The Atlantic Puffins have funny nicknames like the ‘sea parrot’, because of their facial similarity with the parrot species, or the ‘clown of the sea’, since they have a very colorful and comical appearance.The IUCN 3.1 has categorized them under the ‘VU’ (Vulnerable) species list. The Atlantic Puffin is not an endangered species as of now, however, with a gradual decline in population, they fall under the ‘threatened’ category. This act often draws an excited crowd of other puffins to come and watch them play.Ītlantic Puffin Flying Conservation Status During billing, the couple would rub each other’s beaks together during or prior to mating. Some couples display a mating ritual termed as ‘billing’. Once the come back to land, the pairs reunite within the colony. The puffins, who spend the maximum time of the year in the seas, return to land prior to mating. The mating season begins in the springtime and continues till summer. Researchers believe that, this helps the birds find their mates. Reproduction and Life Cycleĭuring the mating season, the colors on the bills of the puffins, which faded in the winter months, start to brighten. However, not much is known about the winter diets of the adults. They take about 6 hours to digest a sand eel. The digestive system of the puffins is such that, they can rapidly digest foods. Crustaceans may include euphausiid shrimp, mysids, copepods, as well as mollusks and marine worms. The food that they bring to their nestlings is primarily small fish, especially herring, capelin, sand lance, cods, eels (like sand eels), etc. These birds are carnivores, and mostly thrive on fish and crustaceans. Upon their return, these birds would often make ‘comical’ displays, including ritualized walking around the entrance of their burrows, knocking the bill, etc.Ītlantic Puffin Nest Diet: What Do Atlantic Puffins Eat This makes it difficult for the researchers to stay updated about their status. In the winter season, the birds spend most of their time foraging in the sea and would even go many miles away from land, after which they would return back to their own cliffs during the next climate change (in the summer months) for breeding. They have an extraordinary circulatory system in their feet, helping them cope with cold temperatures. When not swimming, they rest on the waves. Though, an average dive usually lasts for about 20 seconds.Ītlantic Puffins swim by flapping their wings, which looks very similar to flying, while they use their feet to steer forward. However, they can also dive to about 200 feet, holding their breath for up to 2 minutes. They are excellent swimmers, and would usually forage at around 50-60 feet of surface. Though these birds are quite agile when in the air, their skills are at their best when in water. Not just on land, even when they are out in the waters, they ensure that they flock out in large groups forming ‘rafts’ so as to stay protected from various predators. Flocking together, they voice gruff calls that sound somewhat like ‘arrr-uh’. They primarily live on cliff tops’ grassy fields together in large colonies of up to 2 million individuals. The puffins are colonial birds, and highly sociable creatures like most of the other birds from the Auk family.
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