Kissin' Puffins

These are Alaskan horned puffins – compare the beak to that of an Atlantic puffin, Fratercula arctica and another Atlantic puffin, or the head feathers to these on on an Alaskan tufted puffin.

The horned puffin is small – about the size of a pigeon – and has a black upper with a white chest and undersides. Its face and cheeks are white face, and it is named for the small black "horn" above its eyes. A thin, dark line runs from from its eyes to the nape of its neck . The horned puffin has a large, triangular orange bill with a red tip, which has earned it the occassional name 'sea parrot'.

The horned puffin is pelagic, meaning that it lives on the open sea where it can dive up to depths of 80 feet to catch fish and marine invertebrates. Horned puffins gather on sea cliffs or on rocky islets during the breeding season.

Horned puffins : Kodiak island puffins etc.