United States (Alaska)
Aug 15 2010
adult, summer plummage
The puffins nest deep in the salmonberries on the west side of the island, and I crawled down deep into the salmonberries to get this shot. As they barrel into the salmonberries they create "runways" where the salmonberries have been beaten down and birds can take off and land. As the runways expand, the colony expands; the birds are engineering their own habitat. This one was sitting out on a runway, and so had a little more light than those deeper in the salmonberries.
Jun 20 2014