The Great Auk - Rockford's Rock Opera

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Songs & Audio

A Dream too Far (Original)

On Infinity, the Great Auk fears humans more than almost any other creature. Great Auks were excellent swimmers, using their wings to swim underwater. Their main food was fish. They had few natural enemies, besides perhaps polar bears, and had no natural fear of humans. Their flightlessness and awkwardness meant they were easy prey for humans, who hunted them for food, feathers, and also for museums and private collections. Great Auks, found incubating an egg, were killed on 3rd July 1844, on the Island of Eldey, near Iceland.

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Cause of Extinction

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Extinction Status Date: The Great Auk went extinct on July 3, 1844 when the last known breeding pair was killed by fishermen on Eldey Island off the coast of Iceland.

Great Auks were hunted heavily for meat, feathers and oil. Sailors also collected their eggs. Some people thought the Great Auk looked like a witch, so they blamed them for bad weather.

Because the birds could not fly and gathered in huge colonies, hunters could kill enormous numbers quickly. The final confirmed pair were killed in Iceland in 1844.

Species

The Great Auk

Scientific Name

Pinguinus impennis

Status Type

Extinct - Known to Science

Extinction Date

The Great Auk went extinct on July 3, 1844 when the last known breeding pair was killed by fishermen on Eldey Island off the coast of Iceland.

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Did You Know?

1

The word penguin originally referred to Great Auks. European sailors later used the name for Antarctic penguins because they looked similar.

2

Great Auks were excellent swimmers. Although flightless, they could chase fish underwater with incredible speed.

3

Some sailors believed they were magical. Superstitions claimed Great Auks could control storms or act as witches at sea.