‘A great thrill’: baby puffin is first one seen on Dorset coast in three decades | Birds

For years, volunteers have tested their patience by craning their necks to peer into the crevices of the cliffs, hoping for a moment of happiness.

Eventually it all paid off and a baby seagull emerged into the sunlight, becoming the first to be seen off the Dorset coast in southern England for three decades.

“It was such a thrill to see the boast,” said marine ornithologist Richard Caldow. “Every chick counts. One puff alone won’t save this colony, but even one is better news than nothing.”

This stretch of coastline – the Purbeck coast near Swanage – is the last known regular nesting ground for puffins on the mainland of southern England.

In the 1950s there were about 80 birds nesting here, but the number of pairs dropped to three and no definite fledglings were seen for 30 years. The fear was that the colony was heading towards extinction.

Over the summer, 13 volunteers monitor the ledges for 15 weeks; This is no easy task as access to the viewpoint is difficult and unreliable.

Six adult gulls were recorded in the colony in April. Over several weeks, volunteers observed gulls transporting fish to at least two separate nesting spots; This suggests that more than one pair is trying to raise chicks.

Most deliveries ended after June 12; This showed that not all chicks made it, but the fish drops continued at some point and eventually the hatchlings were detected and photographed.

Caldrow, who was supported by volunteers from the Purbeck Natural History Forum, said they timed the photo capture perfectly. “We knew his parents had fed him from May 29 to July 5, so he was 38 days old by then.

“By then, it was most likely to be exposed occasionally, usually if a parent was there as well. This was most likely in the evening, so we chartered a boat to anchor in the right spot from 4pm to 8pm on July 7th. It took three hours, but it appeared behind its parent just after 7pm. It was great to see.”

He believes Puffling may have left that night. “We have no idea where he is right now. He’ll be out at sea, somewhere by himself. His parents won’t care for him after he escapes. He won’t return for at least two years, and he won’t reproduce until 2030 at the earliest. He might come back here, but he might go somewhere different.”

Caldow, who has nearly 40 years of experience researching and protecting shorebird populations, said he was delighted to see the hatchlings. “This tells us that Purbeck gulls can still lay fertile eggs, hatch and at least find enough food to raise a chick within a few years and escape the attention of predators.”

In the last few years, National Trust He is working to understand why the seagull colony is failing to produce chicks. Theories range from mice to peregrine falcons to a climate emergency.

Motion-sensor cameras powered by solar panels were installed by rope experts to capture images of movement in the deep crevasse; The seagulls nest about 2 meters from the entrance.

The cameras will be recovered following the seabird breeding season and volunteers will then review the thousands of images captured.

Ben Cooke, rivers and coast project manager at the National Trust in Purbeck, said: “We hope the images will reveal more of the nesting, feeding and flying activities of puffins. “Understanding what’s happening inside the nesting crevice is the missing piece of the puzzle.

“If we can identify the reasons for the disappearance of chicks and eggs, we can start to explore what conservation measures might help. Puffins are such an iconic bird that we want to do everything we can to help them survive in Purbeck.”

• National Trust offers live seagull and cliff top webcams In the Farne Islands in north-east England. The cameras, which broadcast from dawn to dusk every day from May to the end of July, form part of the foundation’s security camera system. A window to the Wild project, It offers viewers a close-up view of the seabirds that breed on the islands.