Adult puffins mostly eat small fish, such as sand eels, herring, hake and capelin. Puffin diets vary from colony to colony because of the variety of fish around the breeding islands. During winter puffins may also eat crustaceans, but their preferred food is fish. On the Project Puffin islands, young puffins are usually fed fish
With a wingspan of up to 5 feet this conspicuous and fierce looking red-tailed hawk soars using the slight movement of feather tips to guide its way within thermal uplifts to search for victims. A red-tail, with its superb vision, will fold its wings against its body and power dive at speeds of up to
Out on the Project Puffin Islands, arctic tern colonies are prepared to defend their own. As a group the birds rise into the air, divebombing the hapless seabird biologists who move among them to tally, weigh, and measure the growing chicks. All the biologists wear hats, and if they happen to glance overhead, they would
In the same family as the Atlantic Puffin, Common Murres (also the same as thin-billed murres) could also be seen loafing on the rocks of Seal Island. Common Murres are among the largest of the living Alcidae, and are designed to be comfortable whether navigating the air, or diving underwater. They have been known
The Atlantic Puffin’s beak is serrated to help hold onto fish as hunts, and it has been recorded with up to 83 sand eels in its beak. Puffins are also equipped with an extra bone in its jaw to prevent the fish at the tip from falling out. Photo Courtesy of: silly-kat
