The time that is most appreciated by the children of the Vestmannaeyjar Islands has arrived. They come to the rescue of puffins, which, leaving their burrows, fly towards the city, confused by the city lights. And they should go to the ocean. Children find such orphans, usually weigh them, and then take them ashore, where they let them go.
According to Morgunblaðið, the puffin population on the islands this year is unusually large.
The Icelandic bird population is still much smaller than it was 15 years ago, according to Erpur Snær Hansen, head of the South Iceland Nature Research Center. Only in this century it decreased by 44%, but this year the decrease is clearly smaller.
This year, the young weigh much more than in previous years. This means that they have access to a greater abundance of food. Therefore, parents do not have to travel long distances to get food for their young.
It will be five years before this year’s chicks reach sexual maturity and start nesting.
Gígja Óskarsdóttir monitors the chicks in the Vestmannaeyjar Islands. He explains that it usually takes about six weeks for the young to leave their nests. By the end of this period, the number of hatchlings on the islands is expected to be around 7,000.
Source: Yle
