Animal

Farne Islands seabirds in danger as heavy rain kills chicks


Seabirds nesting on the remote Farne Islands have been hit by heavy rain which killed many of their young, the National Trust has said.

Arctic terns, puffins, guillemots and shags all suffered losses as chicks including pufflings – baby puffins – were battered by nearly 127mm (5in) of rain in 24 hours on 13 June on the islands off the Northumberland coast.

There was five times as much rain as fell on the islands in the whole of June last year at a time when the baby birds were at their most vulnerable.

Ground-nesting Arctic terns were hit by exposure of their chicks to the elements, and the puffins’ burrows were flooded.

It will take time to see if the rain has a significant impact on bird numbers in subsequent years but the National Trust warns the climate emergency could be having an effect with more frequent summer storms.

Gwen Potter, countryside manager for the National Trust, said: “The significant rainfall sadly caused many ground-nesting Arctic tern chicks to perish due to exposure to the elements.

“We don’t know the full impact yet but estimate that tern numbers are likely to dip by up to 35% this year.

“We also know that 300 pufflings perished on one of the islands. Puffins are ground-nesting birds and unfortunately their burrows flooded. We’re continuing to monitor the wildlife on the islands closely.”

Potter said: “The complex effects of a changing climate on nature are becoming increasingly frequent and difficult to solve.

“We are now seeing frequent summer storms washing out nests on the Farne Islands on a regular basis and a decline in the numbers of surface-feeding species such as terns.”



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