Black-throated Guillemot, Nobbed-billed Auk, Curled-Crested Auk and Horned-billed Guillemot

Robert Havell after John James Audubon

National Gallery of Art

This painting depicts several birds perched on ice with a mountainous backdrop. Different species of auk and guillemot birds are positioned on the icy shoreline, with a vast expanse of water and towering, snow-capped mountains in the background. The icy environment includes large chunks of ice on which the birds are resting or swimming nearby. Each bird has unique identifying features such as different body plumage patterns and beak shapes. The sky is a pale blue.