? Marbled Murrelet Conservation status: Endangered
B. marmoratus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Charadriiformes Family: Alcidae Genus: Brachyramphus Species: B. marmoratus
Binomial name
Brachyramphus marmoratus (Gmelin, 1789)

The Marbled Murrelet, Brachyramphus marmoratus is a small seabird from the North Pacific. It is an unusual member of the auk family, nesting far inland in old growth forests instead of in colonies close to shore. Its habit of nesting in trees was not known until a tree-climber found a chick in 1974. The Marbled Murrelet and the closely related Kittlitz's Murrelet are thought to have experienced declines in numbers recently. Their decline and association with forests have made them a flagship species in the anti-logging movement. Two subspecies are recognised, B. marmoratus marmoratus in North America, and B. marmoratus perdix, (from Kamchatka and the Sea of Okhotsk), which is considered by some authorities a separate species, the Long-billed Murrelet B. perdix (Pallas, 1811). Download high resolution version (1200x1790, 203 KB)Fish and Wildlife Service: Vliet, Gus Van (Photographer) US Fish and Wildlife File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascideiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Orders Many - see section below. ... Families Thinocoridae Pedionomidae Scolopacidae Rostratulidae Jacanidae Chionididae Burhinidae Haematopodidae Recurvirostridae Ibidorhynchidae Charadriidae Pluvianellidae Dromadidae Glareolidae Stercorariidae Rhynchopidae Laridae Sternidae Alcidae Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. ... Genera Alle Uria Alca Pinguinus Cepphus Brachyramphus Synthliboramphus Ptychoramphus Cyclorrhynchus Aethia Cerorhinca Fratercula Auks are birds of the family Alcidae in the order Charadriiformes. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is a standard convention used for naming species. ... Johann Friedrich Gmelin (August 8, 1748 - November 1, 1804) was a German naturalist and botanist. ... Seabirds are birds that spend much of their lives, outside the breeding season at least, at sea. ... For other meanings of pacific, see pacific (disambiguation). ... Genera Alle Uria Alca Pinguinus Cepphus Brachyramphus Synthliboramphus Ptychoramphus Cyclorrhynchus Aethia Cerorhinca Fratercula Auks are birds of the family Alcidae in the order Charadriiformes. ... A dense growth of softwoods (a forest) in the Sierra Nevada Range of Northern California A forest (a. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... Binomial name Brachyramphus brevirostris (Vigors, 1829) The Kittlitzs Murrelet, (Brachyramphus brevirostris) is a small auk found in the waters off Alaska and Eastern Siberia. ... World map showing location of North America A satellite composite image of North America North America is a continent in the northern hemisphere, bounded on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the south by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west... Kamchatka is the land of volcanoes. ... Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk (named after Okhotsk, the first Russian settlement in the Far East) is a part of the western Pacific Ocean, lying between the Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands on the southeast, the island of Hokkaido to the far south, the island... Peter Simon Pallas (September 22, 1741 - September 8, 1811) was a German-born Russian zoologist. ... 1811 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Description

The Marbled Murrelet is a small (25 cm), chunky auk with a slender black bill. It has pointed wings and plumage that varies by season, the non-breeding plumage is typically white underneath with a black crown, nape, wings and back (with a white collar in B. m. marmoratus), and an all over mottled brown barring in the breeding plumage. The Long-billed Murrelet is longer billed and slightly larger than the Marbled Murrelet. Closeup on a single white feather A feather is one of the epidermal growths that forms the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on a bird. ...

Behaviour and breeding

The Marbled Murrelet feeds at sea both in pelagic offshore areas (often associating with upwellings) and inshore in protected bays. It feeds on principally on sandeels, also taking herring, capelin and shiner perch. The pelagic zone is the part of the open sea or ocean comprising the water column, i. ... Upwelling is an oceanographic phenomenon that occurs when strong, usually seasonal, winds push water away from the coast, bringing cold, nutrient-rich deep waters up to the surface. ... Sand Eel or Sandeel is the common name used for a considerable number of species of fish. ... Family Clupeidae This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Binomial name Mallotus villosus Müller, 1776 This article is about the fish. ...

The breeding behaviour of the Marbled Murrelet is very unusual, unlike other seabirds it doesn't nest in colonies or even close to the sea, instead nesting in on branches of old-growth conifers such as Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce and Douglas Fir, as far as 60 km inland. It lays one egg on a platform of lichen or moss on these branches (less often on the ground). The egg is incubated for a month, then fed for around 40 days until the chick is able to fledge. The chick then leaves the nest and flies unaccompanied to the sea. Breeding success is low and chick mortality high. Orders & Families Cordaitales † Pinales   Pinaceae - Pine family   Araucariaceae - Araucaria family   Podocarpaceae - Yellow-wood family   Sciadopityaceae - Umbrella-pine family   Cupressaceae - Cypress family   Cephalotaxaceae - Plum-yew family   Taxaceae - Yew family Vojnovskyales † Voltziales † The conifers, division Pinophyta, are one of 13 or 14 division level taxa within the Kingdom Plantae. ... Binomial name Tsuga heterophylla (Raf. ... Binomial name Picea sitchensis (Bong. ... Species See text. ... An average Whooping Crane egg is 102 mm long, and weighs 208 grams A baby tortoise emerges from a reptile egg. ... Crustose and foliose lichens on a wall Lichens are symbiotic organisms made up by the association of microscopic green algae or cyanobacteria and filamentous fungi. ... shit shit ... Fledge is the stage in a young birds life when the feathers and wing muscles are sufficiently developed for flight. ...

Marbled Murrelets and Humans

The Marbled Murrelet is considered globally threatened, having declined across its range over the last few decades. The biggest threat to the murrelet is the loss of the old growth forest to logging. It was listed as endangered in 1992 by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service due to concerns about loss of nesting habitat, entanglement in fishing gear and oil spills. The species became a flagship species in efforts to prevent the logging of old-growth forests along the Pacific coast from California to Alaska. Loggers on break, c. ... An endangered species is a species whose population is so small that it is in danger of becoming extinct. ... 1992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The USFWS logo The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a unit of the United States Department of the Interior that is dedicated to managing and preserving wildlife. ... Habitat (from the Latin for it inhabits) is the place where a particular species lives and grows. ... Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish. ... Volunteers cleaning up the aftermath of the Prestige oil spill An oil spill is the release of oil (generally, petroleum) into the natural environment, usually the ocean. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) Official languages English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski (R) Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ...

External links

• Birdlife International Marbled Murrelet
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Marbled Murrelet
• Research on Marbled Murrelet by Redwood Sciences Laboratory, USFS