A winter At seA
No puffins can be seen on the Farne Islands in autumn and winter. It is only breeding that brings them back. In August, the puffins leave land, and will not return until the following April. To find out where puffins go in winter, tiny geolocator tags were fitted to some birds’ feet, recording their movements via global positioning system (GPS) satellites. It was discovered that three-quarters of puffins nesting on islands in the North Sea go far out into the Atlantic and Scandinavian seas for up to three months, before returning as the next breeding season approaches. With waterproof feathers and the ability to drink seawater, puffins are superbly adapted to life on the open ocean. They even moult at sea, rendering them flightless for a time. growing chick, known as a puffling. On their regular diet of highly nutritious fish, chicks take just 5-7 weeks to reach three-quarters of their adult weight of slightly over 1lb (500g), when they are ready to fly. In July, young puffins make their first foray into the outside world. The puffling does not closely resemble its parents, being entirely dark grey. Covered in downy feathers, a puffling looks fairly rotund; a fluffy ball with head and feet attached. Its colourful beak only develops after approximately four years, when the bird is ready to breed. By late July, the pufflings have fledged, approximately 45 days after hatching. The adult’s work is done, and for a short period they relax, spending time standing around, sometimes on the walls, ruined former light towers and fortification, or pele, towers that dot the Farnes. On a calm day, they can be seen rafting on the water in large numbers before they depart for the sea in August. The chicks leave afterwards, usually under cover of darkness to avoid predators. Like other seabirds, puffins are quite long lived. Their lifespan typically exceeds 20 years, and the oldest recorded bird reached 36. They usually start breeding in their fifth year, having spent the intervening years at sea.
In air and water
Puffins belong to the auk family, Alcidae, which in Britain also includes guillemots and razorbills. Ecologically, auks may be compared to the penguins of the southern hemisphere. However,
while penguins have given up flight in adapting to their oceanic environment, puffins have retained the ability to fly. Nonetheless, it seems that evolution has pushed puffins’ ability to stay airborne to the limit. At just 7in (18cm) in length, their wings are smaller, relative to their bodies, than most flying birds, because they are adapted to propel the bird through water. In order to stay in the air, a puffin must beat its little wings up to 400 times a minute and achieve air speeds of approximately 50mph. Lacking the manoeuvrability of larger-winged birds, landing is a tricky business for a puffin, and their wings are used like air brakes to induce a stall, bringing them to the ground. Underwater, however, puffins are in their element. They can dive for up to a minute, using their wings to propel themselves through the water, almost as if they are flying. Their feet act as rudders. Each dive takes them in search of fish, especially sand eels. Juvenile herring, hake and capelin are also taken. One of the secrets to puffins’ success is that, unlike some other seabirds, such as terns, they can bring back several fish at a time. Once a fish is caught, the puffin’s raspy tongue holds it against a spiny palate, enabling it to catch multiple fish on one trip. A puffin typically returns to its nest carrying approximately 10 small fish and the record is 62 sand eels held by a single bird. The Farne Islands are owned by the National Trust, whose rangers spend 3-8 months resident on the islands each year. Gwen Potter, the Trust’s local countryside manager, describes living on the islands as “beautiful, noisy and unique”. “Some of the sunsets are incredible. It’s noisy 24 hours a day with the sounds of the birds, and there are few places like it,” she says. The smells are usually of the birds’ waste, known as guano. “This does surprise people when they first arrive. It’s one of the first things they notice.” She feels it is a true privilege to wake up in a colony of very special birds. “You get to know ‘your’ birds as well,” she explains. “It might be a particularly bold puffin or a particular species. We don’t like to have our favourites, but I think we all secretly do.” At the end of the puffin season, all parents feel the urge to leave their chicks behind. “You do feel sorry for the chick, knowing it has been abandoned, but when you see the younger birds rafting on the water, you start to think about what its first five years at sea will be like,” says Gwen. “The first puffin to return in spring is always a special moment. Usually, we see them rafting on the sea first.” ›
Safe home
When the puffins return to the Farnes to breed the following spring, they must find a place to nest. While guillemots and razorbills avoid predation by nesting on inaccessible cliff ledges, puffins have adopted a different solution and use a burrow. They are capable of excavating these themselves, using their beaks to dig and their feet to push loose soil away. However, rabbits were introduced to the Farnes as a source of meat, and their burrows are ideal for puffins to raise a family. It is not necessary for the rabbit to have vacated possession in advance; puffins’ sharp beaks are sufficient to evict a resident rabbit. So, puffins and rabbits may share the same burrows, using them at different times of year. Puffins generally pair up with the same mate in successive years and often return to previously used burrows. A burrow is typically 2-3 ft (60-90cm) long. At the far end, a nest is formed using grass and soft feathers, where the female lays its egg in May. Incubation duties are shared by both parents.
