Puffin Patrol
On a small island off Iceland’s southern coast, a charming town holds an unexpected attraction: its vibrant puffin population. These beloved birds draw visitors from all over, but they face a few tricky hurdles of their own. Discover how dedicated locals are stepping in to guide these feathered travelers safely on their journey to the ocean.
Location: Heimaey, Iceland
Species: Fratercula arctica
Status: Vulnerable (IUCN, 2024)
Fun fact: Puffins can dive anywhere between 30 to 60 meters.
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Puffin ​
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The Atlantic puffin is a small seabird recognized for its striking black and white feathers, vivid orange beak, and distinctive clown-like face. Unlike its puffin relatives, such as the tufted puffin and horned puffin found in the Pacific, the Atlantic puffin is smaller, with a more triangular beak and less ornate features. It inhabits the colder waters of the North Atlantic, spending most of its life at sea and only coming ashore during the breeding season. One of the largest Atlantic puffin colonies is on Iceland’s Westmann Islands, where thousands of puffins return each summer to nest, making these islands a vital habitat for the species.
In the Westmann Islands, Atlantic puffins nest in burrows dug into grassy cliffs or slopes, often in colonies that can number in the thousands. During the summer breeding season, each pair digs a tunnel-like nest, where they lay a single egg. Both parents share the responsibility of incubating the egg and, once it hatches, feeding the chick with small fish like sand eels. After about six weeks, the fledgling puffin, or "puffling," ventures out of its burrow to make its first flight toward the sea.
These particular pufflings often need a little help on their big night due to the bright lights of Heimaey. Normally, they’re guided by the moon and stars, heading straight for the open sea on their first flight. But the town’s streetlights and glowing windows can throw them off course, luring the pufflings into streets, gardens, and even parking lots instead of the ocean. Once lost, they’re vulnerable and need rescuing. That’s when the Puffin Patrol comes to the rescue, gathering these confused little adventurers and guiding them back to the safety of the sea, where they belong.
The Puffin Patrol is a beloved tradition where locals, especially children, play a key role in rescuing lost puffling. To help, families and volunteers take to the streets at night, armed with flashlights and cardboard boxes, searching for stranded pufflings. When a puffling is found, it’s gently collected and kept safe overnight. The next day, in a heartwarming ritual, the rescued pufflings are brought to the cliffs, where they’re released to continue their journey to the sea. The Puffin Patrol is not only a fun activity for locals and visitors, but also a vital effort to help these birds survive.
In certain cases, wayward puffins end up in precarious situations that can be life threatnng. For example, the puffling in the blue enclosure sustained an injury to its wing, while the puffling in the red enclosure had a confrontation with a discarded spray paint bottle. In cases like these, the birds are brought to the Beluga Sanctuary & Puffin Rescue Center. While visiting Heimaey, I was fortunate enough to meet with Þora (pronounced Thora) from the Sea Life Trust, and we discussed what goes into puffin rehabilitation.
Dedicated individuals keep a watchful eye on our feathery friends, conducting assessments to evaluate the health of each little puffling. Each day, they are weighed, measured, and fed, ensuring they regain their strength on the journey to a full recovery. While they heal, the birds are kept in isolated safe enclosures for technicians to observe (as seen below) and receive enrichment during their stay; ranging from toys to climb pads, this enrichment is essential to the healing process, ensuring physical and mental stimulation. Once the pufflings are back to full health, technicians, sometimes accompanied by the public, release the wee little ones back into the, on their way to oceanic adventures.
During my visit to Heimaey, my partner and I adorned ourselves with headlamps, a box full of grass, and wishful optimism as we scoured the streets, hoping to cross paths with a puffling in need. After repeatedly navigating the harbour area, I spotted a tiny dark figure, waddling in the shadowed entrance of a commercial building. Carefully, we picked up the puffling and secured it in the makeshift nesting box; a simple cardboard box filled with grass, leaves, and greens. Remember to always wear gloves when handling birds, especially seabirds - the oils and products on our hands can interfere with their natural waterproofing. We returned to our hotel room and left our new friend in this box overnight, peacefully resting in the washroom with lights turned off and a towel over the box. The following morning, we made our way to some cliffs and delightfully set this bird on its way, watching it hastly make its way to the water, where it joined a raft of hundreds of other puffins. As Þora reminded us, it's vital for pufflings to be released off the coast, away from marinas and ships, where they can be inundated with oil slicks and other harmful chemicals.
To learn more about puffin rescue, visit Sea Life Trust