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Skomer's shearwaters

Infra-red cameras reveal the nocturnal activities of Skomer's greatest treasure.

It鈥檚 half past nine, the sun鈥檚 set, and it really is getting incredibly dark, too dark now to use this camera, so we need to change to infrared and get out the image intensifying binoculars. But to begin with it鈥檚 more what you hear than what you see. Do you hear that? It鈥檚 been likened to the voices of cackling witches, I can believe that one. Somebody once said it was the ghosts of long dead pirates. It鈥檚 neither actually, it鈥檚 the sound of Skomer鈥檚 greatest treasure - and before long, they start to appear. Manx shearwaters, a quite remarkable bird. They鈥檙e not the most elegant birds on land鈥� their legs are too near the backs of their bodies to get much balance or to be able to stand upright, but the shearwater鈥檚 designed for life at sea, it鈥檒l just have come back now probably from a two day journey, fishing for sardines off the coast of Spain. Having eaten its fill it'll relieve its mate on the nest who will then go off and fish in turn. They come home at night to avoid being attacked by gulls. You can just make them out when your eyes get really accustomed to the dark. The place is beginning to be alive with them, and it鈥檚 not remotely scary, it鈥檚 quite wonderful. Just like the puffins, they鈥檙e here because of the rabbits 鈥� whose burrows attract 102,000 pairs of shearwaters each year 鈥� that鈥檚 a third of the world鈥檚 population on this one island. With so many neighbours in close proximity 鈥� the odd squabble is inevitable! These delightful birds pair up for life and may return to Skomer for anything up to 50 years.

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3 minutes

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