#flathal #flatstanley
The flat fellas did not spend much time in the charming little town of Isafjordur, Iceland. Instead they walked three quarters of a mile through town from Volendam to a smaller (much smaller) boat that took a group of perhaps 40 of us to Vigur Bird Island. Vigur has a population of less than 10 people!
A family of three lives there, along with a few people who work on the island. Vigur is an Eider Down Farm. Have you ever seen a Down Jacket?
The down comes from Eiders, a kind of duck. They line their nests with the down to keep their eggs warm. When the Eider are done with the down the farmers collect it and replace it with straw. Happy Eiders will return to the same nest, year after year.
The Flat Fellas Photographed Atlantic Puffins on Vigur Island
Puffins mate for life, and return to the same burrow (nest) year after year. As the “farmer” who owns Vigur Island told us, as long as the various birds feel safe and respected they will keep coming back… and each year this is where their pufflings (baby puffins) will enter the world. Like a maternity hospital for Puffins!
It was such fun to visit a place that was as much, if not more, the home of the birds as the family that maintains this haven for them.
