Latest Posts — Sarah Clews Photography

Almost 10 years ago, I was lucky enough to go on a boat trip to the Isle of Lunga: home to a puffin colony- and an island which forms part of the Treshnish Isles, a fantastic little archipelago off the South-West coast of the Isle of Mull.

As a child, It was a magical experience, getting up close and personal with these delightful, little birds who are just beguiling to watch with their vibrant beaks and busy nature. In terms of physical looks, puffins are the UK's answer to the vibrant parrots of South America or the hummingbirds of the USA.

Fast-forward 10 years and a holiday to the Isle of Tiree in Scotland in July provided the opportunity to visit Lunga again and relive some of that magic.

Travelling with newly established, island company: Tiree Sea Tours- we headed out on what can only be described as a day with perfect weather conditions. Winds had dropped to an almost non-existent level of 5 mph, and there was not a wave on the ocean as we set off, zipping across the placid waters. Almost an hour later, we arrived at Lunga and after a scramble across some rocks, we made the ascent up the cliffs to the breeding colonies.

10 Years on...

What I found, was quite different to how I remembered my trip 10 years ago- the puffins were still busy nesting in their normal spots but the paths definitely were more crowded with people and to my shock I saw lots of people with dogs in tow-many sitting very close to the puffins' burrows.

Our guide on the boat told us that a recent rise in cruise boats coming to the island has led to an increase in dogs being bought to Lunga. Whilst the puffins seemed relatively calm, and unperturbed I couldn't help but think that having dogs on the island is a disaster waiting to happen- if one got loose it could cause absolute havoc to the puffins and their burrows which are very sensitive to disturbance.

Puffins facing decline

Whilst the puffin population seems to be relatively stable on the Isle of Lunga, the species is experiencing a rapid decline at the national level. Recent headlines-‘UK puffins may go the way of the dodo with fears of extinction in 50 years’ have mapped out a bleak future for this iconic species, which is so loved by the British public. Since 2015, puffins have been classified as 'vulnerable' by the International Union for The Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and are on the British Trust for Ornithology’s Red List for species conservation in the UK.

Threats to the Puffins

Puffins face a staggering number of obstacles, which are causing their decline including extreme weather, oil- spill pollution and in some cases invasive species such as rats are wreaking havoc.

Moved by the plight of the puffin, after my wonderful interactions with them in Scotland, I was keen to find out more about the threats they are facing.

It seems that the no.1 hazard at the moment, which will come as no surprise is human based: over fishing. Puffins depend on sand eels-their staple food source to survive- I was thrilled to capture some classic shots of puffins, gorging themselves on these shiny, little fish during my time on Lunga.

However, I have to admit, I only saw two puffins land with their beaks stuffed with fish- considering I was watching a large colony for a solid 60 minutes this is surely cause for concern! Does it mean that the birds really are struggling to locate sand eels to feed their little pufflings?

just as I was leaving, a puffin landed with a beak, chock-a-block with eels, but this was only the second puffin I saw successfully return with food..

EU fishing Policy- are we starving the puffins?

It seems that a large portion of the problem lies at the door of the Danish fishing industry. It was reported in July this year that Danish vessels have stripped British waters of sand eels worth up to a staggering £80m!

Denmark crushes the harvested sand eels into commercial fishmeal to feed fish on intensive salmon, mink and livestock farms. I was shocked to learn that the Danes control 94% of the qouta for UK sand eels and last year the EU increased their annual take from 82,000 to 458,000 tons per year-a monstrously huge increase by anyone's standards. I really can't comprehend how this is considered sustainable practice. The RSPB has advised Michael Gove: the environment secretary that post-brexit, there should be a total ban on fishing of sand eels and sprat- food which is vital for the survival of the puffin.

An optimstic note

How amazing would it be if UK environmental policy post-brexit could save the puffin? Only time will tell, but hopefully brexit could actually present an opportunity for us to defend this marvellous little species and future pufflings- who are we to deny puffins their precious sand eels? It's high time we ended the trend of 'take-take-take' and instead start giving something back to our British wildlife.