Raptor Resource Project Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Author Topic: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20  (Read 133058 times)

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #570 on: July 27, 2024, 11:22:23 PM »


Puffling Ama fledges! (Audubon Puffin Cam, 7/24/24).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l15-1E1NYs0&t=4s

FLEDGING!!!! JULY 24, 2024! 🎉

At approximately 2:50 a.m. this Wednesday morning, Ama took her big flight, fledging at 42 days old! This momentous occasion is joyous, but also saddening. Though we will not see this feisty busybody of a puffling in the burrow anymore, we can take comfort in the fact that Willie and Millie did a fantastic job raising her. 💕

Photo of pre-fledge Ama taken by one of the Seal Island researchers yesterday. Cute hairdo!  :-*


Ama peeking out of the burrow at about 3:45 p.m. on Tuesday. Photo: Reed Robinson


Puffins are highly instinctual animals. Once pufflings fledge, they are entirely independent and know how to swim, fly, and catch fish all on their own. This is an unusual behavior in birds; even razorbills, close cousins to the puffin, will follow their chicks out into the ocean and continue feeding them. But Ama is probably happily catching her own fish as we speak!

It’s a great big world out there, and it’s all Ama’s oyster! This isn't a goodbye, it's a "see you later." We’ll cheer for you, so see you in a few years, baby Ama!😊🌊
Posted by Audubon Gloria.

Tonight, sweet Mama Millie is dreaming of sweet memories of Ama.



All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #571 on: August 07, 2024, 10:01:26 AM »

Some thoughts on threats to seabirds by Audobon Gloria



The peregrine falcon (PEFA) that perched on the Puffin Burrow Exterior rocks this morning reminded me of the constant threats that seabirds face. Because most of Seal Island’s terns have already begun their migratory journeys, the island’s resident falcon perched relatively undisturbed. But this mighty aerial predator is quite the nuisance to the colony, and Coco & the rest of the Seal Island team have been fighting a constant battle to try and shoo the PEFA away throughout the season.

But beyond aerial predators, seabirds face many human-induced threats. Humans can introduce mammalian predators such as foxes and rats; oil spills and drilling operations can destroy the waterproofing on seabird feathers, contaminate their waters, and be ingested; puffins are still hunted for their meat; birds can get entangled in marine debris (such as that lobster pot on the Boulder Berm!), just to name a few!
 

Puffin with a bill full of white hake. Photo: Derrick Z. Jackson

Overhunting of puffins caused the depletion of their colonies in Maine. Now that Project Puffin has helped bring them back to places like Seal Island, these seabirds face another problem: human overfishing of their food sources. Forage fish such as the haddock, hake, and herring are crucial to seabird survival. The percentage of puffin hatchlings that make it to fledge depends greatly on the amount of forage fish. The fish the puffins and terns bring back to their young reflect the health of the oceans; the Seabird Institute is learning more and more each year, and this 50-year-long project can inform and create lasting decisions to help the planet!
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #572 on: August 07, 2024, 10:02:23 AM »


To cheer everyone up, here's a little Puffin going for a little walk. 😊😍🐦❤️
video by Carl Bovis

https://x.com/i/status/1798401151110705383
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #573 on: August 09, 2024, 11:19:38 AM »



The perfect light for a perfect puffin, photos by Brian Matthews  8)






https://x.com/i/status/1818929664288596392
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #574 on: December 26, 2024, 10:58:57 AM »


Gray Seals of Seal Island



All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #575 on: December 27, 2024, 09:48:25 AM »


Hello mama  ;D





All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #576 on: December 27, 2024, 11:34:35 PM »


Love the face on this baby  :-*


Good night  :-*
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #577 on: December 29, 2024, 12:04:32 AM »


Good night baby  :-*

All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #578 on: December 29, 2024, 11:36:05 AM »


Good morning  ;D





All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #579 on: December 30, 2024, 10:09:08 AM »

Nursing time  :)

All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #580 on: December 30, 2024, 10:10:18 AM »

Gray seals, also known as Atlantic seals or horsehead seals, are native to the north Atlantic Ocean. They are sociable animals that form colonies for breeding and feeding.

Where do gray seals live?
The gray seals featured on this camera are found on Seal Island, off the coast of Maine. There are two distinct populations and distributions of gray seals. One is found in the western north Atlantic along the coasts of Canada, down to New England. The other population is found in the eastern north Atlantic, primarily along the coasts of the UK, Iceland, Norway and the Faroe Islands.

What do gray seals eat?
Gray seals feed on a wide variety of marine animals such as fish, squid and crustaceans. Cod, flatfish, skates and herring are their primary prey and adult gray seals can consume up to 12 pounds of fish in a single day.

How big are gray seals?
Bulls generally measure around 6 feet in length. Cows are typically 4.5 feet in length.

When do gray seals breed?
Different populations of gray seals breed at different times of the year. The Canadian population featured on this live seal cam breeds from mid-December to February. Caves, sandy beaches, rocky islands and ice floes tend to be favorite breeding locations for female gray seals.

After a gestation period of 11 month, females come to land just a few days before giving birth and will not feed for several weeks while lactating. Pups are born with a longhaired white coat which they will shed three to four weeks after birth. Pups nurse on their mothers' highly caloric milk (60% fat) for nearly 3 weeks. During the nursing period, the pup will gain nearly four pounds per day!

After the pup is weaned, the mother will leave the pup to fend for itself and then mate again. Seal mating can take place on land or in the water and dominant males can mate with up to 10 females; sub-dominant males mate with just one female. Seals will return to the rookery each year to start the breeding and mating process over again.
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #581 on: January 01, 2025, 12:12:25 AM »




All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #582 on: January 03, 2025, 10:01:00 AM »

 :-*

When a seal pup waves at you, the polite thing to do is wave back.
https://x.com/i/status/1875205594925486287





« Last Edit: January 03, 2025, 10:10:32 AM by Lani »
All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #583 on: January 03, 2025, 11:31:51 PM »


You're so cute  :-*




All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander

Lani

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13495
  • All Things Bright and Beautiful
Re: Puffin Burrow at Seal Island, Maine, USA 2019-20
« Reply #584 on: January 04, 2025, 09:30:18 PM »


You are the sweetest baby  :-*





All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful; The Lord God made them all....Author: Cecil F. Alexander