As winter approaches, many seabirds that nest along Atlantic coastlines in summer head out to sea to live and hunt in cold, northern waters. Dovekies, one of the most numerous North Atlantic seabirds, dive deep below the waves to feed on tiny crustaceans. Atlantic Puffins forage for fish and mollusks. Black-legged Kittiwakes eat just about […]
Tag: puffins
The huge threat of climate change: Iceland’s puffins and MANY other species pay high price
Flying in on whirring wings from a fishing trip or resting beside their nesting burrows near the southern tip of Iceland, these beautiful puffins look to be at one with the environment. At Dyrholaey in southern Iceland, we watched them skilfully dodge attacks by the pirates of the sea, Arctic and great skuas as they […]
Seabirds nest in new spots on Farne Islands as Covid keeps people away
It is not just humans who have changed their habits as a result of the pandemic. On the Farne Islands in north-east England, seabirds have used Covid as an opportunity to try out new nesting spots while rangers and tourists stayed away. While the absence of people has been a boon for some species, it […]
Puffins under threat as European boats overfish in UK waters post Brexit, RSPB warns
Overfishing by Scandinavian boats in UK waters is threatening the puffin bird, according to wildlife conservation groups. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has renewed calls for “urgent action” to curb the fishing practices of boats from countries such as Denmark and Norway. Under EU quota arrangements that have continued through Brexit, […]
Key species at risk if planet heats up by more than 1.5C, report finds
Corals will bleach, penguins will lose their Antarctic ice floes, puffins around the UK coast will be unable to feed their young, and the black-headed squirrel monkey of the Amazon could be wiped out if the world fails to limit global heating to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Beyond a 1.5C rise, many species will face […]
Petition: Stop Organized Puffin Hunting in Iceland
Puffins are beautiful seabirds with bright, gorgeous colors. They’re lovingly called ‘clowns of the sea’ or ‘sea parrots’ because of their colors. Anyone would want to see a puffin given the chance, and some people do. Norway, the Faroe Islands, the US, and Canada offer puffin viewing tours for people to have the chance to […]
A world without puffins? The uncertain fate of the much-loved seabirds
Bryony Baker lies spreadeagled at the edge of a cliff and reaches her hand deep into a hole in the ground that is almost entirely hidden beneath a clump of grass. She pushes further in and her arm disappears up to the shoulder. It is a little like watching a vet getting up close and […]
Stone curlews died underweight because of ‘cold spring’
One of the UK’s rarest birds is being put at further risk by the cold spring, the RSPB has said. The bodies of eight underweight stone curlews have been discovered in fields in Norfolk, Suffolk and Wiltshire over the past few days. The birds are thought to have come from Africa and Spain but struggled […]