CreatureData

Marbled murrelet

Brachyramphus marmoratus (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

ENEndangeredbirds

The marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) is a species in the family Alcidae, order Charadriiformes. Recorded adults weigh 220 g to 225.8 g and live up to 8.6 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Endangered.

Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus)
Photo: Oregon State University · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the marbled murrelet

Weight
220 g – 225.8 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Wingspan
44.3 cmsrc for Wingspan
Lifespan
8.6 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
10 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
marinesrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
30 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
1src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
2 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Aquaticsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the marbled murrelet?

MARBLED MURRELET · WINGSPAN 44.3 CMADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 44.3 cm, the recorded maximum wingspan of the marbled murrelet is about 26% of the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the marbled murrelet live?

Not recorded

What is the marbled murrelet?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) is a small seabird from the North Pacific. It is a member of the family Alcidae, which includes auklets, guillemots, murres and puffins. It nests in old-growth forests or on the ground at higher latitudes where trees cannot grow. Its population has declined since humans began logging its nest trees in the latter half of the 19th century. The decline of the marbled murrelet and its association with old-growth forests—at least in the southern part of its range—have made it a flagship species in the forest protection movement.

From the Wikipedia article “Marbled murrelet” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Marbled_murrelet&oldid=1369441775), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the marbled murrelet endangered?

The marbled murrelet is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List: it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Endangered species.

How is the marbled murrelet classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderCharadriiformes
  5. familyAlcidae
  6. genusBrachyramphus
  7. SpeciesBrachyramphus marmoratus (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

Synonyms Brachyramphus marmoratus marmoratus, Brachyrampus marmoratus, Brachyrampus marmoratus marmoratus, Colymbus marmoratus, Uria townsendi

Other names and names in other languages (44)
  • موريليت رخاميArabic
  • Godog marellekBreton
  • gavotí jaspiat americàCatalan
  • alkoun mramorovanýCzech
  • carfil brithWelsh
  • MarmordværgalkDanish
  • MarmelalkGerman
  • Marmora urioEsperanto
  • marmora urietoEsperanto
  • Alca MarmoleadaSpanish
  • Mérgulo jaspeado americanoSpanish
  • mets-kirjuördEstonian
  • ماهیگیرک تاجدار مرمریPersian
  • marmorimurriFinnish
  • Guillemot marbréFrench
  • מורלט משוישHebrew
  • pjegava njorkaCroatian
  • márványos törpelummaHungarian
  • Urietta marmorizzataItalian
  • マダラウミスズメJapanese
  • アメリカマダラウミスズメJapanese
  • 알락쇠오리Korean
  • Ilgasnapė alkutėLithuanian
  • marmurinė alkutėLithuanian
  • raibā kairīteLatvian
  • Tónteel tsídiichilí łikizhígííNavajo
  • MarmeralkDutch
  • marmordvergteistNorwegian
  • morzyk marmurkowyPolish
  • مرمر اوکWestern Panjabi
  • torda-marmoreadaPortuguese
  • mérgulo-marmoreadoPortuguese
  • mérgulo-marmorizadoPortuguese
  • Torda-miúda-marmoradaPortuguese
  • Пёстрый пыжикRussian
  • Длинноклювый пыжикRussian
  • alka mramorovanáSlovak
  • Mramorasta njorčicaSerbian
  • marmoralkaSwedish
  • Yazılı AlkTurkish
  • Mermerli dalıcımartıTurkish
  • пижик довгодзьобийUkrainian
  • 斑海雀Chinese
  • 云石斑海雀Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the marbled murrelet

Other species in the same genus Brachyramphus.

CompareMarbled murrelet vs Kittlitz's murreletMarbled murrelet vs Long-billed murrelet

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the marbled murrelet?

An adult marbled murrelet weighs 220 g – 225.8 g and has a wingspan of 44.3 cm, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the marbled murrelet endangered?

The marbled murrelet is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild.

How long does the marbled murrelet live?

The marbled murrelet has a recorded lifespan of 8.6 years.

What kind of animal is the marbled murrelet?

The marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) belongs to the family Alcidae in the order Charadriiformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/marbled-murrelet

MLA

“Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/marbled-murrelet.

BibTeX
@misc{marbled_murrelet_2026,
  title = {Marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/marbled-murrelet},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}