Northern Fulmar
NameNorthern Fulmar
Common NameNorthern Fulmar
Scientific NameFulmarus glacialis
FamilyProcellariidae
Wingspan (cm)109
Length (cm)48
Weight (g)725
Plumage DetailsThis individual is a light morph, featuring a white head, neck, and underparts, contrasting with a pale grey back and upperwings. The primary feathers are darker grey, and the stout bill is yellowish with a dark tip and distinctive nasal tubes.
Vocalization / CallVocalizations include guttural cackling, gurgling, and croaking sounds, particularly heard at breeding colonies. They can also produce harsh squawks when agitated.
Primary Dietpiscivore
Primary Habitatscoastal
Conservation Statusleast-concern
Geographic RangeWidespread across the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans, breeding on cliffs of northern islands and continental coasts in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions.
Identifying Featurestube-nosed bill, stiff-winged flight, gull-like appearance but distinct flight, light and dark morphs, often follows ships
Description
The Northern Fulmar is a medium-sized seabird, often mistaken for a gull, but distinguished by its stiff-winged flight and prominent tube-nosed bill. It spends most of its life at sea, gliding over the ocean surface and only coming to land to breed on coastal cliffs.
