BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Synthliboramphus antiquus
Ancient Murrelet
| Scientific Name: | Synthliboramphus antiquus (Gmelin, 1789) | ||||||||||
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| English Name: | Ancient Murrelet | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Species Group: | Vertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | B-ANMU | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G4 (Apr 2016) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S2S3B,S4N (Mar 2022) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Blue | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | Y (May 2004) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | Special Concern (Nov 2014) | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | 1 - Special Concern (Aug 2006) | ||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | 3 - Sensitive (2005) | ||||||||||
| Migratory Bird Convention Act: | Y | ||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Global Reproduction Comments: | Nesting season varies throughout range; clutches are completed mainly in March-April in China-Korea, June in Aleutians, late April-May in southeastern Alaska and British Columbia (Gaston 1992). Clutch size is 2; second egg is laid about 7-8 days after the first. Incubation is by both parents. Eggs hatch about 35 days after the second egg is laid; in British Columbia, nearly all hatching occurs by mid-June. Eggs can tolerate some chilling late in incubation (Gaston and Powell 1989). Young leave nest at night 2-3 days after hatching, go to sea and are fed by parents until full grown at about 6-8 weeks old. Yearlings and possibly 2-year-olds do not breed. In British Columbia, first breeds usually in 3rd or 4th year (Gaston 1990). Each pair averages 1.5 chicks/year (Queen Charlottes). Forms large colonies. See Gaston (1992) for many further details. | ||||||||||
| Global Ecology Comments: | In British Columbia, annual survival of breeders was about 75% (Gaston 1990, 1992). Apparently often gregarious in small groups (usually less than 20 individuals, rarely more than 1000) when feeding (Gaston 1992). Important prey species for FALCO PEREGRINUS PEALEI in the Queen Charlotte Islands (Gaston 1993). | ||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
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Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
Y / Y / Y / na / |
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| Global Migration Comments: | Arrives in northern California in October, most depart abruptly in March. Males arrive in breeding areas in central British Columbia in March or early April, adults and young depart mainly by mid-June (see Johnsgard 1987). Arrives in breeding areas in the Aleutians and the Commander Islands in late April or May. | ||||||||||
| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
Forest / Conifer Forest - Moist/wet / Facultative - frequent use
Grassland/Shrub / Shrub - Natural / Facultative - occasional use Ocean / Kelp Bed / Facultative - occasional use Ocean / Marine Island / Obligate Ocean / Pelagic / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Sheltered Waters - Marine / Facultative - frequent use Ocean / Subtidal Marine / Facultative - frequent use Rock/Sparsely Vegetated Rock / Rock/Sparsely Vegetated Rock / Facultative - occasional use Subterranean / Sub-soil / Obligate |
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| Global Habitat Comments: |
Nonbreeding: mostly offshore or pelagic, mainly over the continental shelf and slope; also close to shore in some areas. In winter, commonly within sight of land, especially around Vancouver Island. Nests on rocky offshore islands, in crevice, under rock, under base of tree or stump, in burrow, or similar protected site; nests in forest, grassland, or sites almost devoid of vegetation. In British Columbia, nests under mature canopies of Sitka spruce and western hemlock where undergrowth is scarce or absent; burrows into mossy slopes and establishes nesting chambers in tree root cavities or under fallen trees (Vermeer et al. 1984). May nest in association with Leach's and fork-tailed storm-petrel and Cassin's auklet. Evidently usually uses same nest site in successive years. Many breed at sites other than the natal colony (Gaston 1992). |
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| Food Habits: |
Invertivore: Adult, Immature
Piscivore: Adult, Immature |
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| Global Food Habits Comments: | Feeds on euphausiids, sandlance, seaperch, decapod larvae, etc. (Gaston 1992). Dives under water for food. See Gaston et al. (1993, Can. J. Zool. 71:64-70) for information on winter feeding ecology near Vancouver Island. | ||||||||||
| Global Phenology: |
Diurnal: Adult, Immature
Nocturnal: Adult, Immature |
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| Global Phenology Comments: | Active at night during the nesting season. | ||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Colonial Breeder: | Y | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | 25/ / 206 | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Global Range Comment: | Breeding range includes the following regions: Aleutian, Sanak, and Kodiak islands to Haida Gwaii ( Queen Charlotte Islands), and Commander Islands and Kamchatka (Peninskaya Gulf) to Amurland, Sakhalin, Kuriles, Korea, and Dagelet Islands (to Yellow Sea coast of China). This species is sparsely distributed in small colonies on the Asian side of the Pacific and is most abundant in Haida Gwaii ( Queen Charlotte Islands) and adjacent parts of southeastern Alaska; it is also abundant at Sandman Reefs and other islands south of the Alaska Peninsula (Gaston 1992). Outside the breeding season the distribution extends well to the south of the breeding range; in North America, this murrelet occurs offshore from the Pribilof Islands to northern Baja California (AOU 1983). | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | HAMMERSON, G. | ||||||||||
