Magnificent Puffins of North Sea Feared in Critical Decline
One of nature’s most magnificent and flamboyant birds has suffered an abrupt and unexplained decline in numbers in the North Sea. The drastic drop of puffins has been largely felt at the Isle of May which is home to the UK’s largest puffin colony where thousands have vanished in the past 5 years.
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The population on the Isle of May had been steadily rising for the past 50 years and scientists had expected that the island would host 100,000 pairs in 2008. But numbers are down to about 41,000 breeding pairs this year from nearly 70,000 pairs in 2003.
The Farne Islands host one of England’s largest colonies where breeding pairs have fallen by a third in the past 5 years. The drop from 55,674 pairs to 36,500 on the islands off the Northumberland coast has left scientists baffled.
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Puffins spend the winters at sea, floating, swimming and diving for food, coming to land only during the nesting season. But massive numbers of the puffins are not returning to the islands to breed after wintering in the North Sea.
They’re more flexible feeders than other seabirds, catching fish, squid, worms and other much smaller marine organisms in winter.
The birds are also arriving underweight, which the RSPB calls “worrying” since puffins are typically able to feed on a wide range of creatures in winter.
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“We found some birds were coming back later than expected and others were coming in underweight.” said Mike Harris, from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, who has been monitoring and studying the Isle of May population since the 1970’s, labeling individual birds with rings to follow their progress.
“This is probably the best adapted seabird that the UK has. They’re deep divers; they’re specialists in going down deep into the water column to find fish, so it’s troubling to find that they’re encountering a shortage of food.”
“Whatever the problem is, it’s got to be a widespread one.” he added.
Researchers suspect the decline is linked to changes in the North Sea food web, and believe that climate change is altering the distribution of plankton across the North Sea.
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The Isle of May is merely 1.1 miles (1.8 kilometers) long and less than half a kilometer wide, located in the north of the outer Firth of Forth about 5 miles (8 kilometers) off the coast of mainland Scotland.
During the height of the breeding season, more than 200,000 seabirds of 12 species nest on the island including Puffins, Black-legged Kittiwakes, Razorbills, Guillemots, Shags, Terns and Eider Duck.
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Since it’s an important breeding site for seabirds and seals, the island is protected as part of the Forth Islands Special Protection Area, owned and managed by Scottish Natural Heritage as a National Nature Reserve.
The old Low Light lighthouse buildings — the visitor centre of the isle — was founded as a bird observatory in 1934, the first of its kind in Scotland.
Most visitors to the island are day-trippers, although up to 6 visitors can stay at the observatory as long as a week at a time. The only way to get there is by taking the ferry from Anstruther in Fife, a 45-minute journey from the small ports of Anstruther and Crail. The island is closed to visitors from 1 October until 1 May to prevent disturbance to the large number of seal pups.
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The island’s rock is fine grained basalt of a dark-gray color with tinges of green and greenstone.
There is a peninsula in the north, known as Rona, which is almost a separate island.
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Archaeology has shown that this was a pilgrimage and burial site from pagan into Christian times. Thenaw, mother of St Kentigern is said to have floated here in an oar-less coracle and some have suggested she may have been one of a group of Nine Maidens, or priestesses on Traprain Law in East Lothian.
The island was the site of one of the earliest Christian churches in Scotland, founded in the 9th century and built into an unusual mass-burial mound, likely from prehistoric times. Although radiocarbon dating of bones reveal them to date from the 7th century to the 10th century, remains of Bronze Age funeral urns suggest that the mound may be older.
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The current chapel on the site is dedicated to Saint Adrian of May, who was killed on the island by Danish invaders in 875.
The original church was expanded during the 12th century by David I of Scotland, under the aegis of the Reading Abbey which had been founded by Henry I of England. The monks agreed to maintain 9 priests on the island to pray for the souls of the Kings of Scots.
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The island, with the supposed relics of Saint Ethernan who died there in around 669, was a popular destination for pilgrims during the later Middle Ages.
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Since 1956 the isle has been dedicated as a National Nature Reserve and managed by the Nature Conservancy Council, now Scottish Natural Heritage, although until 1989 it was actually owned by the Northern Lighthouse Board.
