Granddad’s Camera
Manx shearwater, as it appears in the game

No.054 · Birds · Rare

Manx shearwater

Puffinus puffinus

A slim black-and-white seabird that spends its life at sea and comes ashore only in the dark, to shuffle down burrows on islands like Skomer and give its ghostly, screaming calls.

When to look

April to September, mostly at dusk and night.

Time of day

Best time
Dusk and after dark, roughly April–September. Rafts gather offshore in the evening; the burrow calls only start once it is dark.
Where in the game
the Pembrokeshire coast (island and sea)
Size
Body 30–38 cm
Wingspan
76–89 cm
Weight
About 380 g (range 330–455 g)
Lifespan
Typically 15 years once breeding; a ringed bird reached over 50 years old (BTO: 50 years 11 months)
Population
Nearly 350,000 breeding pairs on Skomer, the largest colony in the world (Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales). UK total 300,000 pairs in 1998–2002 (BTO)
Status
Amber list, UK Birds of Conservation Concern (BTO); Least Concern globally (IUCN)

Diet

Small shoaling fish, caught by diving and swimming underwater

Habitat

Open ocean. Breeds in burrows on grassy or bracken-covered islands free of rats and other ground predators. Winters off Brazil and Argentina

Breeding

One egg per year, laid in a burrow (first egg on Skomer 1 May in 2024). Both parents take turns to incubate for 47–55 days, and the chick fledges after 62–76 days

Field signs

  • Birds gliding low over the waves with stiff wings, tilting from black upperparts to white underparts
  • Huge rafts on the sea off the island in the evening
  • Wild, cackling, crowing calls in the dark from burrows and overhead
  • Burrow entrances in the turf and bracken

Did you know?

  • The bird is named after the Isle of Man, but the world's biggest Manx shearwater colony, nearly 350,000 pairs, is on Skomer in Pembrokeshire.
  • A ringed Manx shearwater lived to more than 50 years old (BTO).
  • Skomer's shearwaters return each spring from South America, a journey of some 7,000 miles (Wildlife Trusts); the first bird of 2024 was recorded on 9 March.

Moments worth waiting for

  • Burrow calls after dark May to August, night
    Out of the black sky come shrieks and gurgles: shearwaters drop clumsily onto the turf and scuttle towards their burrows.
  • Rafting at dusk June to August, dusk
    A vast raft of shearwaters gathers on the water, waiting for darkness before heading in to the island.

Photo tip

This is a night watch. From the coast at dusk, try a long lens on the evening rafts and streams of birds coming in, with a high ISO and a wide aperture. Do not use flash. If you are lucky enough to be on Skomer overnight, the birds are heard far more than seen: record the sound.

Be a good naturalist

Shearwaters land in the dark and are put off by bright light, so keep white torches off, use only a dim red light pointed at the ground if you are out at night, and follow the wardens' rules. Stay on the paths, because the burrow roofs are fragile, and never put a hand into a burrow.

The law

Protected as a wild bird under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981; Skomer is a National Nature Reserve and Special Protection Area

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