Manx Shearwater

Clarification p.64 second paragraph, eleventh line: the 1987 study site was an area 50m x 50m, i.e. 2,500m².

Earliest and latest since 2006 (last year covered in full by The Birds of Lundy): Earliest 13 Jan 2021 (one); Latest 20 Dec 2020 (four)). There were reports of small numbers offshore in Dec 2008 (one) and 19-25 Jan (up to six), but in the absence of substantiating details, notably elimination of possible confusion with other species, we consider these unreliable.

Breeding season summary

From burrows in the colony on the sidelands between the Old Light and Battery Point there were 64 responses to taped calls played in June. During the first two weeks of September David Price, Adrian Plant and Tony Taylor caught and ringed 55 young and 15 adult Manx Shearwaters in the same area, marking the fourth consecutive year of breeding success for this species. There was no monitoring of burrows elsewhere on the island during the 2007 breeding season. There was a series of exceptionally late autumn records: one was heard calling (by Kate and Liza Cole) near Hanmers on the evening of 7 October; one was found on the ground near Brambles on the night of 9 October by Chris and Carol Baillie; four were seen passing offshore on 15 October; and Andy Jayne heard one calling on the West Side near Old Light on the evening of 31 October. Finally, James Leonard saw one off Rat Island on 13 November - the latest Lundy record to date for a Manx Shearwater. The previous record late date (26 October) was set just a year earlier, in 2006, perhaps indicating that more birds are remaining in the vicinity of the breeding grounds much longer into the autumn.

Breeding season summary

Breeding census – A survey in late May - based on the responses of chicks in burrows to recordings of adult shearwater calls - resulted in an estimate of around 1,000 apparently occupied burrows, corresponding to a population of about 1,000 pairs (Helen Booker, RSPB, pers. comm.). This compares with an estimated 166 pairs using similar survey methods in 2001 and is the strongest evidence yet of the positive impact that rat eradication has had for breeding shearwaters.

Breeding season summary

Tim Guilford and Robin Freeman of the Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, spent the first 12 nights of August carrying out fieldwork at the breeding colony between Old Light and Battery Point. During the first five nights, a total of 15 Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking devices were attached to assumed breeding adult shearwaters to track in detail the birds' movements during feeding trips out at sea. In addition, geolocator devices were attached to 19 birds to record their migration to and from wintering grounds off the coast of South America (for further details of the methods used and results obtained, see the paper on pp. 74–75 of the 2009 LFS Annual Report). During daylight hours, Tim and Robin recorded by far the highest count of shearwaters for the year; some 10,000 seen rafting between two and five km off the west coast on 3 Aug.

Between 27 Aug and 12 Sep, 145 chicks were ringed – twice the number found in 2008. Tony Taylor commented: "Not only a big increase in the main Old Light colony but shearwater nestlings also found on seven other slopes ranging from Puffin Slope to west of Benjamin's Chair."

Breeding season summary

GPS tracking studies were conducted between 10 & 24 Jul. Breeding birds were tracked foraging as far north as the Isle of Man and as far as Dartmouth to the south. Most rafting birds were to the south-west of Lundy. Data-loggers were fitted to some birds and should reveal information about migration routes and wintering areas – if the loggers can be retrieved in 2011 (see page 76 of 2010 LFS Annual Report).

High counts involved a large raft estimated at 7,000 birds off South West Point on 8 Aug and 10,000+ mainly north-northwest of the island on 30 Aug.

David & Elisabeth Price, Peter Slader and Richard & Tony Taylor ringed 169 young and 17 adults between 26 Aug and 11 Sep. Many were captured in the colony between Old Light and Battery Point, but others were found along the sidings north of Pyramid Rock, at Puffin Slope, on Castle Hill and at various sites between Benjamin’s Chair and Old Light.

Breeding season summary

Four shearwater corpses presumed taken and stripped by Peregrines – with one young Peregrine still feeding on remains – were found at Jenny’s Cove on 21 Jun (S. Barnes).

