![]() Juvenile puffins resemble winter adults, but with a grey-brown breast, white belly, and a shallow, brown bill. ![]() Their legs and feet are red or orange-red throughout the year. When breeding ends in the early summer, puffins lose their plumes, the bright colors of the bill turn to a dull reddish-brown,and the belly is speckled with some pale brown flecks. The bill is mostly bright red, with yellow and sometimes green markings. During this time they develop a brownish-black body, with some white feathers lining the underside of the wing, a white face and glossy, yellow plumes above and behind eye. In the winter, as puffins prepare for spring breeding, their colors become more decorative, presumably to attract mates. There is also a difference in size between the sexes as male birds tend to be slightly larger than females. Size varies a little from location to location: western Pacific animals tend to be a little larger than eastern ones. (Paul 1994, Gaston 1998, Jewett 1953)įratercula cirrhata is similar in size to crows, with an average length of 15 inches, and a 15 inch wingspan. In highly populated colonies, the burrows of two or three of the animals sometimes run together. Their burrows are typically two to six feet long, and four to six inches in diameter. They prefer secluded areas where some protection is offered by their surroundings. Their stubby wings make it difficult for them to take flight from water or land without help. They prefer high places that allow them to swoop down and gain momentum. In more rocky areas, puffins build their nests in the rock and on cliff faces. They require shores with steep, grassy, sloping land with soil that allows them to burrow. (Gaston 1998)Īlthough puffins spend a majority of the year on the ocean, they build their nests on the shores of islands and coastal regions. Not only does the oil make these beautiful birds sick, it destroys their waterproof feathers, essential for their survival.Tufted puffins are Northern Pacific sea birds that spend a majority of the year over the Pacific Ocean, but nest along coastlines from lower California to Alaska, and across the ocean from Japan to the shores of northeastern Asia. The main threats are overfishing, which can lead to a shortage of food for puffins, and pollution – particularly oil spills. Although puffins are not classed as an endangered species, populations in some places are in decline. Their main predators are hungry gulls, which can snatch puffins mid-flight or swoop down and scoop their tasty treat from the ground – so they need to keep alert!ġ0. In the wild, these winged wonders live for around 20 years. Both parents take it in turn to incubate the egg for the next 36-45 days before the baby “ puffling” hatches!ĩ. At the back of their burrow home, they build a nest lined with feathers and grass where the female lays her egg. When starting a puffin family, our feathered friends dig out a burrow using their sharp claws and beak, usually in a grassy bank or rocky crevice. They usually pair up with the same partner as previous years – some may have been together for 20 years!Ĩ. In spring and summer, thousands of puffins gather in colonies on the coasts and islands of the North Atlantic Ocean to breed. What’s more, these brilliant birds are great swimmers, too! Using their webbed feet as a rudder, puffins can dive down 60m under water in search of their favourite fish.ħ. ![]() Puffins are fab flyers, flapping their wings up to 400 times a minute and speeding through the air at up to 88km an hour. Puffins are carnivores and live off small fish such as herring, hake and sand eels.ĥ. In winter, the beak has a dull grey colour, but in spring it blooms with an outrageous orange! It’s thought that the bright colour helps puffins assess potential mates.Ĥ. A puffin’s beak (or bill) changes colour during the year. Ask your parents to check out Nat Geo Kids magazine! (AD)ģ.
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