Rich Turk
aka The Puffin Man

Biography

Puffins, beloved by many but seen by few have been called “The Clowns of The Sea” or “Sea Parrots” by their admirers.

This year, I’ll be devoting my entire space at the Open Studio to prints and products from my two trips last summer to Machias Seal Island, Maine, where I photographed a colony of Atlantic Puffins during their nesting season.

On both my trips I in stood in close proximity to these very social birds, hidden in a small wooden observation blind with cut-outs for me to peer out through my camera's lens, and at some moments, see a puffin peering back at me!

Despite the one hour per visit limit by wildlife authorities who care for the island's protected habitat, I was able to take hundreds of shots of the puffins engaging in courtship activity and congregating on the rocks to protect their eggs.  By August, when I returned, the eggs had hatched, and the parents were busily engaged in fishing for herring, then alighting on rocks with their catch and  hopping out of sight to feed their pufflings (baby puffins!)

The experience of being "up close and personal" to these birds was unforgettable and worth every minute it took driving up to the Northeastern most point in Maine and sailing on a lobster boat for two hours in tossing seas.

I hope that visitors of all ages to my Open Studio will experience some of what I did on these trips, and will come with any questions about the Atlantic Puffins and their habitat.

Please feel free to visit my all puffin website, www.thepuffinman.com