Puffin

1. WHERE IT LIVES

Puffins are found along the coast of Nova Scotia.
They are also the official bird of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Puffins live along the cliff edges on the coast.

2. APPEARANCE

Male and female puffins look much alike. They have small rounded bodies, short tangerine coloured legs and a large head. They weigh less than half a kilogram, although the male is slightly bigger. Adult puffins have striped bills, which they use to catch food and to attract a mate.

This bird is sometimes known as the “sea parrot” because of its beautiful bill which, in the nesting season, takes on vivid colours of red, blue-grey, and ivory. The colours fade when the nesting season ends. Puffins have a serrated bill.

3. FOOD

Puffins eat lots of fish. In fact the record number of fish held at one time by a puffin in Canada is 61. These were tiny fish that were about 2 to 3 cm long.

How can a puffin catch and hold 61 fish in its bill? In the puffin’s mouth a series of backward-pointing spines poke out from the tongue and top of the mouth and hold the food in place while more fish are being caught.

4.PREDATORS

The greatest natural predator of the puffin is the Gull. But, sometimes the chicks can be eaten by foxes and other large birds. Adult puffins can be eaten by whales and hawks.

5. THE YOUNG

Puffins make a nest by digging a hole with their beaks and feet. This nest is called a burrow. It is lined with bits of grass, a few twigs and the odd feather.
The mom usually only lays one egg. The mom and dad do not sit on the egg like most other birds. Instead, they move up against the egg and cover it with their wing and side.
After 40-43 days, a chick called a puffling hatches.

6. INTERESTING FACTS

The average puffin lives about 20 years. Puffins are diving seabirds. But, puffins are poor fliers. They have trouble landing and often crash onto the sea or tumble onto the grass, bowling over other puffins that get in their way.On land, they waddle clumsily as they walk because of their short legs.