Magical Island
Dancing Puffins
Every time I arrive at the end of the slipway and see the small boat my spirit is lifted. I’m 250 miles from home and a few magical hours await. There are many great places to observe wildlife in the UK, but one particular island has a reserved place in my heart. It is teeming with birdlife – it is truly a special place.
Sunset over the Pembrokeshire Coastline
The crossing only takes 15 minutes or so from Martin’s Haven to North Haven, where the boat docks and you climb the stone steps up to a small opening where you are given a short lecture by a resident scientist on the island and its fragile but important ecosystem. There are strict limits on where you can walk, and the paths must be followed at all times. Only 250 people are allowed to visit each day to minimise the impact on the environment.
A classic Puffin shot - on the way back to the burrow with sand eels for the young Pufflings
This beautiful place is on the western tip of Wales, and it is called Skomer Island. Although the largest of the Pembrokeshire islands, it is still relatively small at just over one square mile. It is a national nature reserve of international importance due to its seabird colonies, particularly the Manx Shearwaters and the Puffins. The island is like a Swiss cheese, penetrated with thousands of underground burrows where these birds nest and breed. This is made possible as there are no ground predators such as rats or foxes to plunder the burrows for eggs and chicks.
Kittiwake collecting nesting material - notice the blue bell field in the background
Skomer is less than a mile off the beautiful Pembrokeshire coast. It is a fertile island with an astonishing flora and fauna. In May the blue bells create huge blue carpets across the island. Many other wildflowers such as red and white Campion make this an incredibly beautiful place. But the birds are arguable the key selling point – hundreds of thousands of Puffins, Shearwaters, Razorbills, Guillemots, Kittiwakes, Gulls and Fulmars, as well as Buzzards, Kites, Ravens, Chough, Owls and many smaller birds. There are also many frogs, lizard, voles and rabbits in the fields and seals on its shores.
More food for the Pufflings …
In the April-to-July breeding season the noise and activity is something else. The Puffins are everywhere nesting and rearing the little Pufflings. There are over 30,000 Puffins on the island during this time, and by mid-July they’re all gone. Off to the big oceans till next year. Skomer also has the largest global colony of Manx Shearwaters at over 300,000 pairs. They feed at sea during the day and only return to the island under the cover of darkness.
Up close and personal - this Puffin has momentarily lost track of its burrow
The Puffins are not afraid of you, and you can get incredibly close for some excellent photo opportunities. Late June is good for the classic Puffin shots when they return to the island from the sea with their beak stuffed with sand eels to feed the little Pufflings in the burrows. They are curious looking birds and their small wings make landing fun to observe – it is not particularly elegant and it looks almost comically like a crash landing. Their small wings, however, make them expert divers. They can drop to depths of 20-30m to catch the eels.
Manx Shearwaters at sunset
The Manx Shearwaters are nowhere to be seen during the day, as they’re out to sea. The best way to observe them is to catch the evening boat cruise along Skomer island and if you are lucky you can spot them on the water in large numbers. This can provide some good opportunities to shoot them against the settling sun.
Take off …
Photography opportunities are plenty. Clearly the Puffins are a big draw, but there is so much else to shoot too – both in terms of wildlife and nature. The day trip allows you 5 hours on the island, and they are really strict on this, counting every one on and off carefully. The only drawback with this is that you arrive too late and leave too early for the morning/evening low sun. It is possible to stay on the island in the basic eco-lodge which was the old farmhouse. This is on my ‘to do’ list, and it would allow me to experience sunrise and sunset on this magical island.
Squabbling Swallows at the old farmhouse
Back on land after the 5-hour trip, there is much more to enjoy. the immediate coastline is stunning. Although there are no Puffins here, the scenery is beautiful and many other birds can be spotted, including the Stonechat, Pipits, Skylarks, Linnets, Swallows and more. The rare Chough can also be found along this coastal stretch.
A Chough floating by … the only crow with a red beak and it is only found on the western coast of the British Isles.
Soon I will jump in the car for this year’s 250 mile journey to this magical place … I can’t wait. Hopefully I will add to my portfolio of great shots from Skomer … I just cannot get enough Puffin pictures :-)
A Puffin coming in to land - a rather awkward looking approach
… and if you want experience this beautiful island then I would strongly recommend booking a workshop with the excellent photographer Simon Stafford. He arranges trips to explore photography on the Pembrokeshire coastline and particularly Skomer Island - follow this link to his website: https://www.simonstafford.co.uk/photography-workshops.php
Not just Puffins - A Stonechat on the Pembrokeshire coast near Skomer Island
Low flypast.