Atlantic Puffin

The Atlantic Puffin ('**Fratercula arctica'**) is a species of seabird. It is the only puffin native to The Atlantic Ocean. At sea, it swims on the surface and feeds on small fish, which it catches by diving under water, using its wings for propulsion.

This puffin has a black crown and back, pale grey cheek patches, and white underparts. Its broad, boldly marked red-and-black beak and orange legs contrast with its plumage.

Spending the autumn and winter in the open ocean of the cold northern seas, the Atlantic puffin returns to coastal areas at the start of the breeding season in late spring. It nests in colonies, digging a burrow in which a single white egg is laid. Chicks feed on whole fish and grow rapidly. After about 6 weeks, they are fully fledged and make their way at night to the sea. They swim away from the shore and do not return to land for several years.

Description

The Atlantic puffin is sturdily built with a thick-set neck and short wings and tail. The forehead, crown, and nape are glossy black, as are the back, wings, and tail. A black collar extends around the neck and throat. On each side of the head is a large, lozenge-shaped area of very pale grey. These face patches taper to a point and nearly meet at the back of the neck. The shape of the head creates a crease extending from the eye to the hindmost point of each patch, giving the appearance of a grey streak. The eyes look almost triangular in shape because of a small, peaked area of horny blue-grey skin above them and a rectangular patch below. The irises are brown or very dark blue, and each has red orbital ring. The under parts of the bird, the breast, belly, and under tail coverts, are white. The legs are short and set well back on the body, giving the bird its upright stance when on land. Both legs and large webbed feet are bright orange

The Atlantic puffin has a direct flight, above the sea surface and higher over the water It mostly moves by paddling along with its webbed feet and seldom takes to the air. It is typically silent at sea, except for the soft purring sounds it sometimes makes in flight.

Behaviour

At Sea

Atlantic puffins lead solitary existences when out at sea. When at sea, they bob about like a cork, propelling themselves through the water with powerful thrusts of their feet and keeping turned into the wind, even when resting and asleep. They spend much time each day preening to keep their plumage in order and spread oil from their preen glands. Their underplumage remains dry and provides thermal insulation. In common with other seabirds, their upper surface is black and underside white. This provides camouflage, with predators unable to locate the birds against the dark.

When it takes off, the Atlantic puffin patters across the surface of the water while vigorously flapping its wings, before launching itself into the air.

Food And Feeding

The Atlantic puffin diet consists fish. It can eat shallow-bodied fish as long. but its prey is commonly smaller fish. An adult bird needs to eat an estimated 40 of these per day

On Land

In the spring, mature birds return to land, usually to the colony where they were hatched. Birds that were removed as chicks and released elsewhere were found to show fidelity. They congregate for a few days on the sea in small groups offshore before returning to the cliff-top nesting sites.

Predators

Atlantic Puffins are safer when out at sea, where the dangers are more often from below the water rather than above; puffins can sometimes be seen putting their heads under water to look around for predators. Seals have known to kill puffins, and Large Fish may also do so. Most puffin colonies are on small islands as it avoids predation by ground-based mammals such as Foxes Rats Weasels Cats and Dogs.

Aerial Predators of the Atlantic Puffin include The Great black-backed gull, the great skua, and other bird species. which can catch a bird in flight, or attack one that is unable to escape fast enough on the ground. On detecting danger, puffins take off and fly down to the safety of the sea or retreat into their burrows, but if caught, they defend themselves with beak and sharp claws. When the puffins are wheeling round beside the cliffs, a predator concentrating on a single bird becomes very difficult. Gull species such as the Herring Gull and the Black-Backed Gull are hardly able to bring down a healthy adult puffin. They also steal fish from puffins returning to feed their young.