puffin, originally uploaded by Eudaimonie.

Wonder what he is looking at?

Simon Drew, originally uploaded by Tralamander.

Drag the Magic Puffin by Cat Walden¹ or²

1. http://www.coroflot.com/tralamander/portfolio [↩]
2. http://www.flickr.com/people/tralamander/ [↩]

A couple puffin videos for you to enjoy…

Puffin Stuff (Cartoon)

Puffin (Video of a drawing)

Oh! The creativity of people is endless, isn’t it? I found a virtual place called, The House of Ghostly Puffin, in a make-believe fantasy world. I believe it is from the game Fable II but I am not entirely certain. Here is how the creator (Solar Dragon) described it,

The House of the Ghostly Puffin is a home in Bowerstone Market in Fable II. It is located opposite of the Vestry Manor and next to Miracle Manor, on the road leading to Fairfax Gardens. The House of the Ghostly Puffin is an okay house, it has a lived in feel, with slight damage to the wall adjacent to the stairwell. The house also has a balcony with a chest on the far right of it.

Stats

Base value: 18,000 gold
Stars:
Address: 5 Posh Street, Bowerstone
History: Locals believe this house to be haunted by the spirit of a long-dead puffin. Rather than frightening its residents with nightmares however, the puffin is said to bring extremely peaceful and restful dreams.
Bonuses: Health Bonus

You can read the original here.

I found this cute puffin pin today, cute, eh?

Puffin pin by The Artful Badger

You can see it or buy it here.

Between the Northern Isles and Aberdeen a ferry crosses back and forth. On this ferry a life-sized bronze puffin has been making this journey for years. Now, it is being donated to the Scottish Wildlife Trust and is being auctioned off on E-bay to the highest bidder. All proceeds go to help the Scottish Wildlife Trust. Here is the E-bay informational page:

This high quality, limited edition of 30, life-size (27cm/11in) bronze puffin has been on a remarkable journey over the last six months.

Created by wildlife sculptor, Eddie Hallam (www.wildlifesculptures.co.uk/), the puffin (or Amber as it’s affectionately known to reflect the puffin’s conservation status) has spent the winter onboard the Northlink Ferry, MV Hrossey. Sailing between Aberdeen & the Orkney Isles, this was intended to mirror the natural habits of it’s real-life counterparts.

Originally sculpted using a wooden armature and worked up in clay & resin, the puffin’s time at sea has produced a wonderfully unusual, mottled green finish where it’s been spattered and sprayed by the sea water.

This is a fantastic opportunity to own a unique, well travelled puffin, full of character whilst helping to protect Scotland’s wildlife for the future.

DELIVERY INFO:

Delivery will be by Royal Mail Special Delivery (1 working day). Alternatively, the winning bidder may collect it from our offices in Edinburgh or any of the following Scottish Wildlife Trust visitor centres:

• Loch of the Lowes, Dunkeld
• Montrose Basin, Montrose
• Falls of Clyde, New Lanark

For further information on our puffin’s journey, please visit www.swt.org.uk/news/ferry-captain-carries-unusual-adventurer-to-the-winter-seas/

So, what are you waiting for? Go look for more information on the puffin’s journey and/or go bid on it!

The E-bay page is here. The BBC News article is here.

In Washington State we have a master carver who carves puffins, and he teaches classes every year to teach others how to carve as well. This year (and possibly others) his class carved puffins, how cute are they?

Photograph property of Liz Holland

The whole article can be read here.

puffin 2, originally uploaded by ilpinz.

How DO puffins (and other birds) stay warm in the winter?

Puffins have a higher body temperature than humans due to their significantly higher metabolism. While the average human’s body temperature is 98.6ºF (37ºC), the average bird’s body temperature is appriximately 105ºF (40ºC). To maintain this higher temperature birds have a few physical helpers as well as some behavioral helpers.

Physical helpers:

Puffins have unique scales that cover their feet and legs which minimize heat loss.

Puffins have an extraordinary circulatory system in their legs to help them cope with cold temperatures. Warm arterial blood from the birds interior that is on its way to the bird’s feet passes through a network of small passages that runs along side the cold returning venous blood from the feet. The network of vessels acts like a radiator and exchanges the heat from the out-going arterial blood to the cold venous blood. This system insures that no heat is lost and the bird’s feet receive a constant supply of life sustaining blood. That’s also why ducks can swim in freezing water and not get cold.¹

Puffins have feathers coated in oil which is important for waterpoofing / snowproofing. Birds often grow more feathers during late fall to give them extra protection for winter. They can also fluff up their feathers during particularly colder days and nights which can reduce the amount of heat loss by up to 30%!!!

Puffins have a different kind of fat than humans. Birds have white fat which is a high-energy fuel used to power the birds warming process, shivering. Shivering produces heat five times their normal basal rate and can maintain a normal body temperature for six to eigh hours at temperatures minus 70ºF.² Since this fat is so important to our feathered friends, birds will often try to store extra fat for winter.

Behavioral Adaptations

Puffins, like most birds, use some particular behaviors to conserve heat as well:

Tucking: When birds stand on one leg or crouch down covering their legs with its feathers. Birds can also tuck their bills into their shoulders as well.

Fluffing: Birds will fluff out their feathers to create air pockets for additional insulation in cold temperatures.³

Shivering: As I mentioned above, shivering is an important behavior for birds. Birds will shiver to raise their metabolic rate and generate more body heat as a short term solution to extreme cold. While shivering does require more calories, it is an effective way to stay warm.⁴

Sunning: On sunny winter days, many birds will take advantage of solar heat by turning their backs to the sun (therefore exposing the largest surface of their bodies to the heat) and raising their feathers slightly. This allows the sun to heat the skin and feathers more efficiently. Wings may also be drooped or spread while sunning, and the tail may be spread as well.⁵

Migrating: Puffins will often swim to the Atlantic Ocean to warmer spots for three months during winter before returning to their nesting places.

1. http://www.stantekiela.com/articles.php?articleID=129 [↩]
2. http://www.stantekiela.com/articles.php?articleID=129 [↩]
3. http://birding.about.com/od/birdingbasics/a/howbirdskeepwarm.htm [↩]
4. http://birding.about.com/od/birdingbasics/a/howbirdskeepwarm.htm [↩]
5. http://birding.about.com/od/birdingbasics/a/howbirdskeepwarm.htm [↩]

Fratercula corniculata (Horned Puffin), originally uploaded by Arthur Chapman.

The caption reads,

Specimen of Horned Puffin (Fratercula corniculata) in the Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Puffin, originally uploaded by featherandfur.

They look like they are having a serious conversation, don’t they?