A right pair of lovebirds

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Pukker up: Two puffins kiss during their annual mating ritual on Skomer Island, off the coast of Pembrokeshire in west Wales


These stunning photos show a pair of lovebirds happily 'Puffin-up' for a kiss as part of their mating ritual.

Wildlife photographer Craig Jones waited patiently to capture the close-up photos of the puffins' annual breeding season.

For the best part of three months every year, between late March and early June, Craig spends his time capturing the puffins at Skomer Island, off the coast of Pembrokeshire, in south-west Wales.


Meal time: A puffin clutches four sand eels in its beak before feeding them to tiny chicks during mating season


Craig, who first discovered his fascination of wild life when he was just eight-years-old when his mother bought him a book called Animal World, says puffins are his favourite bird to photograph.

He said: 'I have always loved the puffin, the Clown Of The Sea, as I call them.

'I have taken photos of puffins for years now and carry on doing so as their character and beautiful markings have always captivated me.

'They spend eight months at sea then come ashore to find their mate and go through their bonding routine which I have been lucky enough to see. Going through a heart-warming series and displays of affection, cementing their bond with each other.


Competition: A small group of male birds compete to win a female's affections in one of the more aggressive parts of the breeding season


He said: 'I've always had a love and fascination of the natural world from a young age.

'I've always loved capturing nature through photography, as a method to capture the beautiful things I witness in nature, placing a frame around something I have seen, letting the image convey the true beauty of that moment in time, that my words could never describe.'


Flying high: A puffin soars above Skomer Island as the mating season gets underway, with males birds competing to find a female match


source: dailymail