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Southwest Alaska
Name the Bird 1
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Name the Bird 3
Name the Bird 4
Name the Bird 5
Name the Bird 6
Name the Bird 7
Northern Fur Seal 1
Northern Fur Seal 2
Northern Fur Seal 3
Northern Fur Seal 4

Southeast Alaska
Bald Eagle

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UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA MUSEUM



Animals - Southwest Alaska

Name the Bird 3
Length: 32 seconds
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Which bird is it?

Tufted Puffin
Fratercula cirrhata

The range of the Tufted Puffin in Alaska closely overlaps that of the Horned Puffin, but it is more than twice as numerous in the state as a whole, and 12 times more numerous in the Aleutian Islands.

The Tufted Puffin nests primarily in earthen burrows, which the birds excavate to depths up to 2 meters (6.5 feet). Digging is done mainly with the beak, and accumulated soil is scraped and kicked backwards out of the burrow, being vigorously thrown beyond the entrance. Grasses and other vegetation are collected from near the burrow for the nest. The clutch consists of one egg.

A more specialized feeder than the Horned Puffin, the Tufted Puffin relies almost entirely on fish, which it obtains by pursuit-diving throughout the water column. It usually feeds far offshore, commonly to 80+ kilometers (50+ miles) off the Pribilofs. The availability of Sand Lance and/or Capelin is a critical factor in the growth rates of the chicks of both Tufted and Horned puffins.




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