In Memoriam: John B Davies
Baby Puffin emerging for the first time to start wing fapping excercise. Skomer -
Proud mother looks on at chicks first attempts outside their burrow . . . . . Where possible, the birds excavate a nesting burrow into the soil. Sometimes they will make use of rabbit burrows. The birds defend the nesting site and its immediate surround, and use it in subsequent years. Puffins lay only a single egg, in late April or early May. Both parents incubate it for 36-45 days, and they share the feeding duties until the chick is ready to fledge.
The fledging period is very variable, ranging from 34 to 60 days, depending on the area and year.
Adult birds desert their young shortly before they are ready to leave the nest. The timing of the breeding in puffin colonies is highly synchronised, and so the departure of all adults takes place within a few days. The young birds leave their nest burrow and make their way to the sea, normally under cover of darkness to avoid predators.
Baby Puffin emerging for the first time to start wing fapping excercise. Skomer -
Proud mother looks on at chicks first attempts outside their burrow . . . . . Where possible, the birds excavate a nesting burrow into the soil. Sometimes they will make use of rabbit burrows. The birds defend the nesting site and its immediate surround, and use it in subsequent years. Puffins lay only a single egg, in late April or early May. Both parents incubate it for 36-45 days, and they share the feeding duties until the chick is ready to fledge.
The fledging period is very variable, ranging from 34 to 60 days, depending on the area and year.
Adult birds desert their young shortly before they are ready to leave the nest. The timing of the breeding in puffin colonies is highly synchronised, and so the departure of all adults takes place within a few days. The young birds leave their nest burrow and make their way to the sea, normally under cover of darkness to avoid predators.