Eldey

Eldey
	Eldey in July 2010
	Eldey is located off the southwest tip of Reykjanes Peninsula.
Geography
Location	Atlantic Ocean
Coordinates	63°44′27.2″N 22°57′27.2″W / 63.740889°N 22.957556°WCoordinates: 63°44′27.2″N 22°57′27.2″W / 63.740889°N 22.957556°W
Area	3 ha (7.4 acres)
Highest elevation	77 m (253 ft)
Administration
	Iceland

Aerial photograph

Statue of a great auk nearby on Reykjanestá

Eldey (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈɛltˌeiː]) is a small island about 20 kilometres (10 nautical miles) off the coast of the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwest Iceland. Located west-southwest of Reykjavík, the island of Eldey covers an area of about 3 hectares (7 acres), and rises to a height of 77 metres (253 ft). Its sheer cliffs are home to large numbers of birds, including one of the largest northern gannet colonies in the world, with around 16,000 pairs.^[1] This colony can now be watched live via two webcams that are located on top of the island.^[2]

The last of the great auk[]

The island formerly supported the last remnant population of the flightless great auk, after the birds moved there from Geirfuglasker following a volcanic eruption in 1830. When the colony was discovered in 1835, almost fifty birds were counted. Museums, desiring the skins of the auk for preservation and display, quickly began collecting birds from the colony.^[3] The last pair, found incubating an egg, were killed there in June 1844, when Icelandic sailors Jón Brandsson and Sigurður Ísleifsson strangled the adults and Ketill Ketilsson accidentally cracked the last egg of the species with his boot during the struggle.^[4]

In literature[]

Eldey, and the fate of the great auk, are mentioned in The Water-Babies, A Fairy Tale for a Land Baby by Charles Kingsley.
Eldey is described in detail in The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert.
The Great Auk, a novel by Allan W. Eckert, c. 1963, Library of Congress Cat.#63-18215

References[]

^ Bryan Nelson (2010). "Numbers and distribution". The Gannet. Poyser Monographs. A & C Black. pp. 42–90. ISBN 978-1-4081-3858-8.
^ "Eldey �� Timelapse Recording from July 27th 2016". Eldey.is. 2016-07-27. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
^ Emily Crofford (1989). Gone Forever: The Great Auk. New York: Crestwood House. p. 43. ISBN 978-0-89686-459-7.
^ Ellis, Richard (2004). No Turning Back: The Life and Death of Animal Species. New York: Harper Perennial. p. 160. ISBN 0-06-055804-0.

External links[]

Media related to Eldey at Wikimedia Commons
Eldey in the
Live webcam

[1] Bryan Nelson (2010). "Numbers and distribution". The Gannet. Poyser Monographs. A & C Black. pp. 42–90. ISBN 978-1-4081-3858-8.

[cam-2] "Eldey �� Timelapse Recording from July 27th 2016". Eldey.is. 2016-07-27. Retrieved 2017-04-03.

[Crofford43-3] Emily Crofford (1989). Gone Forever: The Great Auk. New York: Crestwood House. p. 43. ISBN 978-0-89686-459-7.

[EllisNTB-4] Ellis, Richard (2004). No Turning Back: The Life and Death of Animal Species. New York: Harper Perennial. p. 160. ISBN 0-06-055804-0.

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