| Last Updated: | Feb 14, 1995 | ||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | |||||||||||
| Last Updated: | |||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp. |
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British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection. 2004. Ancient Murrelet in Accounts and measures for managing identified wildlife. British Columbia Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection, Victoria, BC. 52pp. |
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Campbell, R.W., N.K. Dawe, I. McTaggart-Cowan, et al. 1990b. The Birds of British Columbia Vol. 2: Nonpasserines: Diurnal Birds of Prey through Woodpeckers. Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, BC. |
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COSEWIC. 2004t. COSEWIC assessment and update status report on the Ancient Murrelet Synthliboramphus antiquus in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. vi + 31pp. |
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Drever, M. 2004. Capture Rates of Norway Rats (Rattus norvegicus) in a Seabird Colony: a Caveat for Investigators. Northwest. Nat. 85(3):111-117. |
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Forest Practices Code. 1997. Ancient Murrelet in Species and Plant Community Accounts for Identified Wildlife: Vol. 1. B.C. Minist. For. and B.C. Environ. 184pp. |
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Gaston, A. J. 1990. Population parameters of the ancient murrelet. Condor 92:998-1011. |
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Gaston, A. J. 1992. The ancient murrelet: a natural history in the Queen Charlotte Islands. T & A D Poyser, London (U.S. edition published by Academic Press). xviii + 249 pp. |
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Gaston, A. J. 1993. Status report on the ancient murrelet SYNTHLIBORAMPHUS ANTIQUUS in Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), Ottawa, ON. 43 pp. |
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Gaston, A. J. 1994b. Status of the ancient murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, in Canada and the effects of introduced predators. Can. Field-Nat. 108:211-222. |
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Gaston, A. J., and D. W. Powell. 1989. Natural incubation, egg neglect, and hatchability in the ancient murrelet. Auk 106:433-438. |
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Godfrey, W.E. 1966. The birds of Canada. National Museums of Canada. Ottawa. 428 pp. |
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Harfenist, A., K.R. MacDowell, T. Golumbia, G. Schultze, and Laskeek Bay Conservation Society. 2000. Monitoring and Control of Raccoons on Seabird Colonies in Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands). Pp. 333-339 in L.M. Darling, ed. 2000. Proc. Conf. on the Biology and Manage. Species and Habitats at Risk, Kamloops, B.C., 15-19 Feb., 1999. Vol. 1; B.C. Minist. Environ., Lands and Parks, Victoria, BC, and Univ. College of the Cariboo, Kamloops, BC. 490pp. |
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Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio. |
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Hasegawa, H. 1984. Status and conservation of seabirds in Japan, with special attention to the short-tailed albatross. Pages 487-500 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2. |
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Hyslop, C., and J. Kennedy, editors. 1992. Bird trends: a report on results of national ornithological surveys in Canada. Number 2, Autumn 1992. Migratory Birds Conservation Division, Canadian Wildlife Service, Ottawa, Ontario. 20 pp. |
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Johnsgard, P. A. 1987. Diving birds of North America. Univ. Nebraska Press, Lincoln. xii + 292 pp. |
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Lensink, C. J. 1984. The status and conservation of seabirds in Alaska. Pages 13-27 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Publ. No. 2. |
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Melville, D. S. 1984. Seabirds of China and the surrounding seas. Pages 501-511 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2. |
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Pough, R. H. 1957. Audubon Western Bird Guide. Doubleday. 316 pp. |
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Sealy, S. G., editor. 1990. Auks at sea. Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, Studies in Avian Biology No. 14. vi + 180 pp. |
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Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. |
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Vermeer, K., and S. G. Sealy. 1984. Status of the nesting seabirds of British Columbia. Pages 29-40 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2. |
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Vermeer, K., et al. 1984. Predation and potential environmental perturbances on ancient murrelets nesting in British Columbia. Pages 757-770 in Croxall et al., eds. Status and conservation of the world's seabirds. ICBP Tech. Pub. No. 2. |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. 1995. Species Summary: Synthliboramphus antiquus. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Oct 3, 2026).