Great Auk

About this cute Great Auk

The Great Auk is an extinct bird, the only species in the genus Pinguinus, flightless giant auks from the Atlantic, to survive until recent times. Standing at 30 to 34 inches high and weighing around 11 pounds, the flightless Great Auk was the largest of the auks.

In the past, the Great Auk was found in great numbers on islands off eastern Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Ireland and Great Britain, but it was eventually hunted to extinction. The last pair, found incubating an egg, were killed on 3 July 1844, on the island of Eldey off Iceland.