David & Elisabeth Price, Peter Slader and Tony and Richard Taylor ringed totals of 167 young and 89 adult shearwaters in late Aug and early Sep. On 22 Aug, Tony Taylor wrote: “Manx Shearwaters very active, with much calling last two nights, particularly 20th. Six chicks found so far at Old Light colony. One adult, ringed on Lundy as a chick in 2008, was first known returning Lundy-bred bird since the rat eradication.” (A second such bird was trapped later during Tony and Richard’s visit). On 6 Sep David Price noted: “Our perception was that there were more young birds around than last year, and that there are still plenty more to emerge from their burrows. The last three days (4-6 Sep) were problematic due to rain and strong winds. When the conditions were too difficult on the west coast we tried the colony below Tibbett’s on the East Side, but thanks to head-high bracken were unable to locate any birds”.

Breeding season summary

David & Elisabeth Price, Nik Ward and Peter Slader made the following logbook entry for 28 Aug to 6 Sep: “Spent the last 10 days (or more specifically the nights!) out on the sidings catching and ringing Manx Shearwaters. Our target was to ring young shearwaters that have recently emerged from their holes and which will spend several nights out on the slopes losing weight, shedding their fluffy down and exercising their wings before flying out to sea. We managed to ring 106 young birds in total – most of them at the colony between Old Light and Battery, but also north of Dead Cow Point, the sidings north of the Pyramid, and Puffin Slope. The bright full moon hampered our catching somewhat as birds are less likely to emerge on bright nights. This was probably the reason we saw few adults as they are even more reluctant to come in to the sidings unless it is really dark. We saw some evidence of predated juvenile birds, one such looking like a Peregrine kill (prompting the question as to whether Peregrines regularly hunt at night). We caught more birds than in the same period last year, so potentially the population has increased, and we were encouraged to find the Dead Cow Point colony had expanded considerably since our last visit.” Tony Taylor took over the story, adding: “Richard Taylor and I (with help from Derren Fox and Don Malone on a couple of nights) ringed shearwaters on the nights of 6-12 Sep, alternating between the main colony north of Old Light and other sites (from Pilots Quay to the Old Light wall; west of Benjamin's Chair and Castle Hill; Dead Cow Point to Needle Rock). Mainly strong winds, but little rain. Some clear nights, but moonlight was not reaching the western slopes for several hours after nightfall. As David Price wrote, the general impression was of another increase in chick numbers, but compared to the previous few years there was little calling and adults were scarce. We did find one feeding its chick on 8th. Our totals: 145 chicks, and five adults ringed. For the main colony only, between us we ringed 170 chicks (including 1 later by Chris Dee), compared with 118 in 2011.”

For the year as a whole, 252 chicks and 53 adults were ringed.

The Manx Shearwater colony north of Old Light was searched at night on 16/17 Oct; none was seen or heard (Tony Taylor). The last record for the year of birds passing offshore was of four on 28 Oct, while Andrew Cleave reported birds calling over Millcombe during the nights of 5 & 8 Nov.

For a fourth successive year the Oxford University EGI team returned to continue its shearwater tracking project at the breeding colony between Old Light and Battery Point. From 12 to 25 August the team fitted 27 GPS devices to individual birds. A full report on their findings is given on pp. 101–107 of the 2012 LFS Annual Report.

Breeding season summary

18 Apr – Some 5,000 passed off the West Side during strong westerlies (Tony Taylor).

Breeding census – The breeding survey coordinated by the RSPB in May/Jun involved checking over 9,000 holes using recorded calls of adult birds. A total of 1,617 birds responded, which (with adjustments for coverage and response rates) translated into a population estimate of 3,451 breeding pairs. This represents a staggering tenfold increase in numbers since the 2001 survey and is considered almost entirely attributable to the rat eradication completed in the winter of 2003/04. because Manx Shearwaters do not breed until they are around five years old, there was a lag between the first successful rearing of young shearwaters post-rat eradication and the return of those birds as nesting adults. The significant increase in breeding numbers already recorded by the last census in 2008 was therefore considered to be due to immigration from other colonies (e.g. of ‘surplus’ birds from the Pembrokeshire islands). Since 2008, growing numbers of breeding-age, Lundy-reared shearwaters have returned, steepening the rate of increase in the colony, such that Lundy now holds almost 1% of the global population. With over 3,000 holes apparently occupied out of the total of over 9,000 checked, this means that every third hole on Lundy now contains a nesting shearwater!

