Bardsey

Rob Lott wraps up the Bardsey blog for 2010 with an island perspective.

As the sun sets on another successful field season in North Wales, it is time for us to pack up, say goodbye and, like the birds of Bardsey, migrate south.

Some of Team Bardsey (“Life Aquatic”) managed to spend two weeks on this island paradise while the rest continued their sea watch from the mainland.  Our comfortable base on the island was the Bardsey Birds Observatory and the wardens there gave us a warm welcome. Anyone staying on Bardsey can’t help but get caught up in the buzz of birdlife you get to see here – especially this time of year with the migration in full swing. And yes, we were there primarily to document the marine life but here are a few things I learned about our feathered friends. The wardens were kindly on hand to answer my most searing questions.

The most abundant bird in the world is….the chicken!



Seriously though, Bardsey is home to a true record breaker. A female Manx Shearwater (whose Latin name incidentally is Puffinus puffinus!) that breeds on the island is thought to be ….drum roll please….the oldest wild bird in the world. She was first ringed in 1957 as an adult and has made the incredible journey from North Wales to Argentina and back every year for over 50 years.



Sadly, she hasn’t been seen since 2008 so she may or may not still be with us but still holds a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

At school, I was always told that the smallest British bird was the Wren. Not so, it is in fact the Goldcrest and they were seen many times on the island. These are in fact the smallest birds in Europe and weigh less than a pound coin. Trained wardens ring the Goldcrests that come through Bardsey and the information gathered from this feeds into important conservation management plans for the protection of the species and its habitat.



Is this the Bardsey blog or the Birdsey blog??

During our field season, we were fortunate enough to see Risso’s dolphins on five different occasions and harbour porpoise most days when the sea was flat. We also had a few encounters with bottlenose dolphins on the south coast of the Llyn peninsula (we even managed to photograph one distinct animal on the two different occasions which is called a recapture!). Our winter project now will be to number crunch all the gathered data which will hopefully add another piece to the jigsaw puzzle and explain why this area is so special to the mysterious and elusive Risso’s dolphin (and the other cetaceans of course!).


 
No Bardsey blog would be complete without a mention of the abundant grey seal population that inhabits the island. They were our constant companions on this tiny kingdom and our visit just happened to coincide with seal pup season. It seemed that each day a new white fur ball appeared in the sheltered coves and beaches around the island. In the evenings, when it was calm, you could hear the eerie moans of the seals wafting through the night air.


My abiding memories of this very spiritual place will be the stunning Celtic sunsets, the wealth of marine wildlife and staring up at the star-studded night skies watching the Milky Way snaking overhead.

It just leaves me to thank the Team, without whose passion, hard work and enthusiasm none of this would have been possible. So please take a well deserved bow, Pine, Bea, Mike, Pablo, Pete, Sion, Jacki, Charlotte, Sam, Angela, Rachel, Laura and Mark.

Team Bardsey, I salute you!

Volunteers Bea and Charlotte tell us about the last week...

Thursday saw the all female 'Hula Balullas' and 'Ginger Ninjas' crews commandeer Pagan, a sailboat, from Pwllheli to Bardsey Island and back.  Skipper and willing amateur conservationist, Jacki Clark, came all the way from Macclesfield to meet us in Pwllheli marina, where we discussed the day's plan and safety briefing over hot chocolates in her comfortable cabin.

The trip started well at midday, with the sun shining and good sightings of grey herons, cormorants and oystercatchers at at the mouth of the marina.

Our spirits were high, but unfortunately, so were the waves..... once out of the harbour we soon realised the extent of the swell, which make it a tricky day for spotting cetaceans.  But there was plenty of other wildlife to be seen.....

On the south end of Bardsey, in a quiet bay, almost fifty Atlantic grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) were spotted basking on the rocks.  Among them were pups, some being only a day old, still adorning their fluffy white coats.  Curious adults surrounded the boat trying to decipher the unexpected visitors.

Reaching the North end of Bardsey Island, the waters were littered with sea birds, including puffins in their winter attire, Guillemots, Razorbills and mixed sea gulls.  Northern Gannets were also seen circling above the surface, which can be used as a good indicator for fish shoal presence and feeding marine mammals.  We circled the area hoping to get a glimpse of the elusive Risso's dolphins, which had been sighted of the Island's north end days prior to our visit.  Although there were numerous birds circling and resting on the surface, no harbour porpoise , Risso's or bottlenose dolphins were sighted.  

At around 4.20pm it was time to start the return journey to Pwllheli and so we sailed with the wind behind us. It was great to be out on the water at this time, with the sun setting behind us casting a beautiful glow and we kept ourselves entertained on the three hour journey back with jovial sing alongs to the harmonica and tin whistle. Although a very enjoyable day there were no cetaceans recorded. However, later on a report came in from the Bardsey crew 'Life Aquatic', of seven Risso's dolphins, traveling past the North end of Bardsey, the exact spot we had been earlier- such a close miss! The dolphins were recorded as breaching the water, foraging and milling about half a mile of the coast.     

