

AUKS, MURRES and PUFFINS Family Alcidae 



PUFFIN; SEA PARROT 

 13. Fratercula arctica. 13 inches. 



Puffins are grotesque birds, with short legs, stout 

 bodies and very large, thin bills, that of the common 

 Puffin being 2 in. in length and about the same in 

 height; the bill is highly colored with red and yellow, 

 and the feet are red; eyes, white. It will be noticed 

 that the blackish band across the throat does not touch 

 the chin, this distinguishing it from the Horned Puffin 

 of the Pacific coast. Adults in winter shed the greater 

 portion of their bill, lose the little horns that project 

 over the eye, and the face is blackish : they then re- 

 semble young birds. They live on rocky shores, the 

 more precipitous the better. They stand erect upon 

 their feet and walk with ease. 



Notes. A low croak. 



Nest. They breed in large colonies on rocky cliffs, 

 laying their single white eggs (2.50x1.75) in crevices. 



Range. Breeds from Matinicus Rock, Me., northward; 

 winters south casually to Cape Cod. Large-billed Puffin 

 (F. a. naumanni) is found in the Arctic Ocean. 



