Atlantic Puffin
Tagged: animal, animals, bird, fish( image )
Atlantic puffins live in the North Atlantic. They nest from Labrador to the north-eastern coast of USA and from Iceland, Greenland and Russia down as far as Brittany in france. An outsized, colourfully stripped beak, bright orange, webbed feet and clown-like eyes are the Atlantic puffins trademark. For nine months of the year, this sturdy seabird lives an often solitary life, far out at sea. It is a stark contrast to its breeding season, when the puffin comes ashore to join one of many highly sociable, noisy colonies dotting the rocky coasts and islands.
Life on the Ocean Waves
Usually seen singly or in pairs, puffins are excellent swimmers, propelling themselves through the water with their wings. They are poor fliers, though: when a puffin takes off, it flies low over the water, flapping its wings up to an incredible 400 beats a minutes to stay airborne. Its legs are placed for back on its body, so it often has to ch land in a strong wind. Highly social, puffingather in huge groups offshore to find a mate. Once on land, scuffles often break out as birds defend their nesting sites in the breeding colony. Such quarrels are often surrounded by a crowd of vocal and inquisitive puffin spectators. Puffin try to deter predators such as gull by flying in large wheeling groups over the sea in front of their colonies.
Part of body
- White undrparts with black back and wing aid comouflage from predators, above and below, when swimming.
- Roof of upper beak and tongue ridged with backward-pointingspines, enabling grip of slippery fish.
- Short wings and strong wing muscles help the puffin to swim strongly, using the wings as flippers
- Strong, webbed feet set far back on body help the puffin to steer swiftly through water. Claws useful for digging burrows.
Statistics
- status – common
- length – 28-30 cm
- weight – 400 g
- wingspan – 47-63 cm
- migration – seasonal migrant
- plumage – sexes alike
- sexual maturity – 5 years
- breeding season – march-may
- incubation period – 40-43 dats
- number of eggs – 1
- diet – small fish such as sand eels; animal plankton
- lifespan – 20-25 years
- Myth or fact
- Puffin originally meant fatling a term used to describe the cubby chicks of another bird with which puffin chicks were once confused. Its scientific name, fratercula arctica means little brother of the north. Little brother could also be interpreted as little friar, because the puffin black and white plumage reminded people of a friars robes.
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