SOS Puffin - Saving the Puffins in the Firth of Forth
SOS Puffin is a Scottish Seabird Centre project to save the puffins on the islands in the Firth of Forth. Watch Bill Bailey's 'Wild Thing I Love You' to find out all about SOS Puffin. Launched in 2006 by the Scottish Seabird Centre with funding provided from Viridor Credits and Scottish Natural Heritage, the five year project aims to stop, and eventually reverse, the dramatic decline in puffin numbers on the islands of Craigleith and Fidra near North Berwick.
We now have over 450 volunteers helping with SOS Puffin and you are warmly invited to join us. Our sailing dates for March are shown below (weather permitting). It's hard work but good fun, particularly on some of the glorious days we have been having at North Berwick. It is very rewarding too as we watch the progress made and the puffins starting to return to the islands to nest again. See our diary entries below. If you are interested in getting involved in SOS Puffin please contact info@seabird.org or call 01620 890202. You can also adopt a puffin online and calculate your carbon footprint with the Green Insurance Company calculator. We look forward to hearing from you.
Best wishes
John Hunt (Chair of the Craigleith Management Group)
|
Date |
Departure |
Return |
|
Wed 10th Mar |
0900 |
1430 |
|
Sat 13th Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Sun 14th Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Wed 17th Mar |
1200 |
1700 |
|
Sat 20th Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Sun 21st Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Wed 24th Mar |
1100 |
1700 |
|
Sat 27th Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Sun 28th Mar |
1000 |
1600 |
|
Wed 31st Mar |
1300 |
1800 |
We aim to continue until mid-April on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays and I will circulate times of these trips in due course – though they will probably be 1000 to 1600.
About SOS Puffin
Puffin numbers on Craigleith had crashed from an estimated 28,000 pairs to just a few thousand, due to an invasive plant, tree mallow (pictured right) which grows to 3m in height. It was introduced to the nearby Bass Rock more than 300 years ago for medicinal use but has spread rapidly in recent years, helped by mild winters, linked to climate change. It choked the puffin burrows and prevented the birds from nesting and rearing their pufflings.
The support for the project, SOS Puffin, has been phenomenal with over 450 volunteers going out to the islands regularly in work parties to cut down the tree mallow so that the puffins can nest again. Monitoring by Dr Rene van der Wal at the University of Aberdeen is showing that puffins are returning to the islands to re-use old burrows where the mallow has been removed. The 2009 update report will be published later this year.
Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
Mallow bashing is not generally thought to be addictive but there was no doubt that some of our regular volunteers were suffering withdrawal symptoms after being deprived of a work party for two months. Eight trips were organised and all eight cancelled by the vagaries of the weather before last Saturday we finally made it once again to Craigleith.
It was good to scramble up the familiar slippery rocks and muddy slopes. We greeted the tree mallow as an old friend and weren’t too disappointed to see that it had survived the winter frosts unscathed. A thriving population of rabbits welcomed us back as well – whatever they have been eating during the winter it does not appear to have been tree mallow but we didn’t really mind.
We set to work at the highest and eastern part of the island, unused muscles complaining at first until the old rhythms returned. We have until the end of this month to finish clearing the large mallow seedlings which have come up since last Spring. After that, we must stay away from this area in order not to risk disturbing the nesting cormorants. Cormorants struggle to find nest sites where the mallow is tall and dense so our more agile volunteers (by no means the youngest!) ventured out onto some steep ground to clear areas around last year’s nests so that these are available for the birds when they return.
It was a good day and all seemed well with the world as we returned to the warmth and comforts of the mainland – we shall be back again soon.
by John Hunt, SOS Puffin, Craigleith Management Team
2009 Final Report
by John Hunt, SOS Puffin, Craigleith Management Team
The wind and swell has put paid to the last three planned work parties but that is not altogether surprising at this time of year. Many thanks to those who put their name down but were disappointed. We continue to live in hope and looking ahead the forecast is not too bad for the coming week.
September 2009 Update
So far this year, 20 volunteer groups have been out to Craigleith and 10 to Fidra to control the tree mallow, with an average of 11 volunteers per trip. This is considerably more than last year and a reflection of the tremendous support from our volunteers, as well as having the use of the Seabird Centre’s new inflatable boat which makes landings easier. Good progress has been made and almost all the mature tree mallow on both islands has now been cut down. However a big task remains to deal with the seedling plants which continue to come up and which grow at an amazing rate. Repeated cutting of these seedlings is necessary to exhaust the seed bank in the soil.
No visits are made during the seabird breeding season to avoid disturbance but work parties have now restarted and visits are planned every Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday, whenever the weather allows through the autumn and winter. Everyone enjoys coming on a work party and if you would like to help please contact the Seabird Centre – info@seabird.org
by John Hunt, SOS Puffin, Craigleith Management Team
The following light hearted pieces, written by John Hunt, about SOS Puffin have appeared in the Scottish Seabird Centre Bulletin
The Social Scene (August 2009)
In between the Open Golf in July and the start of the grouse shooting season on 12th August, a new date is now firmly established in the social calendar and a must for anyone who matters.
The 1st August is of course the start of the tree mallow season at the end of the long summer recess, a time when invitations to attend select events on the islands are eagerly awaited. The dress code is informal though the ladies can compete with their fashionable sun hats and elaborate picnic lunches. Lively debate can be assured and there may even be time for the more energetic to enjoy a little sport demolishing the odd tree mallow.