At the end of the week the crew changed over, with 3 new members joining us from head office. Angela, Rachel and Pete have settled in well. Pete heading over to join Rob on the island and Sam returning to join the mainland crew. The weather has been perfect for spotting over the last few days, with calm seas and glorious sunshine, sometimes we have to remind ourselves that we are in North Wales in October! We have had lots of harbour porpoise sightings from both the mainland platforms, which, along with the fine weather, have put big smiles on our faces! 

P.S. We have also had a great sightings of a sheep rock climbing at St.Mary's Well. We have named him 'Cliff- the extreme sheep'!

Volunteer Laura is giving an account of the day...

We rose from the caravan this morning hoping that the wind from the night had passed, but the weatherman was right. It's blowing 25 knots from the south west. Beaufort scale 4 for sure. It's frustrating as we had seen harbour porpoises, bottlenose and Risso's dolphins 3 days ago so we know they're out there.

We had radio contact with team 'Life Aquatic' on Bardsey Island who confirmed it was too windy to do active dolphin searching but were occupied watching another newly born seal pup. The island looked almost tropical from the main land. 

The coast guard hut at Mynedd Mawr was closed this morning but on Monday their volunteers seemed interested in showing WDCS's cetacean identification sheets as few people know that the dolphins use the waters around Bardsey Island. We get lots of interest from walkers passing by and we feel really welcomed into the area.

Jacki Clark, a volunteer living in Macclesfield, has a boat in Pwllheli and has kindly offered to use it to support our boat surveys. The wind is forecast to die down so we look to set sail Thursday and Friday. Fingers crossed!

So, it is Tuesday today and the weather moved in on us yesterday afternoon. Rob and Sam managed to spot 10 Risso's dolphins yesterday morning off their vantag point to the north end of Bardsey. Two of the dolphins were seen breaching and then joining the rest of the group travelling towards the open sea to the west of the island. There was one very old, very white animal in that group, too!

Rob and Sam spent the rest of the afternoon photgraphing a seal pup which was only 1 day old! The grey seals use Bardsey as a pupping ground ans at this time of year there are lots of seal pups around waiting for their mums to come back and feed them. Just the photo opportunity Rob and Sam were waiting for! (Photos will follow at a later stage, as there is no email on the island).

Life on Bardsey is different from life in the caravan on the Lleyn. Rob and Sam live in the bird observatory, sharing the kitchen and the toilet bucket with some 13 other people who are mostly on the island for its bird life. The generator comes on for 3 hours in the evening, lights go out at 10 pm on the island and then there is nothing else to do than to go to bed.

Everyone comes together in the afternoon to log reports of the day's bird sightings, but I'm sure Rob and Sam get in a bit of dolphin chat, too.

Meanwhile on the main land, the only sighting seen during yesterday's morning survey was a stampeding cow along the country lanes! Thank goodness for our risk assessment... in the event of a stampeding cow... get out of the way. Check.

The storm drew in last night in full force. This meant Bea and Laura had to shelve plans for an evening bouldering round the back of the caravan. Pine cooked up a risotto which left us all warm and sleepy.

We will try some watching later today if the weather allows it. In the meantime, Bea and Charlotte are busy entering their data from yesterday's watch.

WDCS volunteer Pablo signs off with his final entry before leaving the Bardsey surveys…

The last few days on the Lleyn peninsula have been frustrating ones. The weather did indeed close in and all surveys were off for Friday and Saturday. But no need to be down! We’ve had a weekend of turnover and the team has evolved. Mike, database extraordinaire, has gone back to the WDCS offices and been replaced by Sam and Charlotte. Sam didn’t have long to settle in as he has already joined Rob on Bardsey Island (who finally made it over on Sunday!). Additionally, Laura is joining the mainland crew and replacing me on Monday. So lots of new faces!

Sunday saw our first venture out on the water. Pine and I were both raring to go out on CO814 with Sion, a fisherman from Sarn; ready to take award winning photos of the elusive Risso’s dolphin. This was sadly, not to be. After a four hour survey covering a vast area was completed, we had not seen one cetacean. Not even a glimpse!

Field work can never be all glamour and excitement, so this has to be expected from time to time. The famous Robert Lott once said, “Recording an absence is just as important as recording a presence”. A truer word has never been spoken, but it doesn’t make it more fun! Our day on the boat was brightened by a few grey seals and the ever reliable sea bird life of the Lleyn peninsula. We saw our first razorbills of the project and a solitary puffin, which lacked its bright colours of the summer.

After a disappointing start to the day, all was not lost. Firstly, we had received great news from Rob and Sam who had a great spotting of four Risso’s dolphins from their boat across to Bardsey Island. Then Bea and Charlotte spotted some bottlenoses just off their vantage point on Mynedd Mawr, and then the dynamite combination of Pine and the big eyes came to our rescue. In the dying hours of the day, a pod of five or six Risso’s dolphins (including a calf) had come to the shore to feed. It was a fantastic send off to a fantastic week. This part of the world has both stunning vistas and incredibly diverse wildlife. I can only hope to return to the Lleyn peninsula with the WDCS in the future!