| Great Auk | ||||||||||||||
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
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| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Pinguinus impennis |
At 75 centimetres, the flightless Great Auk (Alca impennis or Pinguinus impennis) was the largest of the auks. It was hunted for food and down for mattresses from at least the 8th century.
The Great Auk was once to be found in great numbers on islands off eastern Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, and Scotland, but it was eventually hunted to extinction. The last pair was killed July 3 1844 on an island off Iceland.
They were excellent swimmers, using their wings to swim underwater. Unlike other auks, however, the Great Auk could not fly, which is what made it so vulnerable to humans.
The Great Auk was the original source for the name "penguin". When explorers discovered similar birds in the southern hemisphere, the name was applied to them as well.
Great Auks laid only one egg each year.