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There are a number of islands around the world called “Puffin Island” named as such due to the fact they have or used to have a colony of puffins. The Puffin Islands include Baccalieu Tickle and Greenspond in Newfoundland and Labrador, Kerry / Ireland, Anglesey / Wales, Reykjavik / Iceland, Alaska, Washington, and Lundy in the Bristol Channel can also be included, as its name means “Puffin Island” in Norse.
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About Puffins
Puffin describes any of 4 auk species (or alcids) in the bird genus Fratercula — meaning little brother in Latin, likely a reference to their black and white plumage which resembles monastic robes.
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All 4 puffin species have large bills — the colorful outer parts shed after the breeding season, leaving a smaller and duller beak. Their short wings are adapted for swimming with a flying technique under water. Often flying low over the ocean’s surface, they beat their wings rapidly in swift flight — up to 400 times per minute.
They’re pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving and breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among rocks or in burrows in the soil.
Puffins form long-term pair bonds. The female lays a single egg, and both parents incubate the egg and feed the chick. The incubating parent holds the egg against its brood patch with its wings. The chicks fledge at night and spend the first few years of their lives at sea, returning to breed about 5 years later, but they’ve been known to breed as early as 3 years of age in captivity.
These vivid birds eat both fish and zooplankton, but feed their chicks primarily with small marine fish several times a day. Puffins have a distinct ability to hold several — sometimes over a dozen — small fish at a time crosswise in their bill, rather than regurgitating swallowed fish, which allows them to take longer foraging trips since they can come back with more food energy for their chick.
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Species of Puffins
There are 4 species of puffins recognized today:
• Atlantic Puffin — Fratercula Arctica
• Horned Puffin — Fratercula corniculata
• Tufted Puffin — Fratercula cirrhata
• Rhinoceros Auklet — Cerorhinca monocerata
The genus Fratercula likely evolved in the northern Pacific, but at least 2 undescribed prehistoric species are known to have lived in the western Atlantic comparatively soon after the genus’ emergence — Fratercula sp. 1 & 2 (Yorktown Early Pliocene of Lee Creek Mine, USA).
Now extinct, Dow’s Puffin (Fratercula dowi) were found on the Channel Islands of California until the Late Pleistocene or Early Holocene.
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Atlantic Puffin
The Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) — also known as the Common Puffin — is a seabird species in the auk family, and the only puffin species found in the Atlantic Ocean. The curious appearance of the bird with its colorful huge bill and striking piebald plumage has given rise to nicknames such as “clown of the ocean” and “sea parrot.”
Atlantic Puffin. Photo Tomi
Atlantic Puffins are typically 11 to 14 inches (28 to 34 centimeters) in length, with a 20 to 24 inch (50 to 60 centimeter) wingspan. The male is generally slightly larger than the female, but they’re colored alike — mainly black above and white below, with gray to white cheeks and red-orange legs. During flight, they appear to have gray round under-wings and a white body.
Its most obvious characteristic is its large, triangular bill which is brightly orange colored with a patch of blue bordered by yellow at the rear during the breeding seasons which is shed after breeding. The bills are used in courtship rituals, such as the pair tapping their bills together.
Atlantic Puffins on the Faroe Islands. Photo Henning Allmers
Atlantic Puffin adults in breeding plumage, Lunga, Treshnish Isles, Scotland.
Photo Steve Deger
Atlantic Puffin takes flight on Machias Seal Island. Photo Thomas O’Neil
They’re pelagic birds — living in the waters of the ocean or open sea — that feed primarily by diving for fish, but also eat other sea creatures, such as squid and crustaceans.
Atlantic Puffins are usually silent at sea, except for soft purring sounds they sometimes make in direct flight low over the water. At the breeding colonies they make a deep growl.
The male builds the nest and exhibits strong nest-site fidelity. The burrow is usually lined with material such as grass, leaves and feathers but is sometimes unlined. The eggs are creamy white but can be tinged lilac occasionally.
Atlantic Puffin on Machias Seal Island. Photo Thomas O’Neil
Atlantic Puffin on Machias Seal Island. Photo Thomas O’Neil
Atlantic Puffin. Photo Aconcagua
Population of these birds was greatly reduced in the 19th century when they were hunted for meat and eggs. On the Faroe Islands the birds may be hunted for local consumption after breeding is finished when an excess number of birds are available.