In late Aug and early Sep, Tony Taylor and Richard Taylor, followed by David & Elisabeth Price, Peter Slader and Nik Ward, spent two weeks catching and ringing young Manx Shearwaters as part of the Seabird Recovery Project. Altogether they ringed 337 juveniles outside burrows, a significant increase on the 251 ringed in 2012. Over 1,000 Lundy-hatched shearwaters have now been ringed since rats were eradicated. David Price comments that this year’s high ringing total “reflected the greater abundance of young birds at all sites. Fifty-nine adults were also ringed and 31 were recaptured from previous years. Four of these recaptured adults were birds originally ringed as juveniles on Lundy, reflecting an increasing number of returning ‘home grown’ birds”.

Warden Beccy MacDonald heard shearwaters calling at night over Millcombe on 12 Nov and was able to pick out six individuals. birds were heard again (but not seen) on 13 & 27 Nov (Beccy MacDonald, Michael Williams). Small numbers of calling shearwaters are regularly heard on the Welsh breeding islands in Nov (per Greg Morgan, Ramsey Island RSPB Warden) and are assumed to be late-departing non-breeders or perhaps passage migrants from further north.

The Oxford University EGI research team returned to Lundy during the summer to continue satellite-tracking studies, but a report on that work has not yet been prepared.

Breeding season summary

The first of the year were six on 12 Apr. On four nights between 25 May and 2 Jun, Richard Taylor and Tony Taylor caught 159 adult shearwaters, 46 of which had been ringed on Lundy during previous trips, with the remainder being newly ringed birds. Tony commented: “On the two darkest nights, the noise and activity were particularly impressive; the increase in numbers is clearly continuing.” Writing in the log on 23 Aug, Martin Thorne noted: “Manx Shearwaters in epic numbers off North Light. At one point in the afternoon maybe up to 3 or 4 thousand birds”.

During the period 19 Aug to 4 Sep, David Price, Peter Slader, Richard Taylor, Tony Taylor and Nik Ward visited shearwater colonies nightly, weather permitting, to ring both adults and young, to assess the emergence of young from burrows and, especially, to monitor the return as adults of birds originally ringed on Lundy as chicks. Altogether they captured 286 shearwaters, of which 211 were ‘new’ (98 chicks and 113 adults), while 75 were recaptures of birds ringed in previous years. They noted that the breeding season in 2014 appeared to be late in comparison with other years, with very few emerging chicks in evidence until Sep. Nik Ward and Beccy MacDonald undertook further colony visits on the nights of 9 & 10 Sep, ringing a further 24 birds (23 chicks and one adult).

Small numbers continued to be seen offshore well into autumn, including ten on 23 Oct.

Breeding season summary

The first record was of birds calling in the Landing Bay on 7 Apr. At least 350 were counted on 3 May (Ian Searle). At the Old Light breeding colony during the night of 22/23 May, 33 new birds were ringed and eight birds from previous years were retrapped. Two of the latter had been ringed as chicks on Lundy, in 2008 and 2013 respectively (Tony Taylor). An estimated 20 per minute were passing north along the East Side during the evening of 29 May (Tony Taylor). During MarineLIFE/RSPB survey work aimed at recording Balearic Shearwaters and Bottlenosed Dolphins on 18 Aug, dense rafts totalling up to an estimated 20,000 birds were off the East Side (Tim Davis & Tim Jones). The last of the year was one on 31 Oct.

Teams of ringers led by David Price and Tony Taylor were again present to ring shearwaters in Sep, with 255 chicks and 126 adults ringed. Three of the chicks ringed were subsequently found dead, among hundreds of unringed birds, in southern Brazil as a result of severe weather (see below for details).

