Dear Seabirds, Welcome Back After A Century

Scientists have discovered a nest of seabird chicks on Channel Islands off California's coast. These birds are seen first time since 1912.
These football-size seabirds are members of the auk family (Alcidae) and resemble penguins. These birds use thier wings to fly deep underwater anf also fly in air.

These birds earlier nested on Prince Island, a small islet off San Miguel Island within Channel Islands National Park. But they disappeared likely as a result of human disturbance.

Their return is quite exciting for scientists. "This is an exciting finding — certainly a historic one," said Josh Adams, a seabird ecologist with the USGS Western Ecological Research Center. "The murres appear to have reestablished their former southern range, perhaps benefitting from present ocean conditions."

With this murre colony, Prince Island now hosts 13 nesting seabird species, making it one of the most important and biologically diverse nesting habitats on the West Coast of North America, according to a USGS statement.