I thought it would take a few years to do that and here we are 41 years later, still at it. ![]() Wouldn’t it be great if I could restore that colony? I set about doing that starting in the late 60s. I decided that it was really a shame that people had eaten them all off of these islands and, therefore, we couldn’t see them. Then, I came to the Audubon camp on Hog Island as a bird life instructor and learned that there used to be puffins breeding on Eastern Egg Rock, which is about 8 mi from Hog Island. I first met puffins on Machias Seal Island, the Canadian island. What caused you to become involved in puffin restoration and research? Kress explains how the breeding phenology of puffins is connected to the productivity of the Gulf of Maine and the health of the marine ecosystem. The success of this program, Project Puffin, on an island called Eastern Egg Rock has led to the restoration of other coastal bird species and provided important data on the life stages of the Atlantic puffin. Stephen Kress began to restore these colonies by transplanting chicks to their former breeding grounds and emboldening them to return as adults and explore the island’s breeding habitat. Stephen Kress Photo Credit: Bill ScholtzĪtlantic puffin populations on several islands in the Gulf of Maine were decimated in the mid 1800s by hunters seeking meat, eggs, and feathers. At long last, my aching soul rested easy.Interview with Dr. ![]() I marched to the gift shop, past the sweaters, post cards and other lame touristy things and bought my puffin mug. This time, any snack breaks, bathroom trips or customs process would wait. In my case, this came in the form of a second layover in Reykjavik Airport. But while I genuinely hunted for coffee in the Amsterdam “coffee shops,” or lost myself in the gardens of Versailles, I never forgot. I boarded a plane, wrenching me from puffins and plopping me into a world of windmills and wooden clogs. Where were the puffins hopping to? Did it matter? Could it be love? I still wasn’t sure, but I sure liked the way they waddled and the way they flapped their flippers to gain altitude on their hops. Puffin Socks, Puffin plushies, Puffin keychains. Love is a process one which deepens and blooms with every passing puffin. Barbie provides a link to live HD cams where one can watch puffins on their loafing ledge. The extra salt dribbles out of their nostrils.”ĭying yet? I won’t spoil all of the puffin fun (PufFUN?) but WAIT. “Puffins can drink salt water and separate the salty brine in their salt glands, located over their eyes. “Did you know that Puffins can sit on your breakfast table? Puffins are usually ten inches tall, which is about the height of a quart of milk” Barbara, the literary master, provides excellent light reading with an array of puffin facts. ![]() And also because I would rather not associate breakfast with obituaries and economic crises. Some read the newspaper with their morning coffee. But the spirits of my puffin friends guided me. I never know if the plastic bag will explode, erupting fresh oat nuggets all over the counters and floors. I use times like these to also catch up on my grocery shopping! Not really, but Puffins Cereal sat conveniently close to the soy milk, so I filched a box and ran back to my barista isolation corner. ![]() This meant that I had to prance from my station, into the grocery aisles to snatch a few more soy milks. The opportune moment arose when a customer ordered a soy latte. After selling two boxes of Babara’s Peanut Butter Puffins Cereal yesterday, I knew it was time.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |