This Rare Seabird Is Soaring in Numbers

Thanks to conservation projects, Lundy Island, located in the Bristol Channel in the United Kingdom, has a soaring bird population of 40,000 rare seabird species, including some endangered ones.

“If we can restore over 30,000 birds to one small island in the Bristol Channel, just imagine how much could be achieved if everyone came together to restore nature right across the UK,” says Paul St Pierre, conservation officer at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. “Projects like this are achieved through decades of conservation science, expertise, funding and countless volunteer hours.”

In 2006, a project aimed at eradicating rats from the island led to an increase in the population of Manx Shearwaters – once on the brink of extinction – from around 600 in 2001 to more than 25,000 today. As for puffins, their number went from 13 in 2000 to 1,335 in 2023. Storm Petrels started to breed on Lundy Island in 2014; today, there are more than 150 pairs. This surge in numbers is due to combined efforts from Natural England, the Landmark Trust, and the National Trust.