It’s puffling season on Heimaey, a volcanic island in the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago along the southern coast of Iceland. Just 4,500 people call the island home, but over a million puffin burrows can be found around the island’s steep, grassy cliffs. It’s the biggest puffin colony in Europe. And the locals are keen on helping the baby puffins (affectionately called pufflings) make it safely to adulthood.
Because the baby birds easily get lost at night, it’s not uncommon to see them waddling helplessly through town. This is where the puffin patrol comes in: volunteers carefully throw lost pufflings back into the ocean. Far from being a cruel act, this helps the birds. It’s become commonplace to see groups of children, adults, and families wandering the streets collecting pufflings into cardboard boxes.
Adorable puffins in need of help
Atlantic puffins are iconic seabirds in Iceland. Every year, they come to the island to make their burrows. They mate for life and use the same burrow again and again, as long as it is available. After hatching, pufflings typically leave their nests at night guided by the moon and stars towards the ocean. However, artificial lights from towns, streets, and buildings can confuse them. Often, they will fly towards the lights instead of the sea.
To help these lost pufflings, the local community participates in a longstanding tradition of rescuing and releasing them back into the wild. And the activity has become a celebrated part of the island’s culture.
“The pufflings’ wings are too weak to take off again, so they end up stranded on the island,” explained Kyana Sue Powers, who’s an outdoor photographer specializing in adventure and lifestyle. “People of all ages wander the streets every night searching for puffins to rescue. It is common to see families walking or driving around with a cardboard box full of pufflings. While the streets aren’t littered with puffins, any given search team can easily find 4-10 pufflings a night,” she added on her blog called Inspired by Iceland.
The residents of the island form patrols to search for the chicks. After placing them gently into cardboard boxes, they take them to the Sea Life Trust, where the birds are weighed, measured, and tagged. The birds are not harmed by the process and the next day, they are released into the wild. If they were to release them during the night, they’d probably wander into town again.
An important, selfless act
Although there are many puffins on Heimaey now (and in several other colonies in Iceland), their numbers were far lower in the past. Iceland’s inhabitants used to hunt puffins for food, and their numbers, while now increasing, are still a cause for concern.
The Heimaey puffin patrol plays a very important role, says Rodrigo A. Martínez Catalán, who works at Náttúrustofa Suðurlands (South Iceland Nature Research Center). In fact, this beautiful human tradition may be vital to the survival of puffins. Because they mate for life, only incubate one egg per season and don’t lay eggs every year, every puffling is important.
“If you have one failed generation after another after another after another, the population is through, pretty much,” he said.
When it’s time for pufflings to head out to sea, they typically use the moon as an indicator. If everything is in order, they go out and spend the first few years of their life away from the colony, before returning with their mate.
“It’s a great feeling because you just rescued this little guy. And when you bring him to the cliff – it’s the first time in his life he’s seeing the ocean, and he’s gonna live there for the next few years,” Kyana notes. “I’m always like, ‘Bye buddy, have a great life, I can’t wait to see you again,” she added.
In the end, the story of the puffins in the Westman Islands shows a remarkable bond between humans and nature. The annual migration of pufflings, and the community’s dedication to guiding these young birds back to the sea, highlights the importance of conservation and the deep connection people feel to the wildlife around them.
As light pollution continues to pose a threat to seabird populations, the efforts made by islanders serve as a reminder of how small, collective actions can have a profound impact on protecting vulnerable species. Through education, awareness, and community involvement, the future of the puffins in Vestmannaeyjar remains hopeful, ensuring that these charming seabirds continue to thrive for generations to come.
