Until the next time we see them - Tufted Puffins

By -
This summer, a U.S.F.W.S. volunteer closely monitored the iconic tufted puffins who call Haystack Rock their breeding ground home.

The puffins use this space as their breeding ground, because they prefer to stay close to the ocean shore. Their survival is dependent upon the sea, where they catch the food that they eat and feed their young. 

 
Puffins eat small fish and squid. They can hold several fish at a time in their large bill, which allows them to transport the fish back to their burrow to feed their chick. Recent studies on Atlantic puffins attribute the successful fledgling, and long term survival of chicks to an adequate food source. When fish populations decline, so do the puffin populations.  

These puffins lay their egg 2-6 feet deep in a burrow. Near the top of Haystack Rock, on the grassy slope. The north side is shielded from the strong south winds. They dig out the soil with their large, shovel like bill, and lay one single white egg. Since it is so deep in the burrow, out of sight of predators, the egg doesn't need much camouflage. 

Puffins are auklets, they are related to the pigeon guillemot and common murre. They are black, football shaped birds with a heavy orange bill. You can spot them flapping their wings furiously, flying in circles out and back to the rock. The reason they are so clumsy on land is because they are built to be out at sea. The murres look just like the puffins when flying, except that they have a while belly and sharp black beak. They look like small penguins.


Murre (left) Puffin (right)

The tufted puffins are seen at Haystack Rock from April - August. While not breeding, the they spend much of their lives up to 60 miles off-shore. They have nothing to land on out there. So, they float on top of the ocean surface and dive up to 200 feet deep. Talk about some incredible survival skills! Many of them are headed back out to sea now. You may spot some stragglers through September if you are lucky.

We received this report on September 3rd from Tim, the U.S.F.W.S. Volunteer who has been monitoring the puffins: "Not a puffin in sight on this gorgeous morning at Haystack rock Cannon Beach. Other observers report that there were several here a week or more ago but that their numbers quickly dwindled. It has been a great season and we will hope for good puffling viability and continued improvement with this population. Thanks for the opportunity to be part of this important project" 
  
We wish the tufted puffins a safe journey. We hope they have a lot of squid and food sources for the adults and their chicks. We will be waiting to welcome them back and to celebrate their return.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Nudibranchs in the Tidepools

By -
Image
Nudibranchs, also referred to as sea slugs, can frequently be spotted in the tidepools at Haystack Rock. There are many species of nudibranch, most having outstanding markings and colors. The nudibranch feed on bryozoans, hydroids and sponges and it's color can be changed by the food it eats.   The nudibranch has a pair of sensory projections on their head, called rhinophores, which allow them to smell and taste. Virtually all nudibranchs have some form of eyes but they are not well developed and in most cases are little more than a pigment spot in the head near the rhinophores.  The nudibranch breathes through gill projections which extract oxygen from the seawater. The Pacific Northwest has more than 200 species of nudibranchs. The Opalescent Nudibranch ( Hermissenda crassicornis ) could be called 'showy'. It is found from Alaska to Baja, California and can grow to two inches in size. At Haystack Rock, it can be found in the sandy bottom of a tidepool. It is slender wit...
Read more

What Is That Foam?

By -
Image
Visitors to Haystack Rock were recently greeted with an intertidal covered with a brownish foam and, naturally, asked 'What is That Foam?' The foam has been prevalent up and down the north Oregon coast during the last week, evident both in the surf, on the beaches and in the intertidal zone. Sea Foam on Cannon Beach, Spring 2014 Photo Courtesy of Carolyn Propst The foam is not pollution but is created by microscopic phytoplankton. Phytoplankton are one-celled organisms that are at the bottom of the ocean's food chain. Diatoms are the most common form of phytoplankton on the north Oregon Coast. The phytoplanktons contain a fatty-like material, called cytoplasm, that holds them together. When the phytoplanktons die, the cytoplasm 'glue' the individual skeletons together. This creates layers that trap air within the ocean water, increasing the surface tension and creating the bubbles. When there are a lot of phytoplankton more of them die creating even more ...
Read more