Your good news of the day: Puffins in Maine have a baby chick boom

The 2017 nesting season was the most productive on record for a group of vulnerable Maine puffins, scientists with the Audubon Society said. The Atlantic puffins are small seabirds with an awkward walk and colorful beaks that are popular with eco-tourists.

The birds are at the southern edge of their breeding range in Maine, and the Eastern Egg Rock colony in Muscongus Bay is the subject of much study. Audubon reported that the colony increased from 150 to 172 pairs during this year’s nesting season.

That is the highest single-year increase since puffins recolonized the little island in 1981, said Steve Kress, a biologist and vice president for bird conservation with Audubon.

Puffin being dopy

But Audubon reports multiple positive signs about the birds this year. The society said puffins nesting on nearby Seal Island and Matinicus Rock also had strong years for reproduction. Seal Island saw 86 percent of puffin pairs successfully fledge a chick, which was one of the best seasons ever recorded for the colony, Audubon said.

Audubon reported that slightly cooler sea surface temperatures appeared to help create conditions for abundant forage fish for the puffins to eat. Many of the puffin chicks on Eastern Egg Rock were chubby, which bodes well because plumper chicks have a better chance of surviving when they head off to sea without their parents, Kress said.