PENGUINS AND POLAR BEARS
This used to drive my Uncle Gordon crazy. The old cartoons would show penguins and Polar Bears on the same screen. It made good entertainment for an eight-year-old but my 'Unkie' would be all upset. "Penguins never see Polar Bears," he would shout. "Penguins live in the Antarctic and Polar Bears live in the Arctic and never the twain shall meet."

Of course that whole charade is now being replayed every evening on TV when you see a Coca Cola commercial showing the cuddly little penguin chick offering the bear cub a soda. So another whole generation of viewers is being misled - or is it?

This week's bird appears to be a northern penguin. It is black and white, walks upright, and swims beautifully underwater, using its wings for propulsion. But there is one major difference. These wings will also propel the bird through the air, a little trick that real penguins forgot millions of years ago.

If it looks like a penguin, walks like a penguin, quacks like a … oh wait a moment, make that, 'growls' like a penguin, it's not necessarily a penguin! Originally these birds were called 'guillemots,' from the French for

Common Murrre flying

Little William.' Now we call them 'murres' from the Celtic name for the same bird. There are two species of murres, Common and Thick-billed and we're talking about the Common Murre, Uria aalge.

The genus name, Uria, was given by a man named Erik Pontoppidan, an eighteenth century Danish naturalist and theologian. Erik was an amazing person, Bishop of Bergen, Norway, a contemporary of the father of modern ecology, Linnaeus, and has been called "Norway's Pliny." Uria is one of those complicated Greek words with multiple meanings - a fair wind, a guardian, a boundary, a trench for hauling ships, a buffalo, or even a dark water bird with a long bill, depending on context. I'm leaning toward the last one.

"Birding Nantucket" by Andrews and Blackshaw lists Common Murres as uncommon from December until early April. They are hard to find close to land and when we see them it is usually off our ocean beaches. Their close relative, the Razorbill, is more common. Both birds are about a foot and a half long, black above and white below. But the Razorbill is well named with a heavy, thick, black bill looking like an old straight razor. The Common Murre's bill is also black but slim and pointed. The much more rare Thick-billed Murre's bill falls between these two.

Common Murre swimming

Murres nest on rocky islands from the coast of Maine north to southern Greenland, also in Iceland and Scandinavia. When Europeans first arrived in the New World these birds and their eggs were persecuted terribly. In 1840 Audubon wrote about a visit to Great Macatina Island off the coast of Labrador. The island was packed with birds. From one side the birds' bellies made the island look as white as snow. If you approached from the other direction their black backs gave the island a 'black pall.' The ship's crew went ashore to bring back some eggs and returned with the dory loaded to the brim with over 2500 eggs even though they had been admonished to just bring back a few dozen. Excesses like this reduced the population to a small remnant by the early 1900s and they are still

recovering to this day.

The aforementioned eggs are well adapted to their living conditions. Murres build no nest but lay their eggs right on the steep rocky ledges of these 'bird' islands. The eggs are tapered on one end with the weight distributed so when they roll, they roll in a circle, making them less likely to fall into the sea hundreds of feet below.

When the chicks are just five or six weeks old the parents cajole them into leaping downward into the water for the final few weeks of their upbringing. Seeing the chicks agonize about making that first leap provides great drama. They may somersault a few times in mid-air but most survive that initial 'flight.' Now it's time to learn to swim and dive for the small fish that make up most all of their diet.

Often when Nantucketers encounter a Common Murre it is with tragic circumstances. If they are blown inland it is a death sentence for them because they can't take off from land. Perhaps that is why there are a surprising number of these northern, penguin-like birds in the Edith Andrews Bird Collection at the Maria Mitchell Association.

To see a live one, scan the ocean waters along our beaches for a striking black and white bird, and watch for it to dive, using its wings to assist with the initial plunge. When it pops back up, check for the slim, black bill to see if you have spotted a Common Murre instead of a Razorbill. Occasionally they make their way right into the harbor. A few years ago the birders were treated to one that hung around for days near the Boat Basin.

Birds can add great adventure to winter life on Nantucket. But don't expect to find a Polar Bear with

them. I

George C. West creates illustrations for these articles. If you enjoy 'social' birding, join the Nantucket Bird Club at 8 a.m. Sundays in front of Nantucket High School for a two to three hour birding trip. Call 228- 1693 for more information. To hear about rare birds, or to leave a bird report call the Massachusetts Audubon hot line at 1-781-259-8805. Ask Ken a question at: kenandcindy1@comcast.net