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Home/Species/ Pigeon Guillemot

Cepphus columba

Pallas, 1811

Pigeon Guillemot

G5Secure Found in 51 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.106136
Element CodeABNNN05020
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassAves
OrderCharadriiformes
FamilyAlcidae
GenusCepphus
Other Common Names
Arao Pichón (ES) Guillemot colombin (FR) pigeon guillemot (EN)
Concept Reference
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
Taxonomic Comments
Composed of two groups: columba of western North America and eastern Siberia and snowi of the Kuril Islands (AOU 1998). Constitutes a superspecies with C. grylle and possibly C. carbo of Asia (AOU 1998).
Conservation Status
Rank MethodExpertise without calculation
Review Date2016-04-07
Change Date1996-11-27
Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)
Range Extent Comments
BREEDS: northern Alaska south to Aleutians, along coast to southern California; in Eurasia from Chukotski Peninsula south to Kurile Islands. WINTERS: Aleutian Islands south to central California; in Eurasia generally near breeding grounds, casually to Japan.
Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Nonbreeding: mostly pelagic and along rocky seacoasts (AOU 1983); or, nonpelagic, moving in winter from exposed coast to bays and inlets (Johnsgard 1987). May rest at night in "rafts" offshore prior to breeding season. Nests along coasts or on islands; on cliffs, talus slopes, in rock crevices, caves, among rocks along shores, in abandoned burrows; may dig own burrow, or nest under dock or piers. Often uses same nest site in successive years.

Ecology

High (80%) annual adult survivorship (Nelson 1991).

Reproduction

Breeding begins from mid-May in south to mid-June in north. Clutch size is 1 or (usually) 2. Incubation by both sexes, lasts 30-32 days. Young are tended by both adults, can fly at 29-39 days. Yearlings and most 2-yr-olds do not breed; first breeds generally at 3-4 years on Farallon Islands (Nelson 1991). Nests singly or in loose aggregation or small colony. Tends to retain same mate in successive years.
Terrestrial Habitats
Bare rock/talus/screeCliff
Other Nations (2)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
CaliforniaSNRYes
OregonS5Yes
AlaskaS5Yes
WashingtonS4B,S4NYes
CanadaN4B,N4N
ProvinceRankNative
British ColumbiaS4Yes
Roadless Areas (51)
Alaska (46)
AreaForestAcres
Behm IslandsTongass National Forest4,777
ChichagofTongass National Forest555,858
Chilkat-West Lynn CanalTongass National Forest199,772
Chugach-13Chugach National Forest13,337
ClevelandTongass National Forest189,447
College FiordChugach National Forest1,130,818
Copper River WetlandsChugach National Forest85,972
Douglas IslandTongass National Forest28,065
EudoraTongass National Forest195,022
FanshawTongass National Forest48,248
Fidalgo-GravinaChugach National Forest257,968
Freshwater BayTongass National Forest44,933
Game CreekTongass National Forest54,469
GravinaTongass National Forest37,381
Juneau UrbanTongass National Forest101,581
Juneau-Skagway IcefieldTongass National Forest1,187,268
KartaTongass National Forest52,117
KekuTongass National Forest10,869
Kenai MountainsChugach National Forest306,600
LindenbergTongass National Forest25,855
MadanTongass National Forest68,553
Mansfield PeninsulaTongass National Forest54,991
Nellie JuanChugach National Forest713,697
North BaranofTongass National Forest314,089
North KruzofTongass National Forest33,146
North KupreanofTongass National Forest114,660
North RevillaTongass National Forest215,430
North WrangellTongass National Forest8,091
Outer IslandsTongass National Forest99,862
Port AlexanderTongass National Forest120,681
Prince William Sound Is.Chugach National Forest118,698
QuartzTongass National Forest143,003
RedoubtTongass National Forest68,347
RevillaTongass National Forest29,298
RhineTongass National Forest23,010
Sheridan GlacierChugach National Forest224,683
Sitka UrbanTongass National Forest112,003
Soda BayTongass National Forest78,091
South EtolinTongass National Forest26,293
South KruzofTongass National Forest55,193
Suemez IslandTongass National Forest19,903
Taku-SnettishamTongass National Forest664,928
Twenty MileChugach National Forest198,775
Upper SitukTongass National Forest16,789
Windham-Port HoughtonTongass National Forest161,952
Yakutat ForelandsTongass National Forest323,648
Oregon (2)
AreaForestAcres
TenmileSiuslaw National Forest10,818
Umpqua SpitSiuslaw National Forest2,090
Washington (3)
AreaForestAcres
Jupiter RidgeOlympic National Forest10,148
Madison CreekOlympic National Forest1,223
South QuinaultOlympic National Forest11,081
References (21)
  1. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
  2. American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
  3. BirdLife International. 2004b. Threatened birds of the world 2004. CD ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
  4. Clowater, J. S., and A. E. Burger. 1994. The diving behaviour of pigeon guillemots (CEPPHUS COLUMBA) off southern Vancouver Island. Can. J. Zool. 72:863-872.
  5. Gaston, A. J., and J. M. Hipfner. 2000. Thick-billed Murre (<i>Uria lomvia</i>). No. 497 IN A. Poole and F. Gill, editors, The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 32pp.
  6. Gaston, A. J., et al. 1994. Population parameters of thick-billed murres at Coats Island, Northwest Territories, Canada. Condor 96:935-948.
  7. Golovkin, A. N. 1984. Seabirds nesting in the USSR: the status and protection of populations. Pages 473-486 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2.
  8. Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio.
  9. Johnsgard, P. A. 1987. Diving birds of North America. Univ. Nebraska Press, Lincoln. xii + 292 pp.
  10. Lensink, C. J. 1984. The status and conservation of seabirds in Alaska. Pages 13-27 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Publ. No. 2.
  11. Mostello, C. S., N. A. Palaia, and R. B. Clapp. 2000. Gray-backed Tern (Sterna lunata). No. 525 in A. Poole and F. Gill (editors). The birds of North America. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA. 28 pp.
  12. National Geographic Society (NGS). 1983. Field guide to the birds of North America. National Geographic Society, Washington, DC.
  13. Nelson, D. A. 1987. Factors influencing colony attendance by pigeon guillemots on Southeast Farallon Island, California. Condor 89:340-348.
  14. Nelson, D. A. 1991. Demography of the pigeon guillemot on Southeast Farallon Island, California. Condor 93:765-768.
  15. Nettleship, D. N. 1996. Family Alcidae (auks). Pages 678-723 in J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, and J. Sargatal (Eds.) Handbook of the birds of the world. Vol. 3. Lynx Editions, Barcelona, Spain.
  16. Parker III, T. A., D. F. Stotz, and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Ecological and distributional databases for neotropical birds. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
  17. Poole, A. F. and F. B. Gill. 1992. The birds of North America. The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. and The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA.
  18. Schreiber, E. A., R. W. Schreiber, and G. A. Schenk. 1996. Red-footed Booby (<i>Sula sula</i>). No. 241 in A. Poole and F. Gill, editors. The birds of North America. The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The Amerian Ornithologists' Union, Washington, DC. 24 pp.
  19. Sealy, S. G., editor. 1990. Auks at sea. Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, Studies in Avian Biology No. 14. vi + 180 pp.
  20. Spendelow, J. A. and S. R. Patton. 1988. National Atlas of Coastal Waterbird Colonies in the Contiguous United States: 1976-1982. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Biological Report 88(5). x + 326 pp.
  21. Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.