Colony of puffins

Its Latin name is Fratercula arctica, which means the little brother of the arctic. Indees he looks like a small well-fed monk in his robes. In Iceland he is often called the Archdeacon, because og his appearance - - Iceland has never been the home to monks, as far as we know.
The Westman Islands have long been a popular place for migratory birds, and every year the islands are home to millions of birds. About 30 types of bird breed here every year, and until recently some of them breed nowhere else in Iceland.
Man inhabits only the largest island in the group, and through the centuries the bird life has provided a valuable additional source of food. In the summer men would go out to the smaller islands and stay there for many days. They would both collect eggs from the cliff-faces (not for the faint hearted) and also hunt with nets on long poles.
The Westman Islands are home to the largest colony of Puffins in the world - here the Puffins is king of the birds.
In August, when night falls, the young puffins emerge from their burrows and take their first flight, straight out to sea. But the lights of the town confuse the young birds and they land amongst the streets and houses. Once on the ground they cannot fly up into the air, even adults cannot do that, (the Puffin is designed for underwater hunting for food, it flies poorly in comparison to land birds).
But there are helping hands everywhere, for it has long been the custom here for the local children (and adults) to pick up and rescue the young puffins. The children will spend many hours each evening, roaming the town, collecting all the puffins they can find. The next day these young birds will be taken to the sea-shore and set free - the children throwing them up in the air so that they can fly out to sea. There is a great competition between the children, to see who can catch the most Puffins. In the old days this would lead to the winner being given the title og "The Puffin King".


The Use of the Natural Resources

Shimmering fish swam in the sea, the birds nested, grass grew on the barren cliffs. Here were tha means to survive, and the Westman Islanders are well-known for the rational use of their resourcers, throughout the ages.