Birds

We love them. Now protect them and their habitats.

Photo: Stephen W. Kress

“Why do birds matter?” is one of those questions like “What is love?” or “Why are we here?” or even “Is there a God?” Unanswerable, I think, by logic. One could cite facts like, birds eat lots of harmful insects, charm us at our feeders, or challenge us to learn their field marks, molts, and names both common and scientific. But perhaps the answer lies deeper. Since the beginning birds have lifted our eyes to the skies. They’ve shown us we’re not gravity’s slave, that flight is possible and limitless. It can hover and soar, dive and display, and take us from one end of the planet to the other in a single, impossible burst of energy and purpose. Inspiration is the gift birds have given us from the start. But now they give us a question as well. Like the canary in the mine, they hold the planet up to us like a mirror and ask: “Can you not see that if we pass away, soon you will as well?” That’s a good question, and since birds pose it, they matter a lot.

Wes Craven, Film director

Audubon Live Cams
Conservation

Audubon Live Cams

Watch birds build nests and raise their young, live from Maine!

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The Auk Family
Birds

The Auk Family

Puffins are members of the Auk or Alcid family, along with other species.

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Puffin Chicks
Birds

Puffin Chicks

A puffin chick is called a puffling

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Puffins at Sea - Swimming
Birds

Puffins at Sea - Swimming

Puffins live at sea and are well adapted to this lifestyle.

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What Puffins Eat
Birds

What Puffins Eat

Puffins are incredible divers and can reach depths of 200 feet on their journeys to look for food.

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Atlantic Puffin Courtship Behavior and Decoys
Conservation

Atlantic Puffin Courtship Behavior and Decoys

Atlantic Puffins are very social birds. They interact regularly through many behaviors.

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Puffin FAQs
Birds

Puffin FAQs

26 questions and answers about puffins.

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Puffin Tours
Visit

Puffin Tours

Local companies offer a unique opportunity to view the thriving colony at Eastern Egg Rock.

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Atlantic Puffin
Birds

Atlantic Puffin

The Atlantic Puffin is a small seabird that lives on the ocean throughout most of the year.

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Black Guillemots
Birds

Black Guillemots

The Black Guillemot is a lively member of the bird life on Eastern Egg Rock.

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Common Murres
Birds

Common Murres

Common Murres Nest at Matinicus Rock!

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Common Eiders
Birds

Common Eiders

Common Eiders are large sea ducks that breed from Maine north to the Arctic.

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Storm Petrels
Birds

Storm Petrels

The Leach's Storm-petrel is a small and secretive resident of Eastern Egg Rock.

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Common Terns
Birds

Common Terns

The Common Tern is Eastern Egg Rock's most numerous species.

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Arctic Terns
Birds

Arctic Terns

Arctic Terns nest on Matinicus Rock, Seal Island National Wildlife Refuge, and Eastern Egg Rock.

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Roseate Terns
Birds

Roseate Terns

Roseate, Common and Arctic Terns each have a different nesting habitat.

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Gulls
Birds

Gulls

Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gulls are familiar to anyone who has ever visited the Atlantic Ocean in New England.

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Birds in Our Vicinity

Atlantic Puffin

Latin:  Fratercula arctica

Illustration for Atlantic Puffin

Black Guillemot

Latin:  Cepphus grylle

Illustration for Black Guillemot

Razorbill

Latin:  Alca torda

Illustration for Razorbill

Common Tern

Latin:  Sterna hirundo

Illustration for Common Tern

Arctic Tern

Latin:  Sterna paradisaea

Illustration for Arctic Tern

Roseate Tern

Latin:  Sterna dougallii

Illustration for Roseate Tern

Common Eider

Latin:  Somateria mollissima

Illustration for Common Eider

Laughing Gull

Latin:  Leucophaeus atricilla

Illustration for Laughing Gull

How you can help, right now