More recent population declines may have been due to increased predation by gulls and skuas, the introduction of rats, cats, dogs and foxes onto some islands used for nesting, contamination by toxic residues, drowning in fishing nets, declining food supplies, and climate change.
The number has decreased dramatically on the island of Lundy in recent years as a consequence of depredations by black rats ( which were recently eliminated) and possibly also as a result of commercial fishing for sand eels, the puffins’ principal prey. The 2005 breeding population was estimated to be only 2 or 3 pairs.
Atlantic Puffin on Machias Seal Island. Photo Thomas O’Neil
Atlantic Puffins on Lunga, Treshnish Isles.
Reintroduction projects have taken place on a number of islands, including one on the coast of Maine titled Project Puffin which have given local boosts to some Puffin populations.
Since the Atlantic Puffin spends its winters on the open ocean, it’s susceptible to human impacts such as oil spills. If an accidental oil spill occurs and pelagic birds are exposed, toxins are inhaled or ingested which leads to kidney and liver damage which can contribute to a loss of reproductive success and damage to developing embryos.
These and other pelagic birds are excellent bioindicators of the environment since they’re near the top of the food chain in the ocean. In the field, scientists obtain contaminant measurements from eggs, feathers, or internal organs.
Atlantic Puffin in flight. Photo Thomas Gansow
Puffins on the island of Lunga, Trennish Isles. Photo Patrick Mackie
They get the majority of their food from diving, so it’s important that there is an ample supply of resources and food. Different environmental conditions such as tidal cycle, upwellings and downwellings contribute to this abundance. In a study published in 2005 it was observed that Atlantic Puffins were associated with areas of well-mixed water below the surface, which implies consequences for the species if impacts of global warming lead to an alteration of tidal cycles.
If these cycles are modified too much, it’s probable that the Atlantic Puffin will have a difficult time locating food resources. A consequence of an increase in temperature could be a reduction in these creatures, as they’re only able to live in cool conditions.
Tufted Puffin
Tufted Puffins (Fratercula cirrhata) are relatively abundant pelagic seabirds in the auk (Alcidae) family found throughout the North Pacific Ocean, easily recognizable by their thick red bills and yellow tufts.
Tufted Puffin In breeding plumage. Photo NOAA Photo Library
They’re about 15 inches (35 centimeters) in length with a similar wingspan and weigh about 1.6 pounds. Birds from the western Pacific population are somewhat larger than those from the eastern Pacific, and male birds tend to be slightly larger than females.
Tufted Puffins are mostly black with a white facial patch, and feature a very thick bill which is mostly red with some yellow and occasionally green markings. Their most distinctive feature are the yellow tufts that appear annually on birds of both sexes as the summer reproductive season approaches. Their feet become bright red and their face also becomes bright white in the summer. During the feeding season, the tufts molt off and the plumage, beak, and legs lose much of their luster.
Juvenile puffins resemble winter adults, but with a grey-brown breast, white belly, and a shallow, brown bill.
Tufted Puffin, Zapadni Cliffs, St. Paul Island, Alaska. Photo Alan D. Wilson
The wings are relatively short, adapted for diving, underwater swimming and capturing prey rather than gliding, of which they are incapable. Consequently, they have thick, dark myoglobin-rich breast muscles adapted for a fast and aerobically strenuous wing-beat rhythm which they can maintain for long periods of time.
Tufted Puffins form dense breeding colonies during the summer reproductive season from British Columbia, throughout southeastern Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, Kamchatka, the Kuril Islands and throughout the Sea of Okhotsk. They once nested as far south as southern California, but now only a few scattered colonies remain off northern California. Over 25,000 pairs have been recorded in a single colony off the coast of British Columbia.
They usually select islands or cliffs that are rather inaccessible to predators, close to productive waters, and high enough that they can take to the air successfully. Ideal habitat is steep but with a relatively soft soil substrate and grass for the creation of burrows.
