What zone does the puffin live in? Atlantic puffin: features, interesting facts. What is special about the appearance of the puffin bird?

The Atlantic puffin is a seabird from the auk family of the Charadriiformes order. They live on the coasts of the Atlantic and Arctic oceans.

Exterior view of Atlantic Puffin

Body length 30-35 cm, wingspan about 50 cm. Weight 450-500 grams. Males are usually slightly larger than females. The back, throat collar and head are black. There are large light gray spots on the sides of the head. The eyes appear small, almost triangular, due to the red and gray leathery structures around them. The underparts are white. Paws are orange-red

The main expressive feature of its appearance is its beak. It has an unusual triangular shape, flattened laterally. The appearance of the beak is a bit like an ax, or a blunt instrument, most likely because of this the bird was called a puffin.

During the mating season, the beak of the Atlantic puffin turns bright orange.

The top of the beak is bright red and the base is gray. They are separated by a light yellow crest, the same one located at the base of the beak. At the junction of the two jaws there is a small yellow fold of skin. The size and appearance of the beak changes with age: in a young bird it is narrower than in an adult, but has the same length. With age, the beak becomes wider. In old age, furrows may appear on the red part of the beak. The beak and skin around the eyes have bright color only during the breeding season.

During subsequent molting, the multi-part horny covers of the beak fall off and the beak becomes less wide. Its tip becomes faded, the base dark gray. The light gray feathers of the head and neck also change to darker ones. The triangle of skin formations around the eyes also disappears.

The head of the Atlantic puffin is painted black, but it has inclusions in the form of grayish spots (on the cheeks). For their multi-colored appearance, puffins received a popular “nickname” - “sea parrot”.

Puffins walk quickly (they can even run on flat surfaces), but waddle. They swim and dive well and can hold their breath for about a minute.

They paddle in the water with their wings and webbed feet. To fly, puffins must flap their wings very quickly, about several times per second. Before taking off from the water, they can “run” along it for several seconds.

Puffins fly low (at a height of about 10 meters above the water), but quickly, at speeds of up to 80 km/h. Puffins land awkwardly on the water. They either crash into the crest of a wave or fall on their belly.

Puffin colonies are usually quiet; sometimes in flight, puffins make sounds similar to purring, or, most often, when entering a hole, they growl.

Distribution of the Atlantic puffin

Atlantic puffins nest on the coasts of the North Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. Their range includes the shores of northwestern Europe, the Arctic and northeastern part North America.

The largest colony in the world is in Iceland, where 60% of the entire population of puffins nest. Puffins prefer to nest on islands; the coasts of continents are less attractive to them.

Outside the breeding season, puffins can be found in the Northern Arctic Ocean, including in the North Sea, sometimes appear beyond the Arctic Circle.

Atlantic Puffin Lifestyle and Diet

The Atlantic puffin is a freedom-loving bird. Most adult life deadlock spends alone. But before the onset of the mating season, the population gathers to build nests and create families.

The puffin feeds on fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. The Atlantic puffin obtains food thanks to the hunting skills it acquires in its youth. The favorite delicacy of puffins is loach fish.

Reproduction of the Atlantic puffin

In March-April, puffins flock to nests. They will meet the mating season here. Females and males of puffins get to know each other and begin to rub against each other, thus expressing their sympathy. By the end of spring, the beaks of puffins will change color from orange to bright red. This is a clear signal of readiness to start a family. As a rule, new couples arrange nests on their own. But in rare cases, they may return to last year’s houses or take one of the empty ones.

Deadlock couples create lifelong relationships; they rarely change partners. However, when the mating season is over and the babies are strong enough, the parent couple will separate. Each of them will live alone until next spring, when they will meet again to build a new nest.

In the vast majority of cases, the female lays one egg. Both partners do the incubation, replacing each other. The incubation period is on average 40 days.

The deadlock father also takes part in raising the chick. Parents take turns hunting, obtaining food for themselves, their partner and the baby. Almost from the first days, chicks are taught to swim.

It is noteworthy that during the day puffins prefer to hide their offspring from natural enemies in the folds of coastal rocks. Children are taken out to swim dark time days. In this mode, the life of babies proceeds for the first 40-50 days. And when this period expires, the parents leave the nest, leaving the chick, which already knows how to hunt, fly and swim, alone.

