Eldey, which means Fire Island, is a small Island off the coast off Reykjanes. It rises steep out of the ocean and is home to a large numbers of birds. Eldey was the last place where the Great Auk was seen.
Close by is the Reykjanes Lighthouse. One of the oldest Lighthouses in Iceland.
The Great Auk was a large flightless bird which became extinct in 1844. It looked like a penguin and was 75-90 cm tall. It lived in the North Atlantic on the shores of Spain, France, UK, Norway, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Canada and US.
The Great Auk lived in colonies by the ocean. It could swim and dive to catch fish. It could hold its breath for 15 minutes while diving. But it couldn’t fly. That made it an easy catch for humans.
The Great Auk mated for life. Males and Females stayed faithfully together until death. They only laid one egg at a time, which both the Male and the Female cared for. Human egg collectors did big damage to the population.
Humans killed the Great Auk for food and for its down, which was used to make pillows and blankets.
Now on the shore of Reykjanes is a statue of the Great Auk. Looking at Eldey, where the last beautiful bird of his species was killed on July 3rd 1844.
