The Great Auk: An Extinct Species

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were extremely rare on both sides of the Atlantic, did the world begin to recognize the plight of these great seabirds. (10) Surprisingly, the reaction to the decline in the Great Auk’s population caused additional problems for the bird. Instead of protecting the auk and preventing the species from being wiped-out, museums and nature collectors all over Europe killed them for display specimens. In 1830, an auk skin sold for $16, nearly equal to the average monthly wage of a common worker at that time. The Last Birds (11) The final end to the Great Auk began in the early 19th century. During a war between England and France around 1813, sailors eager to obtain fresh food once again harvested auks from colonies in Iceland. One colony was an unfortunate victim of nature. A volcano on a nesting island erupted and then sank into the sea, wiping out its entire population of birds. A bizarre event in Scotland in 1844 ended the auk there. A lone auk on the Hebrides Islands off Scotland was blamed for causing a severe storm. The local people put the bird on trial. A jury found the auk guilty of witchcraft and stoned it to death. The saddest story though belongs to the last known nesting pair. On June 3rd, 1844, three men set out in search of auks sighted off Iceland. They found a male, female and one egg. Greedy for the money the birds could bring, they shot the two birds and crushed the egg. No auks were ever seen again. They had become extinct. (12) Many other species of animals around the world are endangered because of overhunting. They are doomed to extinction like the great auk if nothing is done to prevent this from happening. © Prepared by Jim Cornish, Gander, Newfoundland, 2003. -4
Visual Literacy: Using a Venn Diagram Student Activities: The Great Auk Study the picture of a penguin and the great auk, which was a penguin too. Create a Venn diagram to compare the two birds. © Prepared by Jim Cornish, Gander, Newfoundland, 2003. -5-
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The Great Auk: An Extinct Species

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