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Puffins spend 6-8 months each year on the open ocean.
photo: Tom Gillespie
Characteristics: Puffins can be found in the cold waters of the northern Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea. They are about 14.5 inches from the tip of their beaks to the tip of their tails. They have a wingspan of about 22 inches. Puffins have large beaks that are used for carrying fish back to their young.
Diet: Puffins’ diet consists of small fish and marine invertebrates.
Reproduction: Horned puffins return to land to lay eggs and raise their chicks. They are cavity-nesters, meaning they will lay their eggs in burrows or “cavities”. Typically, puffins lay only one egg during breeding season which both male and female will tend.
Environmental Connections:
Puffins are closely connected to the sea. They spend 6-8 months each year on the open ocean. They come back to land only during breeding season.
Puffins feed exclusively on prey that comes from the ocean. They face competition for food from commercial fishermen. Over fishing depletes the ocean of a food source for these and other ocean feeders. By utilizing more sustainable methods of commercial fishing, we can allow fish populations to recover.
Oil exploration presents a threat to Puffins as well. These seabirds gather in large groups so a concentrated oil spill could kill or injure many birds at one time. Small amounts of oil that are ingested or coat their feathers could also be hazardous to their health.
Protecting puffins means preserving the habitats in which they live. No ecosystem stands alone so it is important that we work to protect ecosystems on a global level.
What You Can Do
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N.C. Zoo is a member institution of AZA and an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, William G. Ross Jr. Secretary; Michael F. Easley, Governor. A part of the North Carolina Government portal.
The Zoo is closed Christmas day and during severe weather. Call our information line at: 1-800-488-0444.
