Crested Auklet

Aethia cristatella

Smells distinctly of tangerine, a scent used in courtship. The only bird known to wear citrus cologne.

Population: roughly 8.2 million individuals globally, stable
Habitat: Rocky sea cliffs, boulder fields, talus slopes, and lava flows with crevices on remote islands, foraging over nearshore and offshore waters of the North Pacific and Bering Sea
Fun fact: Crested auklets produce a distinctive tangerine-like citrus scent from feathers between their shoulder blades, a rare case of both sexes using scent alongside plumage and calls in mutual courtship (the "ruff-sniff" display).
Range: North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea; breeds on islands of the Aleutians, Bering Sea (e.g., St. Lawrence, St. Paul), Chukotka, Kamchatka, and the Kuril and Commander Islands; winters south to the Sea of Okhotsk, Gulf of Alaska, and northern Japan
Diet: Planktivorous — mainly euphausiids (krill), copepods, mysids, amphipods, and pteropods, with occasional small fish and squid
Size: 0.23 m
Wingspan: 0.42 m
Lifespan: 8 years

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