TNCWC79., originally uploaded by stonefaction.

Caption reads:

A baby Puffin about to be released into the outer Firth of Forth between the Isle of May and Anstruther. The bird was attempting to reach the water in the dark last night and got disorientated. The SNH folk on the island rescued it from being predated by the resident gulls and released it from the May Princess.

Would you have imagined there was violence amongst puffins? I wouldn’t! But that is exactly what was happening in a puffin colony in Scotland. A puffin now dubbed, ‘Asbo’ was caught on camera attacking a puffling for no apparent reason. He would go in and peck and kick at the little baby puffin.

It lends to the argument that social systems within the animal kingdom are much more complex than we can really fathom. Perhaps that baby was born of another male puffin, an old flame? Who knows what the real reason is for this puffin bully but I am glad to read that the puffling is ok and will most likely survive.

You can read the original story here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-north-east-orkney-shetland-10884574

Shetland.org has set up a live Puffin web cam and they are currently waiting for some pufflings to hatch! They are thought to be hatching between June 10th and June 15th! This means we can actually WATCH a puffling being hatched LIVE! How fantastic would that be!? A miracle for certain. And it is not like these little sea clowns won’t amuse us in the meanwhile, right?

Click on the link below or either picture to get to the Puffin cam

OH! I found another puffin cam…this one has its own website and forums to have discussions… you should check it out!

According to their website:

Puffin Cam is broadcasting live pictures from the small island of Burhou.
Burhou Island is 1.5 km off the coast of the channel island of Alderney. Burhou is a paradise for seabirds as there are no rats or cats and very little human disturbance on the island.
Puffin Cam is a way to observe these beautiful birds, in their natural habitat, as they go about their daily lives.
Watch out for Puffins leaving and entering their burrows, rafting in groups just off shore and, later in the season, bringing fish home for their growing chicks.
This project is in collaboration with The Wildlife Trusts and Alderney Wildlife Trust and has been made possible with support from Airtel-Vodafone, The States of Alderney, South East Grid for Learning (SEGfL) and Sesys

Click HERE to see their website (or click on the picture above!)