Great Auk

The Pinguinus impennis, or Great Auk, was a large flightless bird that once ranged across the northern Atlantic, breeding in colonies that numbered hundreds of thousands. Agile in water, the flightless Giant Auks were helpless on land. In addition, the Great Auk bred only on a select few island environments and, after the 16th century when they were hunted extensively by seafarers, the species was driven to extinction. The last confirmed breeding pair were killed on the Isle of Eldey, Iceland in 1844.

Great auks can grow to 85cm (33in) in length and weigh as much as 5kg (11lb). All that remains of this great bird today exists as a few dozen preserved specimens and eggs located in a number of museum collections, such as this male specimen collected from the Isle of Eldey in 1834.