Support our Nation today - please donate here
News

Record breaking puffin numbers on Skomer Island

20 May 2025 3 minute read
A puffin on Skomer

The Wildlife Trust of south and west Wales has announced another record-breaking year, with 43,626 Puffins recorded on their Skomer Island Nature Reserve.

Skomer Island, located of the coast of Pembrokeshire, is an internationally important seabird island. Every year The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales (WTSWW) undertakes their annual seabird counts to monitor the population of Puffins that return to the island every spring to breed.

Leighton Newman, Skomer Island Warden, said: “Our annual Puffin count is no small undertaking, with 6 members of staff working to count every Puffin on Skomer.

The island is broken up into seven sections and we systematically count every bird; on the land, rafting on the sea and we estimate the number in the air during our counts.

This is undertaken in the evening, when there are generally more Puffins around the island and early enough in the season that birds are not already in burrows. Big land falls this year, has led to Puffins being seen further up the cliffs than ever before!”

Bucking trends

The previous record was set in 2023, with 42,513 Puffins recorded on and around the island. The increase seen on Skomer bucks the trend of decline seen globally in Puffin populations.

Puffins are listed as Vulnerable to extinction on the global IUCN Red List. Like many seabird species they are facing the pressures of pollution, food shortages and climate change.

Puffins on Skomer image by Nick Clark

Lisa Morgan, Head of Islands and Marine Conservation at WTSWW, said: “It was a joy to see the masses of birds using the island during our spring count.

“However, we remain concerned about the increasing pressures on many seabird species. Novel threats facing our seabirds include avian influenza and the recent marine heatwave conditions experienced around parts of the UK coastline.

“The long-term impacts are still largely unknown highlighting the importance of our annual seabird monitoring and research programs on Skomer.”

Threat

The growth in Skomer Island’s population is likely linked to the abundance of food in the wider area, meaning there is plenty of fish for chicks resulting in high breeding success.

The absence of rats and other predators on the island has undoubtably contributed to the success of seabird populations on Skomer.

Puffins on Skomer, image by Nick Clark

Leighton Newman continued: “Although The Wildlife Trusts’ Skomer Island is a conservation success story for Puffins, they are a species under threat and are rapidly declining elsewhere.

“We are acutely aware of the threats facing these charismatic birds and we must do all we can to continue to protect them.”


Support our Nation today

For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

5 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
17 days ago

Nobody moans about counting Puffins…43,62-!****…one, two, three…

Y Cymro
Y Cymro
17 days ago

Great to see the Puffin population on Skomer is healthy. Beautiful area to work in. My niece is a biologist and worked on the island doing research into the population including tagging birds a few years back. It still amazes me that Westminster built an oil refinery in Wales & Britain’s only marine nature reserve? This is the result when you have a foreign government in England dictate terms and place dirty industry in such a stunningly beautiful place. Out of sight out of mind. It’s only Wales. Who can recall post-devolution the Sea Empress disaster in Pembrokeshire in 1996.… Read more »

lisa
lisa
17 days ago
Reply to  Y Cymro

I agree, I was there in ’96 helping rescue birds, it was absolutely horrific.
Skomer is a jewel though, we are so fortunate as a country to have such precious islands.

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
17 days ago
Reply to  Y Cymro

A lot closer to my home and to the heart, another sad postcard scene, Rio Tinto nearly got to dredge this one for gold…greed nearly won…

Howie
Howie
17 days ago

Good to see I hope they will have a plentiful supply of sandeels in future.

Our Supporters

All information provided to Nation.Cymru will be handled sensitively and within the boundaries of the Data Protection Act 2018.