Living With Puffins? Better Duck And Cover

"Every summer, a handful of interns and research assistants are selected from hundreds of applicants to camp in primitive conditions on a tiny, treeless island several miles off Maine's coast. Their job description calls for 'a sense of humor and love ... of adventure, the outdoors and birds.'"

"The coveted jobs are with the National Audubon Society's Project Puffin, an unusual seabird restoration project that got its start on Eastern Egg Rock in the 1970s."

"It takes about 30 minutes by boat to reach the 7-acre island, which is bordered by slippery, seaweed-covered boulders. Hundreds of screeching terns and gulls circle overhead. Sarah Guitart says she sometimes wishes the birds weren't quite so loud."

"You gotta remember that you're in a seabird colony and it's pretty wonderful."

"Guitart is the crew lead for the four interns and research assistants living and working on the island from May to August. She wears earplugs to get to sleep in her tent at night."