Of all the representatives of the order Charadriiformes, guillemots are best adapted to life in water and on sea ​​coast. On land, the puffin is very clumsy and slow, but it swims well and quickly.
Habitat. Distributed on the northern coast of the Atlantic and part of the coast of the Arctic Ocean.

Puffins are feathered natives of the cold regions of the Northern Hemisphere. They spend the winter in the chilly waters of the North Atlantic, and by the beginning of the nesting season they move to land. When making nests, the height of the rocks does not matter for puffins: the only prerequisite is the presence of a layer of humus and peat. Short northern summer the shores of cold seas are covered with a thick carpet of green grasses and shrubs with a highly branched root system, which are not afraid of either icy winds or salty water. This is a landscape typical of the Arctic, which puffins probably consider the best in the world.

Species: Atlantic puffin – Fratercula arctica.
Family: Auks.
Order: Charadriiformes.
Class: Birds.
Subphylum: Vertebrates.

Did you know?

• Swimming underwater, the puffin reaches speeds of up to 20 km/h.
• The puffin cannot swallow a fish whose width exceeds 2 cm.
• Tunnels leading into the puffin nesting chamber may have different lengths. In places located north of the Arctic Circle, its length varies between 0.5-1.5 m, and in warmer regions it sometimes reaches 15 m. The entrance of the tunnel always faces the sea.
• Puffin takes flight, jumping off a cliff. It does not know how to maneuver in the air, but when it touches the ground, it opens its tail like a fan and spreads its webbed paws wide. Possessing excellent vision, the puffin sees well above and under water. In addition, nature endowed him with acute hearing.

Security.
Puffins have always been easy prey for humans, especially during the nesting season, since they do not show fear or fly away when they see people. In the XVIII-XIX centuries. sailors annually exterminated hundreds of thousands of these defenseless birds, and even today nesting puffins are killed in large numbers on many islands. And yet, in some countries the puffin is protected, and in France it even became the emblem of an organization dedicated to bird conservation. Sometimes tourists, under the supervision of guides, are allowed to visit nesting colonies of puffins, and trusting birds pose for photographs from a couple of steps away. Like all Marine life, puffins are often victims environmental disasters and die in droves in oil or toxic waste spills.

Reproduction.
Puffins mate for life, although ornithologists do not yet know whether the spouses remain inseparable all year round, or spend the winter apart. In nesting areas, puffins settle in noisy colonies. The first birds appear off the coast in early April, and at first they stay on the water, now and then soaring into the air. Finally, following the first scout, the entire flock lands on land. Beginning mating dance, the male often shakes his head, emitting hoarse cries, then the partners walk around each other in circles, shoulder to shoulder, knocking their beaks. The worthy finale - 5-second mating - takes place in the water or directly in the nesting chamber, where the egg will then be laid. The male jealously guards his wife from rivals. Usually the couple returns to the old hole every year, but if this is not possible, they dig a new home. Having loosened the soil with their beaks, the birds dig a long corridor and a nesting chamber, which they line with twigs, dry grass and feathers. In April, the female lays one egg and incubates it for 39 days, occasionally giving way to her husband. In mid-May, young animals hatch simultaneously in the entire colony. The chick is born sighted and covered with thick down. For 5-12 weeks, parents diligently feed their child with small fish. When the chick grows up enough, the adult birds leave him, and now he himself must fly out of the nest and get to the sea on foot or by air. Puffins reach sexual maturity at the age of five.

Lifestyle.
Puffins spend most of the year—about 7 months—in open waters Atlantic Ocean, swimming and diving in pursuit of prey. Puffin feeds predominantly small fish: gerbil, capelin, sprat, fry of herring, mackerel and cod. In summer, the menu of puffins is supplemented with crustaceans and mollusks. When chasing fish, the puffin dives and swims underwater; at the same time, its wings serve as oars, and its paws serve as rudders. This style of swimming is much like flying. Molting of puffins occurs in winter, in the open sea. First, the birds shed their old underfur, then the plumage of the head, neck, shoulders and abdomen molts. Since all the flight coverts and tail feathers of puffins fall out at the same time, the birds are unable to fly for several weeks. After changing their plumage, puffins return to their nesting sites. Taking care of reliable thermal insulation, puffins carefully look after their plumage all year round and lubricate it with the fatty secretions of the coccygeal gland. Natural enemies puffins are feathered predators: falcons, hawks, eagles, polar owls and seagulls.

