Razorbill, Alca torda, is a species of colonial seabird found in unvegetated or sparsely vegetated land, shelf and open ocean ecosystems. Iceland holds over two-thirds of the European total, followed in importance by the U.K. and Norway, these three countries together supporting over 90% of the European population. The species lives on rocky sea coasts, breeding on cliff ledges and under boulders. Northern populations migrate outside the breeding season, while southern ones are both migratory as far as the Mediterranean (mainly immatures) and dispersive (adults)(European Red List 2015).

Alca torda has a breeding population size of 279000-295000 individuals and a breeding range size of 68400 square kilometres in the EU27. The breeding population trend in the EU27 is Increasing in the short term and Increasing in the long term.

The EU population status of Alca torda was assessed as Secure, because the species does not meet any of the IUCN Red List criteria for threatened or Near Threatened, or the criteria for Depleted or Declining (the EU27 population or range has not declined by 20% or more since 1980).