Tufted Puffin outside of it’s burrow on Kuril Islands. Photo Eliezg
During the winter feeding season, they spend their time almost exclusively at sea, extending their range throughout the North Pacific and south to Japan and California.
Breeding takes place on isolated islands. The nest is usually a simple burrow dug with the bill and feet, but sometimes a crevice between rocks is used instead. It’s well-lined with vegetation and feathers which can be up to 9 feet (2.75 meters) in length. Courtship occurs through skypointing, strutting, and billing. A single egg is laid, usually in June, and incubated by both parents for about 45 days. Fledglings leave the nest between 40 and 55 days.
Tufted Puffins feed almost exclusively on fish which they catch by diving from the surface, with feeding areas located far offshore from the nesting areas. Adults may also feed on squid or other invertebrates.
Tufted Puffin at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska.
They are preyed upon by various avian raptors such as Snowy Owls, Bald Eagles and Peregrine Falcons, and mammals like the Arctic Foxes. Foxes seem to prefer the puffin over other birds, making them a main target. Choosing inaccessible cliffs and entirely mammal-free islands protects them from terrestrial predators while laying eggs in burrows is effective in protecting them from egg-scavengers like gulls and ravens.
The Aleut and Ainu people of the North Pacific traditionally hunted Tufted Puffin for food and feathers. Skins were used to make tough parkas worn feather side in and the silky tufts were sewn into ornamental work. Currently, harvesting of Tufted Puffin is illegal or discouraged throughout its range.
Horned Puffin
The Horned Puffin (Fratercula corniculata) is an auk, similar in appearance to the Atlantic Puffin but with slightly different head ornaments of small fleshy black “horns” above their eyes. They have a white face with a dark line extending from the back of the eye and red feet. The bill is yellow at the base and red at the tip — the yellow plate grows before the breeding season and is shed later.
Horned Puffin. Photo USFWS Alaska Image Library
They’re pelagic seabirds that winter far out to sea, and feed primarily by diving for fish but will also eat squid and crustaceans. They nest in colonies, often with other auks.
This species breeds on rocky islands off the coasts of Siberia, Alaska and British Columbia, in burrows, rocky cavities, or among rocks.
Both sexes of the Horned Puffin help to construct their nest, with burrows usually about 3 feet (1 meter) deep, ending in a chamber. Feeding areas are usually located fairly far offshore from the nest. There is usually one chick and both parents feed the young, returning from hunting with several small fish in their beaks.
The population of these birds has declined due to the introduction of rats onto some islands.
Rhinoceros Auklet
The Rhinoceros Auklet, Cerorhinca monocerata — also known as the Rhino Auklet, Horn-billed Puffin, or Unicorn Puffin — is a seabird considered a close relative of the puffins. It’s the only living species of the genus Cerorhinca.
Rhinoceros Auklet Puffin. Photo Rlw5663
They are medium sized auks with a large, strong, orange-brown bills with the ‘horn’ protruding from it. This horn is only present in breeding adults, and like the elaborate sheath on the bill of puffins is shed every year. The plumage is dark on top, paler below, and the breeding adults, both male and females possess white plumes above the eyes and behind the bill. Males are slightly larger than females.
Rhinoceros Auklet Puffin. Photo Rlw5663
Ranging widely across North Pacific, they breed from California (the Channel Islands) to the Aleutian Islands in Alaska in North America, Hokkaido and Honshu, Japan, as well as North Korea and Sakhalin Island in Asia.
They winter both offshore and inshore waters, exhibiting some migration.
The Rhinoceros Auklet nests in seabird colonies with burrows dug into the soil between 3 to 16 feet (1 to 5 meters) deep or in natural caves and cavities. This species prefers nesting sites on slight inclines to aid take-off since they’re poor fliers. A single egg is incubated by both parents for 45 days, and the semi-precocial chick is fed nightly with a bill full of fish for 50 days. The nocturnal behavior is believed to be a response to predation and kleptoparasitism by gulls.
Rhinoceros Auklet Puffin. Photo The Bird Book / Chester A. Reed 1915
At sea Rhinoceros Auklets feed on fish, as well as some krill and squid. They feed inshore during the breeding season in the mid-water. To catch their prey, they dive to as deep as 187 feet (57 meters) for as long as 148 seconds
Although today only 1 species of Cerorhinca remains, it used to be much more diverse, both in number of species and in distribution. Fossils have been found as far south as Baja California.
