We have been as busy as the auk parents who are feeding their chicks. We marked 54 little auks with color bands on their legs and markings on their breast feathers with Sharpie pens. This way, we could identify individuals. Then we set out two chairs in the colony and watched how often they came back to feed their chicks during a 24 hour period. Sitting in one place for long periods of time here always makes you cold, but for this 24 hour period, we had RAIN and so we were wet AND cold. Still, it was wonderful to see the birds return to the colony with their gular pouches stuffed with food. We saw around 40 of the birds we marked! These data will tell us how long it is taking the birds to find food for their chicks.
Zach and Nina during their shift.
Derek and Nell during 24 hours of observations.
A marked bird returning from the sea with food.