Atlantic puffin – Fratercula arctica.
Length: 28-37 cm.
Wingspan: 46-62 cm.
Weight: 305-675 g.
Number of eggs in clutch: 1.
Incubation period: 39 days.
Sexual maturity: 5 years.
Food: fish, crustaceans, mollusks.
Life expectancy: 21 years.

Structure.
Head. The head is quite large and round.
Beak. During the mating season, a swollen, brightly colored plaque consisting of fused horny plates forms on the beak.
Plumage. The short, dense plumage provides excellent thermal insulation.
Wings. Short narrow wings under water serve as oars for the bird.
Eye. During the nesting season, dark cartilaginous growths appear on the eyelids.
Legs. When walking, the puffin rests on its three-toed paws. The fingers are connected by membranes and are armed with sharp claws.
Tail. The short tail opens like a fan in flight.

Related species.
The guillemot family includes 21 species of birds living in the Northern Hemisphere. Some guillemots inhabit the Atlantic coast, but most live in the waters Pacific Ocean. Guillemots are small to medium-sized birds with contrasting black and white plumage. The basis of their diet is fish and planktonic organisms. Almost all guillemots live in groups, forming noisy nesting colonies.

Behind the bird's comical appearance lies Universal Soldier. The puffin runs briskly and flies well, swims well, dives deeply and even digs underground communications.

Description of the dead end

Fratercula arctica (Arctic brother) is the scientific name of the Atlantic puffin, which represents the family of auks from the order Charadriiformes. In fact, the bird bears little resemblance to the holy brother: rather, an exemplary entertainer in a black tailcoat and defiantly bright, “orange” shoes. The Germans called it a diving parrot, the British called it a puffin, and the Russians called it a dead end, drawing attention to its huge, but somewhat blunt beak.

Appearance, dimensions

The massive and bright beak, almost half the size of its head, is the most remarkable detail of this seabird, slightly larger than a pigeon. The beak, painted in three colors (white, orange and gray), transforms with age: it does not grow in length, but becomes wider. A light yellow ridge runs along the base of the beak, and a bright yellow leathery fold is visible at the junction of the beak and mandible. By old age, characteristic grooves form on the red top of the beak.

Important. After each moult, the beak temporarily narrows due to the peeling of the horny integument, its base changes color to dark gray, and the tip becomes dull.

The dead end weighs no more than 0.5 kg at medium length 26–36 cm. Contrasting body color (black top, white bottom), camouflage water bird like in the background dark sea, when viewed from above, and against a light sky background when viewed from below. The plumage of the head is also bicolored - from the upper base of the beak towards the back of the neck there is an even stripe of black feathers, which give way to light ones on the bird’s cheeks.

The eyes of the puffin are small and, thanks to the leathery growths of red and gray colors, appear triangular. At seasonal molts these leathery structures temporarily disappear and the light gray areas on the head/neck become noticeably darker. Like most birds that fly worse than swim, the limbs of the puffin grow closer to the tail. On land, the funny fat guy stands in a column like a penguin, leaning on his webbed orange paws.

Lifestyle, behavior

Puffins nest in large colonies, sometimes consisting of tens of thousands of pairs, if the territory allows. Birds inhabit steep slopes with many small caves or dig their own holes (more than a meter deep), using a strong beak and claws.

Interesting. Deadlock refers to rare birds, digging holes, and not deepenings, but long meter-long tunnels equipped with a nesting chamber and toilet.

Having established a hole, the puffin flies to the sea to fish, cleans its feathers or argues with its neighbors. The beak is involved in the showdown, but it does not lead to serious wounds. Dead ends are also alarmists - one, getting scared and taking off, can stir up the whole colony. The birds excitedly fly upward, inspect the coast and, not seeing danger, return to their nests.

After cleaning and drying the feathers, the deadhead applies the secretion of the coccygeal gland to them to avoid rapid wetting. Swimming is the most strong point Arctic brother, who is not inferior in agility to a duck, diving, if necessary, to 170 m and staying there for 0.5–1 minutes. Underwater, the short wings of the puffin work like flippers, and their webbed feet set direction like rudders.

This fat little fellow with short wings flies quite tolerably, accelerating up to 80 km/h, steering in flight with his orange outstretched paws. But in the air, the puffin loses its characteristic maneuverability in water and is unlikely to dodge a simple net. In terms of takeoff, it compares favorably with its close relative, the guillemot: it is difficult to rise from the sea and even worse from the land. The puffin easily soars into the air from the sea (running comically across the water surface) and land, however, it splashes down not particularly gracefully, plopping down on its stomach or crashing into the crest of a wave.

