Iceland's Puffling Patrol: The Art of Saving Baby Puffins
The Peculiar Practice of Tossing Baby Puffins
Across Iceland, people have been collecting baby puffins and throwing them off cliffs and shorelines. But don't worry - this is actually a rescue mission known as Puffling Patrol.
Why Pufflings Need Our Help
During late summer, baby puffins (called pufflings) begin their journey to the ocean. They'll stay at sea for several years before returning to land to find mates.
Nature designed these birds to use moonlight as their guide to find the ocean. But there's a problem - city lights often confuse the small birds. Instead of heading toward the water, many pufflings wander into town by mistake.
Once a puffling gets lost in a town, its chances of survival drop. Without help, these baby birds might never find their way to the ocean where they belong.
How Puffling Patrol Works
Throughout puffling season, caring people search their towns after dark. They look for lost baby puffins who have wandered away from their ocean path.
When patrol members find a puffling, they carefully place it in a cardboard box for safekeeping overnight. The next step involves wildlife experts who check each bird's health.
After getting a clean bill of health, the pufflings are ready for release. Patrol members take the boxes to beaches or cliffs and gently toss the baby puffins toward the ocean. This unusual throw actually helps set the birds back on their correct life path.
More Than Just Bird Rescue
The Puffling Patrol brings more benefits than just saving birds. This yearly tradition unites the community of the Westman Islands. People come together over a shared goal of helping these small, confused birds find their way.
It's a perfect example of how humans can step in to fix problems we've created (like confusing light pollution) and help keep nature in balance.
So if you ever visit Iceland during late summer and see someone throwing a small bird off a cliff - don't panic! They're not being cruel. They're part of the Puffling Patrol, and that little toss might just save a puffin's life.
