![]() While at sea, the bird ranges widely across the North Atlantic Ocean, including the North Sea, and may enter the Arctic Circle. Islands seem particularly attractive to the birds for breeding as compared to mainland sites. Smaller sized colonies are also found elsewhere in the British Isles, the Murmansk area of Russia, Novaya Zemlya, Spitzbergen, Labrador, Nova Scotia and Maine. ![]() ![]() Other major breeding locations include the north and west coasts of Norway, the Faroe Islands, the Shetland and Orkney islands, the west coast of Greenland and the coasts of Newfoundland. The largest colony in the western Atlantic (estimated at more than 260,000 pairs) can be found at the Witless Bay Ecological Reserve, south of St. More than 90% of the global population is found in Europe (4,770,000-5,780,000 pairs, equalling 9,550,000-11,600,000 adults) and colonies in Iceland alone are home to 60% of the world's Atlantic Puffins. It breeds on the coasts of north west Europe, the Arctic fringes and eastern North America. The Atlantic Puffin is a bird of the colder waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic Puffin was classified as an endangered species in 2018 It is the official bird symbol for the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The striking appearance, large colourful bill, waddling gait and behaviour of this bird have given rise to nicknames such as “clown of the sea” and “sea parrot”. Sometimes a bird such as an Arctic skua will harass a puffin arriving with a beakful of fish, causing it to drop its catch. It swims away from the shore and does not return to land for several years.Ĭolonies are mostly on islands where there are no terrestrial predators but adult birds and newly fledged chicks are at risk of attacks from the air by gulls and skuas. After about six weeks it is fully fledged and makes its way at night to the sea. The chick mostly feeds on whole fish and grows rapidly. It nests in clifftop colonies, digging a burrow in which a single white egg is laid. 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. Puffins from northern populations are typically larger than in the south and it is generally considered that these populations are different subspecies. The juvenile does not have brightly coloured head ornamentation, its bill is narrower and is dark-grey with a yellowish-brown tip, and its legs and feet are also dark. The juvenile has similar plumage but its cheek patches are dark grey. The external appearance of the adult male and female are identical though the male is usually slightly larger. It moults while at sea in the winter and some of the bright-coloured facial characteristics are lost, with color returning again during the spring. Its broad, boldly marked red and black beak and orange legs contrast with its plumage. This puffin has a black crown and back, pale grey cheek patches and white underparts. At sea, it swims on the surface and feeds mainly on small fish, which it catches by diving underwater, using its wings for propulsion. On land, it has the typical upright stance of an auk. Although it has a large population and a wide range, the species has declined rapidly, at least in parts of its range, resulting in it being rated as vulnerable by the IUCN.
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