Windchain is proud sponsor of and adopted the puffins at Rotterdam Zoo Blijdorp.

Atlantic Puffins spend most of their life on the open ocean, coming ashore only to breed. On land they waddle like a penguin, teetering slightly from side to side. They "fly" underwater using their wings for propulsion and their feet as a rudder. They can dive to depths of around 200 feet, but they typically feed in shallower waters. During the breeding season, they forage in small groups of up to around 7; in the winter they are less social often foraging singly or with another individual. At the breeding colonies they are social birds, often placing their nesting burrows within a couple of body lengths of each other. Birds arriving to the colony often crouch in a horizontal position with one foot in front of the other as if bowing to be accepted to the group. They also walk around the colony in a horizontal position to signal nonaggression. Atlantic Puffins form monogamous bonds and often return to the same burrow with the same mate in subsequent years. To attract a female, males flick their heads and grunt like a pig near a nesting burrow. Once paired, they maintain their bond by rubbing their bills together. Individuals often shake their head side to side or stomp their feet to proclaim burrow ownership. Intruding males that get too close to the nesting burrow are met with ruffled feathers and an open bill. Occasionally a fight ensues with clawing and grappling. Nonbreeders at the colony often form flocks and spend hours flying in wide circular or figure-8 paths over the colony cliffs, a behavior called wheeling flight.

Puffins live on land and fly in the air, and even under water. Working on offshore wind farms we encounter the same elements, thereby we feel connected and are proud to support nature projects. Above, they are just very funny animals!

About Blijdorp Nature Conservation Fund
Rotterdam Zoo supports a number of conservation projects in the wild. Blijdorp also actively participates in many breeding programmes for endangered species and is one of the international top ten of zoos in this field.