Fact. Among the majority of waterfowl, the puffin is distinguished not by one, but by a combination of qualities - masterful swims, deep-sea dives, fast flights and nimble, albeit waddling, running on land.

Arctic brethren winter in compact groups or alone, spending this time in the water. To stay afloat, puffins have to continuously work with their paws, even in their sleep. The dead end strangely screams, or rather, groans, stretching out and repeating the sound “A”, as if wailing or complaining.

How long does a puffin live?

Ornithologists still do not know how long the average representative of the species can live in wildlife, since ringing a dead end does not give accurate results. The ring is put on the paw, which serves as a working tool for underwater hunting and digging holes: it is not surprising that after a few years the inscription on the metal is erased (if the ring is still on the leg). So far, the official record is 29 years, although ornithologists suspect puffins may live longer.

Sexual dimorphism

The difference between male and female individuals is manifested in size - females are not much, but smaller than males. By the breeding season, puffins become brighter: this concerns the skin around the eyes and the huge beak, which is responsible for the main task of attracting a mate.

Subspecies of puffin

Fratercula arctica is divided into 3 recognized subspecies, which differ from each other in size and range:

• Fratercula arctica arctica;
• Fratercula arctica grabae;
• Fratercula arctica naumanni.

Puffins of the first subspecies grow to 15–17.5 cm with a beak length of 41.7–50.2 mm (with a height at the base of 3.45–3.98 cm). Birds of the subspecies F. arctica grabae, living on the Faroe Islands, weigh about 0.4 kg with a wing length of no more than 15.8 cm. Puffins F. a. naumanni inhabit northern Iceland and weigh approximately 650 g with a wing length of 17.2–18.6 cm. The beak of Icelandic puffins is elongated by 49.7–55.8 mm in length and 40.2–44.8 mm in height.

Fact. The most representative colony of puffins is located in Iceland, where approximately 60% of the world population of Fratercula arctica lives.

Range, habitats

Atlantic puffins nest on the coasts/islands of the North Atlantic and Arctic Ocean. The species' range covers the Arctic and coastal regions northwestern Europe and the northeastern sector of North America. The largest colony in North America (more than 250 thousand pairs) settled south of St. John's, in the Witless Bay Nature Reserve.

Other large settlements of puffins have been found in the following places:

• west and north of Norway;
• the shores of Newfoundland;
• Faroe islands;
• west coast of Greenland;
• Orkney and Shetland Islands.

Smaller colonies were located on Spitsbergen, the British Isles, and the peninsulas of Labrador and Nova Scotia. In our country, the largest number of puffins live on the Ainovsky Islands (Murmansk coast). Small colonies were also spotted on Novaya Zemlya, northeast Kola Peninsula and the surrounding islands.

Fact. Outside the mating season, puffins are found in the Arctic Ocean, including the North Sea, occasionally appearing above the Arctic Circle.

Arctic brothers love to nest on islands, avoiding mainland coasts whenever possible. A model home for a puffin is a compact island or cliff with sheer rocky walls, topped with a layer of peaty soil where you can dig holes. Puffins always occupy the top floor, leaving the lower ones to their neighbors - kittiwakes, guillemots, auks and other waterfowl.

Puffin diet

Sea water does not freeze in mild frosts, which is what puffins take advantage of, having mastered (unlike gulls) its internal food resources. Birds often swallow caught fish without surfacing, surfacing only with large specimens.

The puffin diet consists of:

• hake and herring fry;
• sand lance and capelin;
• herring;
• sand eels;
• shellfish and shrimp.

Interesting. The puffin holds trophies in its mouth with the help of its tongue and sharp hook-like growths on which it attaches small fish. Even a dead puffin does not let go of its catch - its beak is clenched so tightly.

Puffins have become adept at hunting fish no larger than 7 cm, but can cope with prey twice as long (up to 18 cm). During the day, an adult puffin eats approximately 40 fish, whose total weight is 0.1–0.3 kg. In one pass, the bird catches about a dozen, but a case is described with 62 fish hanging from the beak of a feathered fisherman. Thus, in clusters, puffins carry prey to the growing chicks.

There are many species of birds found in the northern regions. In such an area there is usually sparse vegetation, storms rage and blow strong winds. Such conditions are not scary seabirds. To a squad of brave and hardy, accustomed to extreme conditions residence can be classified as an Atlantic dead end. How does a bird live with such unusual name, we learn from the article.

