Puffins
On the cliffs.
Jan-Tore Egge — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ryan Hodnett — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ryan Hodnett — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Jan-Tore Egge — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ryan Hodnett — CC BY-SA 4.0
Runde is an island in Herøy Municipality in Møre og Romsdal on Norway's west coast, and its puffin viewpoint is about 29 km in a straight line south-west of Ålesund. About 113 people live there, and the Runde Bridge links it to the island of Remøya to the south. Runde is famous for its enormous numbers of birds: some 500,000 to 700,000 seabirds are said to live on the island, most of them on the cliffs. It is designated an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International, its birdlife is protected within the Goksøyr Mires Nature Reserve and a Ramsar site, and the Runde Environmental Centre is a research station on the island. Tall green cliffs rise from the sea on the island's western side, where puffins, northern gannets, guillemots and kittiwakes nest in huge colonies. A coast road runs between the rocks and small houses, and a trail climbs to the grassy plateau above the cliffs, where great skuas nest on the ground. Visiting is free. The bird season runs from about April to August, puffins usually return to the cliffs in the evening, and the path to the viewpoint is steep, so wear suitable shoes and keep away from the cliff edges.
On the cliffs.
Huge colonies.
Above the cliffs.
Herøy Municipality, Møre og Romsdal, Norway
April to August, often in the evening.
Yes.