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THE BURROW LOCATION of an Atlantic puffin is marked by a number and a weed-up lobster buoy on Eastern Egg Rock, see here on Friday, Aug. 1. Wildlife biologists who spend time in blinds use the markings to keep track of puffin feedings.
THE BURROW LOCATION of an Atlantic puffin is marked by a number and a weed-up lobster buoy on Eastern Egg Rock, see here on Friday, Aug. 1. Wildlife biologists who spend time in blinds use the markings to keep track of puffin feedings.
EASTERN EGG ROCK

The Audubon Society wants bird lovers to contribute to a project scientists hope will help save Atlantic puffins in Maine.

There are about 1,000 pairs of the seabirds in the state. The National Audubon says the number of fledging puffin chicks has declined in the last two years.

Puffins have been giving butterfish to their young instead of herring and hake, which are leaving for cooler waters. But butterfish are too big for puffin chicks to eat, and many starve and die.

Audubon maintains three web cameras on Seal Island, one of Maine’s key puffin habitats. Audubon wants residents to monitor feeding behavior and answer questions.

From 2007 to 2011, 77 percent of puffin pairs on Seal Island produced fledglings, declining to 10 percent in 2013.


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