Crested Auklet

The crested auklet (Aethia cristatella) is a small seabird of the Alcidae family which is distributed across the North Pacific and the Bering Sea. The habitat is nourished by diving in deep water, feeding krill and a number of small marine mammals. This lives in Bering Sea and Okhotsk Bay, with up to 1 million people in large colonies. A smaller congener for mixed-species colonies which also breed the least auklet. The species is known for its male and female genital ornaments. These involve bright plumage with a crown on the head, a sweet, citrus-like smell, and a sharp call to the trumpet, both of which seem to have evolved by sexual selection. The current population of North America is about 6 million, nearly half. While Alaska's population poses potential risks from predation and oil leaks, this is generally considered to be least of concern. For its crests made from curving black forward feathers, crested auklets are noted on the forehead.

These frontal crests are extremely nuanced, and can have two to twenty-three straight curving feathers. The regular auklet has 12 crest feathers ranging in thickness, from 8 to 58 millimetres. Auklets have auricular feathers and a light orange bill with sharp caps of accent. These features differ widely among populations of auklets, such as the crests on the foreheads. During the breeding season the crested auklet is primarily noted for two characteristics. The first is the hat, a series of bristle feathers over their ears. The second is a social odour produced by the auklets during the breeding season, and described as smelling as mangroves. The odour comes from tiny wick feathers under the shoulder blades, concealed in a thin layer of fat. The bills become smaller during winter plumage, and bright grey. They lack attachment plates to raise their crown like auricular feathers. Juveniles are similar to adults in winter, but in the auricular crest and without feathers. Some bills are thinner, with a dull dark brownish hue.

It takes 33 days for the youth to hit adult stadium. Crested auklets are to be found in the vast Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea north. Crested auklets forage mainly in deep waters but also occasionally in large flocks in areas similar to the shore. Winter diets are unclear but it is proposed they feed on a number of species of marine invertebrates. Planktivores are covered with auklets. Their diet primarily consists of krill although consuming copepods, pteropods, amphipods, and larval fish is also reported. Crested auklets dive from the water surface to collect their milk. This operation was described as the "rush" underwater The breeding season for crested auklets starts in mid-May and finishes in mid-August. Its nesting sites exist within the North Pacific coastal rocky crevices.

Asserted superiority in both males and females has been associated with crest length for the reported display area. The presence of such showy monomorphic traits is suggestive of strong sexual orientation for both sexes. Large-crested individuals of both sexes have higher rates of sexual appetite than those with smaller crests and looking the same-sex. Larger crested auklets are more likely to gain partners and earlier develop pair bonding. Although the shows differ across populations, crested auklet crests and plume ornaments are constant over time as regards speech within an individual. However there is no sexual dimorphism or suggestion of illness dependency. It seems to be a survival-neutral ornament, from the analysis. Therefore, certain findings provide a practical justification for such decorations.

One research indicates a link between habitat and facial feathering problems, where tactile facial elongation helps people negotiate deep underground crevices. We would have expected the high density of crested auklet nesting sites to put selective pressure on the sensory systems. Crested auklets come with a wide variety of basic and dynamic calls. Billing is characterised as "Pair Courtship with mutual vocal cackling display." This is a critical part of successful pair development and is harmonious before male and female partners get to know each other well.