Breeding season summary

The first record of the year was of 40 birds feeding in the tide race off South West Point on 23 Mar.* Several were heard calling off the South End on the night of 3 Apr. Tony Taylor reports that during the last week of May and first two weeks of Jun, ringers visited the Old Light colony six times. They ringed 98 new birds and caught one control (later established as having been ringed on the Welsh coast near Aberystwyth in 2013). Forty-one individuals ringed on Lundy in previous years were retrapped, 11 of which had originally been ringed as chicks, in 2007 (1), 2010 (1), 2012 (3) and 2013 (6). The remaining 30 retraps were all ringed as adults from 2009 onwards, with several of them having been recorded in most of the intervening years. Overall, numbers seemed high at the colony, and birds were very noisy over St John’s Valley at night. So there were no immediate signs that adverse weather conditions associated with the strong El Niño of 2015 – including storms off the coast of southern Brazil & Uruguay that ‘wrecked’ many young, inexperienced Manx Shearwaters in Oct/Nov 2015, including at least three Lundy-ringed birds (see pages 58 & 59 of the 2015 LFS Annual Report) – had affected the population as a whole. However, the weights of birds with downy brood patches, which were assumed to be of pre-breeding age, were lower than on previous May/Jun visits, so they may have been in poorer condition than usual. It will be interesting to monitor the return rate of chicks hatched in 2015, which are due to come back to Lundy in the next two to three breeding seasons, having spent their early years at sea. There was no reduction in the weights of breeding shearwaters; some of them were very heavy (up to 500g) and were presumably well prepared for a long spell of incubation. A further ringing visit on the night of 26/27 Jun brought nine new birds and seven retraps from previous years, two of which had been ringed as chicks on Lundy in 2012 and 2014 (David Price et al.).As usual, the peak offshore count occurred in Aug when an estimated 10,000 were feeding in the tide race off North Light on 29th (Martin Thorne). From 30 Aug to 9 Sep, 246 chicks and 19 adults were ringed, with a further 20 adults retrapped. Four fledglings were found in the Village, presumably attracted to lights at night. One of these had been ringed near Benjamin’s Chair a few nights previously (Tony Taylor, Richard & Rebecca Taylor et al.). The last record of the year was of six on 28 Oct, when Chris & Carol Baillie reported calls off the East Side at 20.30hrs, followed by calling birds over the Old Light colony between 21.00hrs and 21.45hrs.

*The table on p.34 of the 2016 LFS Annual Report incorrectly shows these as occurring in Feb.

Breeding season summary

Recorded between 25 Mar (birds present in the Old Light colony – see below) and the unusually late date of 2 Nov (off the East Side – Dean Jones). The only counts of more than 300 were during the period 3–9 Aug when there were 538 on 3rd, a “highly conservative” 10,000+ passing off North End between 16.30 hrs and dusk on 5th (Dean Jones & Zoë Barton), 1,121 on 6th and 639 on 9th. There were only six daytime counts reported for Sep/Oct, with four of these in single digits.

Ringing studies continued, with most work carried out at the main breeding colony north of Old Light. Several calling birds were heard there on the night of 25/26 Mar; some from burrows underground, others in flight; two birds ringed on Lundy in previous years (2009 & 2014) were retrapped (Dean Jones, Tim Jones, Tony Taylor). Unfavourable weather conditions and moon phases in Sep restricted the number of chicks ringed to 119 (plus two recently fledged birds), but 242 adults were newly ringed and therewere 157 recaptures of birds ringed in previous years. Among these were 16 birds originally ringed as chicks, the oldest being from 2005. Even older was a bird ringed as an adult in 2004. All the retrap data contributes to understanding of the breeding population’s age structure, productivity and recruitment. Since shearwaters usually spend at least two years prospecting for a nest site and pairing up before they lay, it was a delightful surprise to find a female incubating and egg in May 2017, in one of the nestboxes installed in Mar 2016. This enabled her, and later her partner, to be ringed as confirmed breeding adults. They reared a chick that was a healthy 100g heavier than its parents when it was ringed in mid-Aug.

