Least Auklet
Aethia pusilla

f6.7 @ 1/6400s, ISO:1250, Nikon D3S w 500mm and 1.7X teleconverter


\"Least Auklet,\" Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Least auklets feed predominantly on calanoid copepods, particularly those of the genus Neocalanus. They also eat euphausiids, pteropods and other zooplankton species. They hunt for these in stratified waters caused where upwelling and thermoclines cause these prey items to be tightly clumped together. Like all auks they are pursuit divers, using their wings to provide thrust and \"fly\" under the water. They are voracious predators, consuming 86% of their body weight each day.
St. Paul, Pribilof Islands, Alaska
 
06/25/2016