Puffins off the Maine coast last week.

[Croney]

It was a rainy, foggy day and we didn't know if the boat trip was a go until we got to the dock, but we went. My pictures are crummy but my BIL-the-birder has all the right stuff.

[Easterncedar]

1. I did a puffin tour years ago

Magic! That picture is perfect!

[2naSalit]

2. Nice!

So, I grew up along the coast of Maine and I have never seen a live puffin and when I was over in central Maine in April, I saw a cardinal pair, never knew they lived in that area. I never saw one until I moved to the great lakes area. Guess I'm a little surprised that I never saw them when I lived there.

It was the 1960s, maybe they were in decline at the time, eagles were scarce back then.

[Croney]

3. They are only there for a certain few weeks in the summer.

We didn't realize that last year, and went up to see them in August but they had just left. This year we planned ahead, which of course always helps!

Where did you grow up? We go to Wells often.

[2naSalit]

4. Around...

Northern end of Casco Bay - Brunswick, Bowdoinham, Harpswell Center. In Harpswell we could walk to the shore in a few minutes, same with my grandparents' place on Cape Cod, just up the street from Craigville Beach. Spent a lot of kid time along the water.

[Croney]

5. Nice! I've never been to that area (yet).

[2naSalit]

6. I remember it well...

I'm sure I've forgotten more but everything sure did feel familiar a couple months ago and I was in an area I had only been to once or twice. I was pleasantly surprised. I met up with a fellow DUer and we watched the eclipse together up at Greenville, it was wicked pissah.

Hadn't been to Maine since I was 19 so I was expecting a lot of change and didn't really see that much! I'm trying to make plans to go back after Labor Day, I should look up more DUers, seem to be a few in the state.

[Fla Dem]

7. What beautiful birds. I didn't realize they live full time on the ocean.

Only go to land when nesting.

Iceland is the home to most of the Atlantic puffins with about 10 million individuals. The largest single puffin colony in the world is in the Westmann Isles of Iceland. In 2009, scientists estimated the number of nests to be 1.1 million, and number of individuals there is estimated to be up to 4 million.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puffin