching red mouth lining. In winter, plumage lightens to mottled grey and white, though the diagnostic wing pattern remains visible.

Often seen bobbing close to rocky shorelines or perched on nearshore rocks, the Pigeon Guillemot is a familiar sight along the Pacific coast of North America and adjacent Asian coastlines.

Key field marks

• Sooty black body in breeding plumage
• White wing patch interrupted by a dark diagonal wedge or bar
• Bright red legs and feet
• Red mouth lining, visible during calls and displays

Similar species

• Black Guillemot has an unbroken white wing patch and occurs in the Atlantic and Arctic rather than the Pacific.
• Rhinoceros Auklet and Cassin's Auklet are duller brownish-grey overall, lacking the bold white wing patch of the Pigeon Guillemot.
• Winter birds are mottled grey-white but retain the interrupted wing patch, the most reliable identification feature year-round.

Pigeon Guillemots breed along rocky coastlines, cliffs, and offshore islets of the North Pacific, from California north through Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska, and west to the Russian Far East and Japan. They favor shallow nearshore waters, kelp beds, and rocky shorelines for feeding, generally staying close to the coast rather than venturing far offshore.

Most populations remain relatively close to their breeding areas year-round, though some birds move to more open coastal waters in winter, particularly in the northern parts of the range where sea ice can form.

Behavior

Pigeon Guillemots forage by diving from the surface into shallow, nearshore waters, using their wings to swim after prey close to the rocky seafloor.

Voice

High, thin whistling calls are given at the colony, along with softer twittering notes during social interactions.

Feeding

Small fish such as sculpins and gunnels, along with crustaceans and other invertebrates, are taken from shallow rocky habitats close to shore.

Nesting and breeding

Nests are placed in rock crevices, burrows, or under debris on rocky shorelines and cliffs; typically two eggs are laid, and both parents take turns incubating and provisioning the chicks with fish carried singly in the bill.