Instead, they bring back whole fish for the chick to eat. Puffin parents do not regurgitate food like other birds. Parents will take turns flying out to sea to catch fish for the chick. Chicks, known as pufflings, hatch after 36-45 days depending on the species. Egg laying typically starts in April and can last until June. The female will lay a single white egg and both parents will take turns to incubate and protect the egg. When it comes to nest building, puffins will either dig a burrow in soft soil along a cliff edge or utilize a natural hole between rocks. The largest one is estimated to be of 4 million puffins. Puffins are known to live in large colonies. Mating rituals involve a practice called “billing”, where a male and female pair will rub their beaks together. Puffins are monogamous birds, meaning they mate for life, returning to the same breeding colonies and the same nest site every year. They do not reach sexual maturity until 3 years of age, but many wild birds will not reproduce until the age of 5. Just like most prey animals, safety in numbers seems to be the idea here.įor small birds, puffins live a long time, with a lifespan of around 20 years. Social interaction is very important for puffins and they congregate in huge colonies both at sea and on land. They can also “fly” in the water, using their strong wing muscles to change direction. While penguins are grounded birds, puffins can fly, with speeds up to 88km/h. Puffins may look like little miniature penguins, but they are more physically adept. Their fish diet may change slightly during the breeding season in summer and their migratory home in the winter.Īlso Read: Where Do Hummingbirds Go in the Winter? The fish they eat depends on where the puffins live at any given time. Rhinoceros Auklets will also occasionally eat squid. The favoured fish for puffins are sandeel, herring and capelin, but they are also known to feed on krill. They also use their feet like the rudder of a boat. Puffins use their wings to change direction, much like they do during normal flight. The Rhinoceros Auklet can stay under water for 2-2½ minutes. Puffins catch their prey by diving, which they can do for up to one minute and as deep as 60 meters. Their rough tongue also helps to hold fish against the palate of the beak, making it possible for them to catch more fish. They are one of a small number of bird species able to carry fish crosswise in their beaks. On the other hand, Rhinoceros Auklets are dark grey instead of black with no white facial markings.īeing seabirds, it is no surprise that puffins eat fish. Tufted puffins have no white plumage but still have the same white face and brightly coloured beak. Puffins are one of a small number of bird species able to carry fish crosswise in their beaks. Adult size and weight is dependant on the species. Puffins are small seabirds, with males slightly larger than females. Darker plumage is useful during winter as they are able to absorb more heat. Scientists believe, this coincides with the start of the breeding season. Once spring comes around, they brighten up. In addition, their legs and feet also lose colour, fading to a pale yellow. They look like miniature penguins with their black wings, tail and head, chubby white cheeks, a necklace of black feathers, bright orange feet and a striking triangular beak with grey, yellow and red markings.ĭuring the winter months, Puffins lose their bright beak coloration, and have more muted grey colours to their beak and face. Puffins are one of the world’s most recognisable birds. Rhinoceros Auklet puffins are found predominantly along the Pacific Coast of North America and travel to Northern Asia for winter. They spend the winter as far south as California. The Tufted and Horned puffins are Pacific species that live in large colonies between Canada and Japan, including most of Western Europe and Northern Russia. In winter they travel to New York, Spain, the Canaries and Morocco. Other popular places for Atlantic puffins include Norway, Denmark, Sweden, UK, Greenland, Canada and North America. Almost 60% of the world’s puffins make their breeding homes in Iceland, while the UK is home to approximately 10% of the planet’s puffin population.
Puffin colonies can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific and the Arctic Circle. Puffins are seabirds, spending most of the year at sea and breed in coastal spaces such as cliff edges or crags. There are four species of Puffin Atlantic, Tufted, Horned and Rhinoceros Auklet. Like most birds, Puffins are migratory, but they remain in the Northern Hemisphere.
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Known as “the clown of the sea”, Puffins are beautiful birds, full of character with a striking appearance and a love of the ocean.
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