Summer Residents
By Brenda McGuinness
I feel like I have been chasing an opportunity to see a puffin in real life my whole life. I finally got to see my first puffin in Iceland in April 2024 while visiting there with my family. Despite being told by locals that we were a little early to see the puffins return to Iceland, we accidentally came upon a large colony while visiting a lighthouse. It was just before sunset and we were all alone with them. It was an incredible feeling. I was blown away by how comfortable they were with us there, and they seemed curious and social while we took in the experience. They treated us to a show of flight and sound, which was truly a sight to behold.
Of course, the experience left me wanting more, and in my research I discovered that they can be found seasonally on Machias Seal Island. With the Spire Journal being a Maine publication, I chose to depict the lighthouse on Machias as the backdrop for the puffins in my painting.
Prior to choosing puffins for this submission, I did some research on the relevance of conservation for puffins, what dangers they face, and what steps are being taken to protect them. I learned about “Project Puffin” which began in the early 1970’s. Biologist Steve Kress sought to restore the puffin population on Eastern Egg Rock Island in the Gulf of Maine as excessive hunting of puffins at that time had almost wiped them out entirely. He pioneered changes in hunting practices and protecting land for nesting sites, as well as installing decoys for animal predators of the puffin. These changes allowed the puffins to gradually repopulate and avoid extinction.
Other challenges facing this sea bird are warming waters due to climate change, which has a significant effect on the availability of their preferred fish, herring. As herring thrive in cooler waters, they go deeper and therefore out of reach of the puffin adults. Although puffins have adapted by switching to a diet of the more available butterfish, the deep-bodied shape of the butterfish makes it more difficult or even too difficult for the young chicks to swallow. Therefore, the hunting efforts of the adult are wasted and the young are not nourished.
Project Puffin has proved to be hugely successful with the project restoring thousands of puffins to the islands in the Gulf of Maine. The importance of conserving puffin habitat benefits not only puffins but humans too. Steve Kress points out that puffins tell us about what is happening in our oceans. As they face challenges and are forced to adapt to changes in their ability to find food at sea, we too can expect to see changes in our lives. He calls them messengers and urges us to listen to what they have to say.
