Secret nocturnal lives of 700,000 seabirds to be revealed in new exhibition

Nation.Cymru staff

The hidden nocturnal lives of hundreds of thousands of seabirds breeding on Welsh islands are being captured in a project combining art and science.

Aberystwyth University academic Dr Julian Ruddock is working with scientists studying Manx shearwaters, which spend much of their lives at sea and return to their island burrows under the cover of darkness.

Skomer Island, off the Pembrokeshire coast, is home to the world’s largest colony of the birds, with an estimated 350,000 breeding pairs.

While visitors to the island are familiar with its puffins, far fewer experience the distinctive nighttime calls of the shearwaters as they return from the sea.

Dr Ruddock, from Aberystwyth University’s School of Art, has travelled to Skomer, Skokholm and Ynys Enlli in Wales, as well as the Great Blasket in Ireland, to research the birds and the islands they inhabit.

Manx shearwaters migrate thousands of miles to South America each year before returning to their breeding colonies in the spring to raise their chicks.

The art project is being undertaken in collaboration with the Oxford University Navigation Group, whose scientists are researching how the birds navigate and migrate.

Researchers use tiny geolocators attached to the birds’ feet which record sunrise times and day length, allowing their approximate positions and migration routes to be established.

Dr Ruddock is combining the scientific data with sound recordings, interviews with researchers and his own observations from fieldwork.

He is also working with the Oxford team to record the calls of shearwaters on Skomer, which the birds use to identify their mates and locate their burrows in darkness.

The research will eventually be turned into artworks incorporating film, sound, installation, drawings and paintings, with an exhibition planned at Oriel y Parc in St Davids in May 2027.

Dr Ruddock said: “While much is still not understood about shearwater migration, science is revealing remarkable insights into this and other species we share the planet with, and art can help us connect with that knowledge in a different way.

“The OxNav team have been fantastic to work with, generously sharing their knowledge and passion for these birds.

“What fascinates me about Manx shearwaters is the mystery of how these birds navigate vast oceans using the sun, the stars and Earth’s magnetism to return to the same place each year.

“Welsh islands support a significant proportion of the global breeding population of shearwaters, yet the species remains little known to the wider public.

“I’m trying to communicate not just the information, but the sound, the atmosphere and the sense of awe and wonder that comes from experiencing a night on an island seabird colony such as Skomer.”

The project is also exploring the work of nature writer RM Lockley, who carried out pioneering research into Manx shearwaters on Skokholm during the 1930s.

Lockley, who lived from 1903 to 2000, wrote extensively about Welsh wildlife, including Letters from Skokholm, published in 1947, which chronicled daily life on the remote Pembrokeshire island.

‘Remarkable lives’

Dr Katrina Siddqi-Davies, from the Oxford Navigation Group at the University of Oxford, said: “It has been great having Julian as part of the team, and I’m really excited to explore how we can tell the stories of Manx shearwaters in creative new ways.

“They undertake extraordinary journeys across hemispheres and live remarkable lives in some of the most remote parts of the world, so they are certainly deserving of great art.

“Even though Manx shearwaters are a well-studied species, every year we continue to learn more about their behaviour at sea, how they cope with environmental change, and the incredible coordination and teamwork involved in successfully raising a single chick.

“I hope this project helps bring people closer to the shearwaters and inspires more curiosity and appreciation for the hidden lives of seabirds.”

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