The condition of the puffin stock in the Westman Islands, south of Iceland, is even worse than last year as it seems that very few chicks have hatched and survived the summer.
Puffins in Iceland. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
Usually at this time of year, a number of puffin chicks, pysjur, get lost and end up in the Westman Islands town and local children and teenagers help them find their way, visir.is reports.
It is believed that about 3,000 puffins were hunted in the Westman Islands last season; usually around 100,000 or more puffins are hunted without it having an impact on the puffin stock.
Before the last hunting season began, the South Iceland Nature Institute warned that if puffin hunting isn’t banned for a few years, the stock has a slim chance of recovering.
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