PUFFIN-THE BEAUTIFUL SEABIRD

Puffins belong to the Alcidae (Auk) family of seabirds. There are 4 species of puffins. They are:

a) Atlantic Puffin: The Atlantic Puffin (formerly Common Puffin) lives in the North Atlantic. It is the smallest of the puffins and is readily separated from the similar Horned Puffin by the steel-blue triangle at the base of its beak.

b) Horned Puffin: The Horned Puffin looks similar to the Atlantic Puffin however it is easily distinguished by its mostly yellow bill with orange tip (missing blue/gray section towards base of bill). The Horned Puffin receives its name from the horny projections that extend above its eyes.

c) Tufted Puffin: The Tufted Puffin is the largest puffin and is characterized by long, straw-colored feathers extending back from its crown during the mating season.

d) Rhinoceros Auklet: Although this Puffin differs noticeably in outward appearance from the other three species of puffin (which accounts for its misnaming), this sooty-brown bird is anatomically still a puffin. During the breeding season a pale knob projects upward from the base of the upper mandible giving a Rhinoceros-like appearance to its otherwise more narrow and shallower bill. This puffin usually comes to land at night.

Males are usually slightly larger than females, which is most noticeable only when a pair is standing together. Most puffins do not breed until they are 5 years old. Puffins lay 1 egg per year. They usually keep the same mate every season and use the same burrow as in previous years. The male and female share the duties of incubating the egg and rearing the chick.Puffins often live 20 years or more.

PUFFIN BURROWS

Puffins dig their burrows using their bills and feet. They prefer to make their burrows in earth or between rocks on steep sea cliffs so predators cannot easily reach them. They use their bills to cut into soil and then shovel away loose material with their feet. They dig dog-like, shoveling dirt out behind themselves. Most burrows are 2 to 3 feet long (70 to 110 cm), which is as long as the arm length of an adult human. At the back of the burrow the parents build a soft nest of feathers and grass where they incubate the egg. The burrows often have a toilet area at the first bend. The young chick uses this area as a bathroom so it doesn’t soil its feathers. As it matures, the toilet is moved closer to the burrow entrance, helping to keep the chick clean. If the chick became too soiled, it may damage it’s waterproofing, a fatal circumstance once the chick takes to sea.