New record set for earliest date in spring for Lundy

5 Mar – The first of the year were two flying SW past Rat Island in the early morning.

Breeding season summary and new all-island breeding population estimate

Writing in the LFS Logbook on 26 Mar, Tony Taylor reported: “Lots of evidence of activity in main colony on W Side: newly excavated burrows, droppings at burrow entrances, new nest material in one of the nestboxes and three piles of shearwater feathers from predated birds.” Ringers visiting the main colony north of Old Light on the night of 20/21 May reported birds calling in the air and from underground. Twenty-one were trapped, including eight ringed in previous years, two as chicks in 2014. The nestboxes in the same colony were checked on 23 May when it was found that one of 2017’s successful pair was incubating an egg in the same box. The presence of the second adult from the 2017 pair was confirmed on 30 May. Overall during the year, a record 361 shearwater chicks were ringed, as well as 180 full-grown birds. One hundred previously ringed adult shearwaters were recaptured, providing a wealth of valuable information on their life histories.

In Jun a team of surveyors from Natural England and RSPB returned to the island to complete the census of shearwater burrows begun in 2017. The team’s painstaking efforts were rewarded when subsequent data analysis yielded an estimated breeding population of 5,504 pairs, representing an increase of some 55% since the 2013 survey and showing ongoing expansion of the Lundy colony to a new record level.

Breeding season summary

Tony Taylor reports that: “Breeding colonies visited at night were as busy and noisy as ever, but ringing totals were lower than in the previous eight years because of reduced coverage. Ninety-three adults were ringed in late May, early June and early September, and 141 chicks were also ringed. Another 62 previously ringed adults were recaptured. Breeding or pre-breeding adults were found occupying five nest-boxes in early June. Three of these pairs had laid eggs and two reared chicks successfully."

Unusually late autumn/early winter records

5 to 31 Dec – One was off the Landing Bay on 5 Dec: “Very surprised to see this bird so late in the year. Watched for some three minutes as it flew north along the east coast in typical shearwater fashion … showing all black above and a very clean white underside (ruling out Balearic Shearwater)” (Dean Jones). There were three even later records: one on 21 Dec at the North End, “watched for around two minutes as it foraged close in to the North Light” (Dean Jones); one on 29 Dec, “watched in great detail for around an hour and a half, initially flying between gull flocks … landing and then diving for a meal” (Dean Jones); and finally two sightings of a single bird on 31 Dec, off Rat Island in the morning and around the East Side in the early afternoon. It is interesting to speculate whether these exceptionally late records might have involved the same bird, perhaps one not in sufficient condition to make the long flight to winter in South American waters.

Breeding season summary

Many were heard coming into the island on the evening of 24 Mar and 82 were counted passing Rat Island in 30 minutes at 07:00 hrs on 5 Apr. Adults were incubating eggs in several of the LFS-installed nestboxes in the Old Light colony on 14 May. These included bird EA10081, which has been using the same box since 2017. Checks on 11 Jul showed that of seven breeding attempts in the boxes, all were still active, with each box holding either a young chick or an adult continuing to incubate (Dean Jones). By far the highest counts of the year were 4,000 on 7 Jul, followed by 2,677 on 5 Aug and 2,542 on 20 Aug. There were no other four-digit counts. Following the departure of most breeding birds in Sep, a calling bird was recorded at night on 16/17 Oct.

Unusually late November/December records

There were several unusually late records, including four on 8 Nov and one on 15th, then two on 11 & 16 Dec, followed by four on 20th.

Exceptional January record

One was watched offshore from the Landing Bay, foraging among Kittiwakes, for about 15 minutes on the highly unusual date of 13 Jan (Dean Jones).

Breeding season summary

The first arrivals of spring were in early Mar, with one off The Battery on 6^th, followed by low single-digit counts until 15^th, then 160 on 20^th and 222 flying past Rat Island in 30 minutes during stormy weather on the morning of 26^th. Birds were heard calling over the island during the evening of 30 Mar and an adult was calling repeatedly from its burrow along the western edge of South West Field during the afternoon of 14 Apr. Peak daytime counts later in the season included a raft of 500 off the West Side during the evening of 27 May. Adults were incubating eggs in six of the nestboxes at the Old Light colony on 1 Jun. The first chick was recorded on 16 Jun (estimated to be about a week old) and all six boxes held healthy chicks, of which five were still at the ‘fluffy grey down’ stage when checked again on 4 Aug. The year’s highest number counted offshore in daylight hours was a modest 800 on 13 Aug but does not reflect the true size of the island’s breeding population. One was off the Ugly on 18 Oct, followed by three on 21^st and the last of the year, two on 8 Nov, were calling at night and coming close inshore just north of the western end of Quarter Wall (Eleanor Grover).

