Disorientated Pufflings Found Hiding In North Berwick
Two pufflings have been rescued after becoming disorientated by the bright lights from an East Lothian town.
Puffins and their young are now leaving their burrows on the islands of Craigleith, Fidra and the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth and heading out to sea.
But some pufflings become disorientated by the lights of nearby North Berwick and look for somewhere dark to hide in the town to escape from predators such as gulls.
As puffling season gets under way, the Scottish Seabird Centre in the town has already been called on to rescue two of the birds and help them back out to sea.
Phil the puffling was found hiding for safety beneath a car on the town's High Street on July 19 after a member of staff from the centre spotted him and called the Scottish SPCA.
After being carefully coaxed into a long net, he made it safely back out to sea on a rigid inflatable boat from the Seabird Centre.
A week later on July 27, Sandra and Ronnie Williams were alerted to a puffling in their garden in the town by their dog Alfie.
They kept the bird - later named Polly - in a box overnight in their garage before handing her over to the centre the next day.
Staff then took her back out to sea.
The public are now being asked to keep an eye out under cars and in gardens for any pufflings who have gone astray.
Tom Brock, Scottish Seabird Centre chief executive, said: It is a crucial time in the puffin season and we want to ensure as many as possible of these wonderful seabirds make it out to sea.
Pufflings look very different from their colourful parents; they are shades of grey, white and black, their smaller beaks don't have the characteristic bright colours that the adults have in summer.
"Both puffins and pufflings can be killed and eaten by gulls, which we are also keen to avoid."