Weighing little more than two pounds, the common murre spends most of its life on the open ocean, coming to land only for a few months each summer to lay its eggs. – comparatively short tail (slender in straight flight) typical for AD. The common murre is an alcid — a family of birds known as the "penguins of the north," and often called "flying footballs" for their rotund body shape. They submerge deeper water into deeper watercraft, usually 30-60 meters (98-197 feet). Common Murre (Uria aalge), adult in flight. The common murre has to run across the surface of the water to take off in flight, but it is a strong flier once it is in the air. When above the water, the 18"-long murre must flap frantically to stay … … I figured I could move away from static bird portraits by photographing birds in flight. Flying Common Murre - Uria aalge - Guillemot marmette. Common murre or common guillemot has a quick direct flight but is not very quick. Depth up to 180 meters (590 feet) was recorded. But what do I get? The common murre mates when it is five to six years old. The genocide of common … But this remarkable anatomy does not serve it well in flight. These chaotic flights expose murre … Common Buzzard Buteo b. buteo, AD BIF1355, 14/06/2013, Havelland, Germany, Mathias Putze dark morph – typical silhouette of a circling … Common Murre, Underwater Flyer September 29, 2018 The Common Murre is among the few species of birds that can "fly" under water. This is an apt description of the common murre in flight. Common guillemots (Uria aalge) on the cliffs at Skellig Michael Island, County Kerry, Ireland. A static bird portrait of a flying … They look shorter than the Common Murre in flight. On land, it stands upright and looks like a penguin! Though it can be mistaken at first glance for a penguin, this seabird is a capable flier and doesn't occur anywhere near … Slight disturbance can cause a "dread flight," triggering a chain reaction response: neighbor reacts to neighbor, on and on until thousands of murres pour pell-mell off the rocks. Guillemot, Uria aalge, group of birds on rock, Northumberland, … First year birds have smaller bills than adults and the white line on the bill is often obscure, making the bill an unreliable way to identify them at this age. The head pattern is the best way to distinguish first-year birds from Common … The common murre … The tuxedo-clad Thick-billed Murre nests in vast colonies on sea cliffs in the Arctic. Behavior. Its short wings are ideal for swimming, allowing it to dive hundreds of feet under into the water to hunt for fish.