PLENTY OF FISH IN THE SEA - CUTE PUFFIN BITES OFF MORE THAN HE CAN CHEW

This is the moment a puffin delved into the ocean and bit off more than he could chew to collect a beak full of fish. The stocky bird used its huge red and orange beak and strong tongue to grab the sandeels for a quick bite in the North Sea. Also known as the sea parrot, the animals were pictured earlier this year during the breeding season when their colours are even brighter. The pictures were captured by wildlife photographer Ron McCombe on the Farne Islands off the coast of Northumberland where they breed in large colonies. Puffins select a partner when three to five years old and then mate for life in season when they can be seen billing, a bonding ritual that forms a greeting or a form of puffin kissing. On land at breeding time is the only time the birds are vocal, living much of their lives out at sea in silence.

Other great stories
TOY CAR ADVENTURES

These images of vintage cars, bikes and vans, pictured all over the world, could easily have come from a globetrotting petrol-head’s photo album .

HOUNDTON TABBY

FROM MRS Patmore to Lady Sybil, these barking mad illustrations show the WOOF-er side of some of our most loved Downton characters .

ADORABLE OWLS CUDDLE UP FOR THE CAMERA

HUDDLED together on a branch, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls soak up the sun .

PLAYFUL TIGERS GET UP TO MISCHIEF

SPLASHING in the water and fighting in-between rocks, these energetic tigers enjoy their fun-filled morning .

THE GREAT ESCAPE

Staring death in the face, a little field mouse bravely confronts a hungry cat .

BOXING DAY SQUIRRELS

BOXING DAY has come early for this pair of feisty squirrels, as their Christmas party quickly turns sour .

RED SMOKE AT NIGHT, VOLCANO SPOTTERS DELIGHT

With the vivid red smoke billowing into the sky amid the misty sand dunes, these are the blissful views provided at the break of dawn at a volcano .

WOMAN LOSES 11ST AFTER £11K GASTRIC SLEEVE OP

A woman has shed half her body weight after undergoing a gastric sleeve op to shrink her stomach .

ICELAND'S 360 DEGREE VIEW WATERFALL

THESE BREATH-TAKING photographs show the natural beauty of Iceland's most famous waterfall .

PERMANENT LIP FILLERS LEAVE WOMAN UNABLE TO SMILE

A woman has been left unable to smile after undergoing emergency surgery to remove infected lip fillers .

JOLY THE WOLLY FALLS FOR PARKING PRANK

PRANKSTER Dom Joly was so livid when he was slapped with a parking ticket that he took to Twitter to vent his anger – only to discover he was the victim of his own gag! The comic got a taste of his own medicine when he was tricked by a fellow joker for the first time in a decade .

MAN CONTINUES HIS WORLD MAP BACK TATTOO

An American man continues on his mission to document his journey around the globe by completing a world map tattoo on his back .