Sand Eels Galore!
Sand eels galore, but for how much longer? Commercialisation of sandeel fishing for use in intensive rearing of farm animals is threatening the very existence of such iconic sea birds as Atlantic Puffins, who feed their young with them.
For parents it means further trips out to sea in order to find them, distances of up to fifty miles. This one had just returned to its nesting burrow on one of the Farne Islands, off the east coast of northeast England.
They lay only one egg, which takes six weeks to incubate. During the fledging period the chick or puffling as it is called, may devour as many as 2,500 fish. The extroadinary ability of parents to hold so many fish in their mouths while at the same time swimming and hunting beneath the surface is critical in this regard. See how many you can count in the Puffin's mouth!
Sand Eels Galore!
Sand eels galore, but for how much longer? Commercialisation of sandeel fishing for use in intensive rearing of farm animals is threatening the very existence of such iconic sea birds as Atlantic Puffins, who feed their young with them.
For parents it means further trips out to sea in order to find them, distances of up to fifty miles. This one had just returned to its nesting burrow on one of the Farne Islands, off the east coast of northeast England.
They lay only one egg, which takes six weeks to incubate. During the fledging period the chick or puffling as it is called, may devour as many as 2,500 fish. The extroadinary ability of parents to hold so many fish in their mouths while at the same time swimming and hunting beneath the surface is critical in this regard. See how many you can count in the Puffin's mouth!