Puffin

Puffin (Fratercula arctica) belongs to the genus Fratercula, order Charadriiformes. This large bird appears to be the older brother of parrots and the younger brother of penguins.
In fact it is not the closest brother of parrots but is called the sea parrot because of its appearance and color. Puffin lives in the Atlantic Ocean and the North Pole seas.
It can be found several tens of km from land (sometimes hundreds of km) alone or in pairs. It's also called the ocean clown. It lives most of its time in water.
On the island of Hilda in Scotland come to breed almost a million birds in 3 days. If at the moment the species of puffins are not in danger of extinction their number is decreasing due to habitat degradation and pollution.
Puffin birds were hunted for meat and eggs, which led to a decrease in population.

Puffin Feed

The puffin feeds on various species of fish (herring, sprat), mollusks, calamari and crustaceans. To obtain food, they dive underwater and swim using their wings.
In the warm season during the breeding season the success of brooding depends on where it finds food. The smaller the distance from the nest, the more easily the hungry chicks will quench their hunger.
It is a bird that does not wait for food, it is she who hunts. It uses its wings to propel itself into the water and catch fish. The dive lasts about 20 seconds.
When he needs to gather food for the chicks he can hold in his beak 20 fish, or more, arranged from the base to the top. Being at sea swim with them in their beak without losing any.
The fish are the size of a finger as you can see in the pictures below. Although they usually come with 5-25 fish, it is said that a puffin with a beak full of fish has been seen. It brought 62 pieces.
It is a carnivorous diurnal bird.

Features Puffin

The Puffin has a comic appearance. The body is brightly colored. On the back it is black, on the belly it is white, and the beak and legs are orange. Legs end with paws just like in Ducks. The fingers are joined by a membrane and end at the tip with claws. The multicolored beak is thick and strong. The tail and wings are short.
It flies 10 meters above the water. The breeding season coincides with the moulting period. The bird cannot fly, but can swim. It is during this period that it has the most bright plumage and it is said that this is the "wedding costume" of the puffin.
The puffin is a curious bird, it has been seen looking into the nests of other puffins.
The uropygial glands secrete an oily solution that provides the bird with water protection (impermeability). Sea parrots swim and fly fast. Landing gives them headaches because they have their legs positioned backwards. The end of the landing is done on the belly. They can fly at 88km/h for short distances by flapping their wings 3-4 hundred times a minute.
The enemies of the puffin are foxes, gulls, Hawks and Eagles.
Atlantic puffin – (Fratercula arctica)
Horned puffin – (Fratercula corniculata)
Tufted puffin or crested puffin – (Fratercula cirrhata)

Puffin Breeding

Although the puffin spends most of its time in the water, it comes ashore to breed. During mating the puffin makes specific shrill sounds. Nesting takes place in colonies of tens of thousands of individuals.
Thousands of birds come ashore to breed during this period. The puffin mates in February-April.
Conditions do not allow building a nest on the ground, because there are no trees or tall vegetation in the area, so the puffin builds its nest in the ground to protect against predators(hermelins or foxes). The next year he can use the old nest or dig a new one. The Burrow can be 1-2 meters long, has several exits and the place where the nest is made is arranged with grass and feathers. If it's free, it can occupy a rabbit hole.
Courtship is on shore. The pair rub their beaks against each other, after mating takes place and then grab the nest. The female lays a single egg in May which is incubated for 40-45 days. The egg is hatched by both partners.
After hatching the chicks remain in the burrow for half a year. Parents take turns bringing him food. When they leave the nest they go into the sea and become independent. They usually come out of their burrow at night to avoid being seen by predators and jump directly into the water.
At this age he can't fly but he has time to learn. In 4-5 years it returns back to hatch.
Sexual maturity is reached at the age of 4-5 years. The life expectancy of puffin is 15-30 years.