Atlantic puffin description and photo

Small bird Atlantic puffin belongs to the auk family, order Charadriiformes. It belongs to the puffin genus. In terms of their body shape, puffins are very similar to penguins, only much smaller in size. Distinctive feature The appearance of puffins is their beak. It is of an unusual triangular shape, flattened on the sides, and its appearance resembles a blunt instrument in the form of an axe. For this reason, the birds were nicknamed puffins. During the mating season, the beak changes its color and becomes bright orange.

The bird's head is painted in dark color interspersed with grayish color. The spots are located on the cheeks. The bird's eyes are small, around them there are leathery formations of red and gray. Because of this, they have an almost triangular shape. The bird's legs are bright orange, as is its beak, and the underside of the body is white.

For your unusual bright look the bird is called " sea ​​parrot» . An adult grows up to 30 cm in length and weighs up to 500 grams. The wingspan is 50-60 cm. The plumage of females and males is not much different, they are almost the same, but males are slightly larger, so it is difficult to distinguish them. Absolutely, we can say that this bird is not only unusual, but also one of the most beautiful on our planet. Their feathers are protected with a special oily secretion, which gives the plumage a water-repellent effect.

Puffins move very quickly and can even run on a flat surface. It looks a little funny because they waddle around like penguins. Birds are excellent swimmers, excellent divers and can hold their breath underwater for almost a minute. In the water they are helped to move by webbed feet and wings with which they row. To get away from the water, birds must flap their wings a lot. It’s as if they are running on water, and only then take off. They usually fly low above the surface of the water, no more than 10 meters in height. The flight speed of puffins is quite high; birds can fly at a speed of 80 km/h. Puffins sit awkwardly on water surface, sometimes fall on their belly or crash into the water.

Lifestyle and habitats

Puffins live in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, as well as in northwestern Europe and the Arctic, off the coast of northeastern North America. This part of North America is home to the largest colony of puffins. Their total number is more than 250 thousand pairs. The largest colony of Atlantic puffins lives off the coast of Iceland, they make up 60% of the total population of the species.

These birds belong to marine species birds Most of life takes place in the open spaces of the sea. When they grow up, they can fly away from their nesting sites, about 100 km from permanent place nesting. Birds usually lead a solitary lifestyle, so they rarely create pairs. The surprising thing is that almost always old pairs are formed for mating. Arriving in the mating season, they find each other again.

The birds spend almost all their time in the water, bobbing on the waves far from the shore. In spring, puffins gather on the shore to breed. For housing, they dig holes about 2 meters long with a nesting chamber on steep hillsides overgrown with grass. They also build housing at the foot of the cliffs among the stones.

Nutrition

Birds are excellent at diving and swimming. Swimming in water, they develop speeds of up to 20 meters, and can dive to a depth of up to 70 meters. Since sea birds, they the diet consists of fish:

• herring;
• capelin;
• sand eels;
• gerbils.

Puffins also sometimes feed on shrimp and small shellfish. The skill of swimmers helps them a lot during hunting; they use their paws as a rudder. Usually their prey is small in size and rarely exceeds 8 cm, but sometimes it happens that they manage to catch fish up to 18 cm long. They eat smaller fish without swimming out of the water, and they take larger ones to the shore. Adult birds can eat up to 40 fish per day. The approximate daily weight of their food is from 100 to 300 grams.

Reproduction

After returning to nesting in March-April, puffins build housing for hatching chicks. Mating season begins with swinging on the waves, where all the birds flock. Two individuals begin mating, rubbing their beaks against each other. After this, the pair flies ashore to inhabit a joint nesting hole. Everything happens at last year's nesting site.

Often couples restore old nests, but if there is none, then they build a new one or find an abandoned hole and settle there to breed offspring. When the female has laid eggs, the parents take turns incubating them. They also share feeding of the chicks after the offspring have hatched.

Puffins are wary of predators, so they try to keep the grown chicks in daytime did not leave the nesting hole. The offspring begins their acquaintance with outside world mainly at night. While they have not yet learned to fly, the chicks swim in the water not far from the shore. So, they spend time almost until dawn and return to the hole again. TO independent life young animals are ready when they can:

• swim;
• fly;
• to fish.

With the arrival of spring, the offspring also fly to the old nesting site, but at this age they do not create pairs. When they are 3-4 years old they will be ready to mate and breed.