Birds · Procellariiformes · Procellariidae

Northern Fulmar

Fulmarus glacialis

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The northern fulmar is a species of procellariiform bird of the family Procellariidae native to the Arctic Ocean and to the north of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It is a robust seabird with a rounded head and a stout bill, and is found in several colour phases from grey and white to dark bluish grey. Its flight is vigorous, alternating rapid beats with glides. It eats fish at the surface of the sea, or zooplankton at depths of several metres, and offal from fishing boats.

Weight

450 g – 1 kg

Size

45 cm – 50 cm

Lifespan

40 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Colony

Lives in large concentrations, often for breeding reasons.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

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Fun facts

The chicks defend themselves by vomiting a foul stomach oil more than a metre with remarkable aim: on another bird it mats the plumage and can cause death through loss of waterproofing.
Its stomach is used as an official indicator of plastic pollution in the North Sea: the stomach contents of stranded fulmars are analysed, and more than 90% contain fragments of plastic.
It can live more than forty years and does not breed until it is almost a decade old, an extraordinary lifespan for a bird weighing less than a kilo.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: The open North Atlantic and Arctic; breeds on sea-cliff ledges
Sexual maturity: 6 years
Gestation / incubation: 55 days
Litter / clutch size: 1

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulmarus_glacialis