Amusing appearance
Many first-time visitors are surprised by the puffin’s petite stature. They stand approximately 10in (25cm) tall and males and females are almost identical in appearance. Males are slightly larger than females, though this is only apparent when a pair are seen side-by-side. The puffins’ vibrant beaks and feet are highly comical. They only develop this colouration during the breeding season from April to August. It seems that puffins evaluate the fitness of potential mates according to the brightness of their beaks and feet. Bright pigments are expensive in terms of nutrients, so only healthy, well-fed birds can devote resources to making them. Because they stand upright, puffins are easy to anthropomorphise. Their Latin name, Fratercula arctica, means ‘little brother of the north’ and may refer to the black and white plumage, reminiscent of a monk’s robes. Their range of amusing behaviour also contributes to puffins’ charm and popularity. Courtship involves pairs approaching each other wagging their heads together, followed by a clattering of beaks. Sometimes puffins may be observed sky-pointing at sunset. It is tempting to wonder if they appreciate a colourful sky as the rangers do.
Communication signals
Living in dense colonies, puffins must communicate their intentions to each other, to avoid unnecessary conflict. Keeping their head lowered as they walk indicates that they are only passing through another bird’s territory, not looking for trouble. Similarly, when landing, puffins keep their head down to avoid aggression from nearby birds. However, when guarding their burrows, puffins assume an erect posture, like a soldier on duty. Aggressive encounters frequently involve gaping beaks and foot-stomping. These may escalate into beak wrestling, in which the two protagonists try to throw each other off their feet. Underground, adults make loud growls, and pufflings beg for food with insistent ‘peeps’.
Protected species
The National Trust makes a full census of puffin numbers every five years, one of which takes place in 2018. Nests in use are counted either by placing a camera into the burrow or by putting an arm into the space to feel if it is occupied and whether or not a chick is present. Productivity is a measure of the average number of chicks per pair. ›
“Puffin walks better than he flies, He has red feet and queer white eyes He is a funny little fellow With his great beak of red and yellow” Elizabeth Gordon, ‘Bird Children’
Once hunted as a source of food, puffins are now protected in the UK and have become highly tolerant of humans. It is possible to gain their confidence and watch puffins at close quarters. People sitting quietly can be approached by them. Puffins do, however, have many natural enemies. Rats and other ground-based predators can easily enter their burrows to eat eggs or chicks. As a result, puffins only nest where rats are absent, usually small islands such as the Farnes, or cannot reach their nests; for example, where there are steep cliffs. It is therefore crucial that stores and luggage coming to the Farnes are checked to ensure rodents are not present. Adult puffins are frequently harassed by kleptoparasitic gulls, which attempt to steal their hauls of fish. To confuse the gulls, puffins returning to feed their young frequently fly round in repeated circles, making several landing approaches, before eventually delivering their catch. At sea, puffins are relatively safe, although they are known to be taken by seals. Gill Penny, who lives in Sussex and first visited the islands in summer 2017, describes her impressions: “I didn’t expect to see so many puffins everywhere. The noise from the birds as we landed on Staple Island is a memory that will remain with me for a very long time. There were birds nesting on every available space, with youngsters eagerly being fed. Puffins were running around or waiting by their nests, and others were flying in with mouths full of sand eels, anxious to get to their nests before the gulls stole their hard-earned catch. “As a keen amateur wildlife photographer, my aim was to get a decent photograph of a puffin in flight with a beak full of eels, and I was not disappointed. I was overwhelmed by the effort they put in to catch food for their pufflings.” Gwen Potter sums up the experience of both rangers and visitors. “By the time they leave, they are thinking of the incredible sights they have seen. The sights differ each day; often beautiful, comical or surprising. It deepens your emotional connection with wild nature, and it’s something we all need.”