Sources: BBC, Mirror, and Wikipedia
found this on stumbleupon, great article.
Incredibles pictures!!
That’s a wonderfull animal, looks like a penguin.
Regards from Argentina.
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Increibles fotografias!
Es un animal hermoso, se parece al pinguino.
Saludos desde Argentina.
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I have never seen these beautiful birds before. Thank you for this article. I found it while surfing through stumbleupon and I have linked to this page from my site.
the bird is very beautiful we have to keep alive..nice article
They are beautiful creatures. I love all of these images and you provide such interesting information along with it!
What a readable post, well documented with wonderful pictures. You know coming from Norway, I feel almost like home in this and have seen most of these birds at the coast line – especially up North, above the Arctic circle.
great post, great picture, good job!
I had no idea what a puffin was, other than Holly’s nickname for Hef.
They are actually very attractive birds….I always learn something new when I stop by here!
Love the pictures. Thanks for your work in documenting this issue and these birds.
Those close-ups of the Puffins are spectacular. They’re actually quite comical in their appearance, yet elegant by nature.
Absolutely fabulous article. The photos are terrific. There seems to be a need to urgently save these wonderful creatures. Glad to see that some work is being done off Maine. We need to create a greater awareness amongst the verious environmental groups to do something, anything. This article goes a long way in this regard. Thank you.
Wow! Wow! Great Piece. I found you on Stumble Upon and am blown away by the pictures. Fabulous photography, and you post for a good cause. Thanks Deborah!!
There is always something new…, the Puffins, awesome creatures.
Fantastic photos, it is a worry so many species in decline who knows where it’ll end. Hopefully these wonderful birds will return
love the pictures a lot. great post. im also trying to get into photography, just bought a canon 40d
What a readable post, well documented with wonderful pictures. You know coming from Norway, I feel almost like home in this and have seen most of these birds at the coast line – especially up North, above the Arctic circle.
Wow! What photogenic birds — the bright beaks, the black, the white. Thanks for bringing this photos to my attention.
I REALLY ENJOY YOUR PHOTOS AND ALL THE CLOSE UP ANGLE.
Quality stuff.
Thanks.
Lovely photos, well taken too.
Thanks . This article is definitely a good read for me! Interesting and very informative. Although this wasn’t what I was looking for, but it did answer some questions I had in mind. Thanks for sharing
realy good article, thank you!
Oh puffins are so cute! Fantastic pictures!
Hey dude these are some high def pics man. Thanks for your awesome share once again.
let’s say those puffins! puffins rock!
Wonderful article! The bird is so beautiful. I’ve never seen before. You provide interesting information along with the images! Thanks!
Hi
This is rally stuuning.
I am shashi From India and vey very happy to see this type of collection
Thank you for the stunning pictures!!
These are some quality pictures man, great high def quality. Thanks for sharing
Also, if you’re interested in a blogroll link exchange, let me know I’d be happy to exchange links.
The best pictures of Puffins I have ever seen.
To Dwayne, Brian, and all, glad that you enjoyed them. They’re among the best photos of puffins that I’ve seen as well
As a keen birdwatcher I am pretty much impressed by your puffin pictures. Unfortunately I have not seen these birds so far (season was already over when I have been in Wales).
Thanks a lot for raising attention on the puffins.
Great photos. Good read also.
It would be a tragedy if these birds become further endangered. The puffins are not only beautiful, but some of the friendliest creatures known to man… I did a greeting card collection about the puffins of Machias Seal Island off the coast of Maine.
They’re very beautiful images, Puffin
Did you take the photos yourself?
All I can say is that the photos in this article are some of the most beautiful nature shots I have ever seen. I had never even heard of the Puffin before and it is an incredibly beautiful bird. It is a terrible shame that so many other wildlife species are disappearing or struggling to survive. It just goes to show that we must make some drastic changes in the way we care for our planet before it is too late for them and us.
Would you agree to let my client put a picture/pictures on their B&B website? The site would contain a credit to you, as well as a link to this page.