Less fulmars in Scotland

This is a video about fulmars nesting in France.

From Wildlife Extra:

60% decline in Fulmar numbers in Scotland

June 2008. The 2008 count of nesting fulmars on John Muir Trust‘s Sandwood Bay estate, near Cape Wrath, the most north-westerly point on the British mainland , have raised fears that 2008 could be another dire year for Scotland’s seabirds. Only 261 nesting pairs were counted on the cliffs that once supported over 700 pairs, representing a decline of around 60% in ten years. The Trust has been counting breeding Fulmars, a key indicator species for the health of North Sea, on the same three mile stretch of cliffs between since 1997.

“Our surveys in both 2008 and 2007 have recorded the lowest Fulmar counts since records began,” commented Cathel Morrison, Conservation Manager for Sandwood Estate. “It looks as though the Fulmar, one of our most common and resilient sea birds, is in as much trouble as other species such as puffins, kittiwakes, guillemots and arctic terns.”

Beached fulmars in the Netherlands: here.

Although the summer days are long gone and we have just put the clocks back to the winter time, we have recently received news from Dr J G Greenwood (BTO ringer) about a Tystie (Black Guillemot) which was ringed by him in Northern Ireland and has broken the longevity record for the species: here.

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