Manx Shearwater ringing in 2021 (contributed by Tony Taylor)

With shearwater chicks being targeted for just one week in early September, the number ringed was 107, along with another four young birds that had made their first flight but not yet left the island. This is the lowest chick total since 2007, but reflects the relatively few nights spent in the colonies, and the fact that many had already fledged by that stage of the season.

In contrast, the total of 186 adults ringed in the year was impressive, largely thanks to several nights spent searching for them in June, when weather conditions were ideal for catching breeding adults as well as pre-breeders prospecting for nest sites. In addition, 76 birds that had been ringed on Lundy in previous years were recaptured. They included 47 originally ringed as adults, and 19 of these have now continued returning to Lundy for five years or more. The remaining 29 provided particularly valuable data as they had been ringed as chicks and so were of known age. The oldest of these hatched in 2013 but over half of them were from 2018 alone, reflecting the fact that most young shearwaters start looking for burrows and partners at three years of age.

Seven of the shearwater nestboxes were occupied. Six were used by the same pairs as in previous years, with all of these successfully rearing chicks. The seventh contained one of its previous occupants, with a new partner. Typically, a pair takes time to establish a strong bond before attempting breeding; these two birds did not lay but there is a strong likelihood they will do so in 2022. Though the sample size provided by the boxes is still small, the results so far suggest that adult survival rates and breeding success on Lundy are both very high.

Breeding season summary

The first was recorded on land on 19 Mar when one was calling from a burrow near Old Light. The highest counts included 600 on 19 Apr, 1,200 on 17 May, 700 on 13 Jun and 2,000 on 1 Jul. The last three of the year flew past Rat Island on 10 Nov. Only 161 Manx Shearwaters were ringed this year due to biosecurity measures to minimize potential risks from avian influenza during the main Aug/Sep shearwater chick ringing season. The artificial nestboxes were well used, with eight out of 11 pairs successfully raising and fledging chicks.

Exceptional January record

26 Jan – One was off the West Side on this exceptionally early date (Stuart Cossey).

New record population estimate

The RSPB-led survey of nesting burrows conducted in Jun resulted in an estimate of 12,638 apparently occupied sites, a proxy for the number pairs and equivalent to a breeding population of more than 25,000 individuals. This set a new record for the island and more than doubled the previous estimate in 2018, showing that the population continues to expand rapidly, nearly two decades on from Lundy being declared 'rat free'.

Ringing

520 Manx Shearwaters, including 169 chicks were ringed during the year.

Ringing

By the end of 2023, some 6,381 Manx Shearwaters had been ringed on Lundy, largely since the island was declared 'rat free' in early 2006. In addition to providing valuable information about the spectacular recovery of Lundy's breeding shearwater population over the last decade or so (as summarised in the annual updates above), the long-term ringing effort continues to add to our knowledge of the birds' movements.

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult (ring no. FC27294) on Lundy on 22 Jul 2004, was found dead on Lundy on 28 May 2007 – a period of 1,040 days (2 years 10 months) between ringing and recovery.

Ringing recovery: The ring only of a Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 29 April 1957 (ring no. AT14936) was found by use of a metal detector at Pembroke, Pembrokeshire, Wales on 29 April 2009, nearly 52 years later! (18,993 days; 59 km; NNW 343°). While shearwaters are long-lived, there must be a suspicion that the bird itself was long dead when the ring was discovered.

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on 31 Jul 2005 (ring no. EL68296) on Copeland Island, County Down, Northern Ireland, was controlled on Lundy on 29 Aug 2010 (1,855 days; 395 km; S 172°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 07 May 1992 (ring no. FC37697) was retrapped on Lundy on 08 May 1996 and found dead (leg and ring only) on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 23 Jun 2011 (6,986 days; 74 km; NW 325°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 07 Jun 2013 (ring no. EX74477) was found dead (not fresh) on Bardsey Island, Gwynedd on 31 Aug 2013 (85 days; 177 km; N 358°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 03 Jun 2013 (ring no. EX74414) was found freshly dead at Freshwater East, Pembrokeshire on 09 Jun 2014 (371 days; 54 km; NNW 346°).