That is one perspective on SOS Puffin but with many of our 400 volunteers keen to get back into action this month there is now a slight sense of elitism and privilege about the work parties. Places in the boat are at a premium and some deserving folk are being turned away. With all this support the season has started with a bang and already there have been two trips to Fidra and one yesterday to Craigleith with everyone enjoying the garden party conditions.
When we stopped for the breeding season in mid-April it was becoming hard to find any tree mallow to cut down on either island. Rash statements were made that the war was won. However this resilient plant has staged a miraculous revival while we have been away and the green shoots of recovery are now there in abundance at up to four feet in height. Happily the seedlings are not as dense or as tall as they were a year ago but there is plenty to keep us occupied for the coming months. Those who do not wish to miss out on the social scene should book their place – Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays, weather permitting, through to the autumn.
The Green Carpet Treatment (2008)
Yes, we are still at it! Our intrepid volunteers have been venturing forth at least once a week during September and October to continue the good fight against the tree mallow. The beastly stuff has been growing fast throughout the autumn but the seedlings are being knocked back by a combination of loppers, shears and brushcutters.
However it could be that all this hard work is not really necessary. Paul Nixon has come up with a brilliant idea which could be the ultimate solution to the tree mallow problem – cover the islands with carpet. A recent visit to Craigleith saw us putting his theory to the test. Loose rolls of carpet are fiendishly awkward to man-handle from a boat onto slippery rocks but the volunteers took it in their stride. Paul assisted by carpet fitter Iain Kerr then did a very neat job carpeting around the solar panels which now look extremely smart. This pilot project will be monitored carefully before we move on to carpet the rest of the island but hopes are already high that the tree mallow will not be able to force its way through high quality Axminster.
There has been considerable debate about the aesthetic aspects. Will a uniform covering of slightly unnatural green which remains unchanged through the seasons be acceptable to the good people of North Berwick – indeed will they even notice? Cost is a consideration but sponsorship by a carpet firm must be a real possibility. One possible drawback is that Scottish Natural Heritage may insist that the carpet is cleaned regularly but at least hoovering would be a change from cutting.
So a new clean green future could beckon for Craigleith. The only slight worry is will the puffins be able to burrow through the carpet? However, let us deal with one problem at a time …
The Philosophy of Tree Mallow Control (2007)
Opinion polls do not yet suggest that tree mallow is a major issue of concern for the British public but it is certainly one on which many people hold strong and widely ranging views. Having heard a considerable number of forthright opinions on “what to do about tree mallow” I find they fall into four main schools of thought.
The first is what one might call the traditionalist approach. Its exponents believe that it should all be done by hand with honest labour and the sweat of the brow. Nothing mechanical should intrude on the tranquillity of the island and any modern aids would make it all too easy and remove the moral satisfaction of a job well done. If it takes decades to complete, what does that matter in historical time scales?
Then there is the scientific method. Here you move cautiously and monitor everything. Decisions could be premature or, even worse, unscientific. If in doubt set up another five year research project.
The third line of thinking is the pastoral philosophy. Why toil away when our four-legged friends can do it all for us? Sheep, goats, wallabies and rabbits – they all have their supporters. How nice to lie in bed when the winds have prevented yet another boat trip and think that the dreaded plant is being quietly nibbled away.
The final view, held mainly by the male sex, is the technological or militarist option. Don’t pussyfoot around, get in there with machinery, the bigger the better. Flame throwers, liquid nitrogen, napalm and aerial spraying with agent orange – you name it, nothing is too terrible for public enemy number one.
With such a wealth of advice to guide its deliberations, I am sure that the Craigleith Management Group will have a most constructive meeting when it holds its annual get-together later this month.
The Lazy Days of Autumn (2007)
Craigleith was at its Mediterranean best last weekend with warm sunshine, light breezes and wonderful views of the island-studded Forth. As the volunteers contentedly settled to their work there was time to observe and reflect on the finer points of tree mallow control.
As always knowledge of one’s opponent is essential. Tree mallow comes in all forms from near invisible seedlings to nine foot monsters with every imaginable variation in between. A good eye for the lie of the land is helpful in deciding whether to advance on a broad front or carry out a series of pincer movements to isolate pockets of the enemy which are then mopped up later at one’s leisure.
There are the continuous tactical decisions required between use of loppers or shears. Is it best to approach the task standing, kneeling or sitting down? Later in the day the latter position seems to be favoured.
Many hours of cutting are needed to hone the skills required. Only then can one savour that moment when a single well judged cut with a lopper brings a giant plant crashing down. A true craftsman with shears is a pleasure to watch as they slice through several smaller plants at each stroke. No less important is the needlework-like patience required to pull up the tiny seedlings with the constant pressure of knowing that the one you miss could get away and tower over you in two years time.
There are frequent intellectual challenges such as that faced by the lady volunteer trying to get her armful of mallow cuttings on top of a pile which is already twice her height.
Maintaining morale is of course crucial. A lively discussion is a distraction from that aching back while close examination of a nearby bird provides a good excuse for a breather. Lunch is invariably the highlight of the day but over indulgence is to be avoided as it can lead to a prolonged siesta.
Those who assumed that mallow-bashing was all brute force and ignorance should think again. At its best, mallow control is a blend of art and science with, one has to admit, lots of fun as well.
