Skomer
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Skomer is an island in southwest Pembrokeshire in Wales, UK. It is best known for its huge bird population, including Manx shearwaters, guillemots, cormorants, kittiwakes, puffins, gulls, storm petrels, shags, oystercatchers and various birds of prey.
[edit] Location
Skomer is one of a chain of small islands within one kilometre from the Pembrokeshire coast in southwestern Wales. It can be reached by boat from Martin's Haven west of Marloes.
[edit] Puffins
There are over 10,000 breeding pairs of Puffins on Skomer and Skokholm Islands, making them one of the most important Puffin colonies in the UK. They arrive in mid April to nest in burrows, many of which have been dug by the Island's large rabbit population. The last Puffins have left the Island by the second or third week in August. By 2004, there were many, many puffin burrows on the island and adults flying back with food run across the walkways within feet of tourists. They feed mainly on small fish and sand eels, often Puffins can be seen with up to a dozen small eels in their beaks. After a period of declining numbers between the 1950s and 1970s, the size of the colony is now growing again at a rate of between 1% and 2% per year (as of 2006).
[edit] Manx Shearwaters
With an estimated 250,000[citation needed] breeding pairs, Skomer is the world's most important breeding site for these birds. They nest in existing rabbit burrows, a pair reportedly using the same burrow year after year.
Shearwaters are not easy to see as they come and go at dusk, but the West Wales Wildlife Trust has placed a CCTV camera in one of the burrows, and their nests can be seen on the screen in the lodge.
The Manx Shearwater has a remarkable life. After fledging the young birds migrate to the south Atlantic off the coast of Brazil. They remain there for five years before returning to breed. On their return they will navigate back to within a few yards of the burrow in which they were born. As they are ungainly on the land, they leave their burrows at dawn for the fishing grounds some thirty miles out to sea, not returning until dusk. In this way they avoid the marauding Gulls to whom they would fall as easy prey.
The three square kilometre island is also home to grey seals and a variety of wild flowers.
The island was last permanently inhabited (all year round) in 1958, but is known for its stone circle, standing stone and remains of prehistoric houses.
Boats sail to Skomer from Martin's Haven on the mainland. There are limits on the numbers allowed to visit the island each day (in 2006, 250 per day), so the sailings are hourly, and long queues develop early each morning. In 2006, renovation and expansion of the lodge was begun, with the goal of developing a modest number of accommodations for overnight guests such as researchers[citation needed].