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Bardsey Island, Gwynedd on 18 May 2012 (ring no. FB35848) was controlled on Lundy on 31 Aug 2014 (835 days; 177 km; S 178°).

Ringing recovery (on-island): A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 02 May 1996 (ring no. FC37753) was found dead on Lundy on 18 Sep 2014 – some 6,713 days (over 18 years 4 months) later.

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 04 Sep 2015 (ring no. EY74131) was found freshly dead, after days of storms, at Mongagua, São Paulo, Brazil, on 30 Oct 2015 (56 days; 9,338 km; SSW 207°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 09 Sep 2015 (ring no. EZ06320) was found freshly dead, after days of storms, at Praia do Cassino, Rio Grande so Sul, Brazil, on 06 Nov 2015 (58 days; 10,493 km; SSW 207°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 06 Sep 2015 (ring no. EY74178) was found  dead at Parque Nacional da Lagoa do Peixe, Rio Grande so Sul, Brazil, on 06 Nov 2015 (61 days; 10,228 km; SSW 207°).

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a full-grown bird at Rhoscellan, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion on 19 Jul 2013 (ring no. FC94387) was controlled on Lundy on both 26 May 2016 and 09 Jun 2016 (1,042 & 1,056 days; 149 km; SSW 196°).

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 07 Sep 2007 (ring no. EF98315) was controlled on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 18 Aug 2016 (3,268 days; 74 km; NW 325°).

Ringing recovery (on-island): A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 29 Aug 2011 (ring no. EX74128) was found freshly dead (predated by Peregrine) on Lundy on 12 Jul 2017 – some 2,145 days (over 5 years 10 months) later.

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 27 Jun 1996 (ring no. FC93323) was found dead  (ring and leg only) on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 16 Apr 2017 (7,598 days; 74 km; NW 325°).

Ringing recovery: The ring only of a Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 20 May 1987 (ring no. FR86417) was found dead  (ring only) on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 21 Jun 2017 (10,990 days – but potentially long dead; 74 km; NW 325°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 27 Apr 2011 (ring no. EX17685) was found freshly dead  (predated by Great Black-backed Gull) on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 12 Aug 2017 (2,299 days; 74 km; NW 325°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 04 Sep 2016 (ring no. EZ36409) was found  dead at Trapiche, Penha, Santa Catarina, Brazil on 30 Aug 2017 (360 days; 9,688 km; SSW 207°).

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 07 Sep 2007 (ring no. EF98315) was controlled on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 10 Apr 2018 (3,268 days; 74 km; NW 325°). Note: This bird was previously controlled on Skokhom in 2016 (see above).

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a full-grown bird on Lundy on 06 Jun 2013 (ring no. EX74428) was controlled on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire on 19 May 2018 (1,808 days; 74 km; NW 325°) and found dead (killed by predatory bird) there on 28 May 2020 (2,548 days).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 06 Sep 2015 (ring no. EY74178) was found  dead at Praia Caminho das Conchas, São João da Barra, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 27 Oct 2018 (44 days; 8,851 km; SSW 204°). This is one of seven Lundy-ringed Manx Shearwater to be found dead along the Brazilian coastline during their first autumn migration. This unfortunate individual shows the fastest movement south of the three first-year birds; a little over six weeks after ringing.

Ringing control: A Manx Shearwater ringed as an adult on Lundy on 06 Jun 2013 (ring no. EX74442) was controlled on Bardsey Island, Gwynedd on 19 Jun 2020 and 14 Aug 2020 (2,570 & 2,626 days; 178 km; N 358°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 24 Aug 2020 (ring no. EA41446) was found  dead (not fresh) at Praia de Ipanema, Pontal do Paraná, Paraná, Brazil on 9 Oct 2020 (46 days; 9,567 km; SSW 207°).

Ringing recovery: A Manx Shearwater ringed as a pullus (chick) on Lundy on 26 Aug 2019 (ring no. EA41405) was found  dead (not fresh) at Praia de Ipanema, Pontal do Paraná, Paraná, Brazil on 17 Oct 2020 (418 days; 9,567 km; SSW 207°).