If you’ve been reading my blog posts of Gull Island (near Homer, Alaska), I’ve shared some Kittiwakes, a pair of Pigeon Guillemots, and a Red-faced Cormorant. Today’s post is another common seabird found on Gull Island, the Tufted Puffin (Fratercula cirrhata). This beautifully-colored seabird is in the Auk family (Alcidae), along with murres, guillemots, murrelets, and auklets. They are often found swimming around Gull Island, where they often dive and “fly” underwater, using their wings to project themselves through the water (I had the opportunity to watch them do this at the Alaska Sea Life Center, a wonderful aquarium in Seward, Alaska). When around Gull Island, if one looks closely, Tufted Puffins can sometimes be seen standing next to burrows they make along the ledges of island bluffs. These burrows may reach as far as 7-feet into the earth! Unfortunately, we did not see any near the burrows on this trip. Here are a couple of images of swimming Tufted Puffins:
