On the island of Skomer

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The whole purpose of this trip was to visit Skomer and hopefully photograph the puffins, so today was much anticipated. we checked first thing in the morning and to our relief, the ferry was running. In fact, because of the previous cancellations, it was running more trips than normal. We manage to get tickets for the 11:30 am with a return of 5:00 pm. So plenty of time to wander around the island. The day was gray and misty but lifted as soon as we stepped onto the shore giving us glorious weather for our stay.


So, onto our boat for the 15 min. trip.

One of the first indications that you are entering a special place, is the presents, overhead and on the water all around the boat, of hundreds of puffins. As we landed they were perched all around us just watching and seemingly unconcerned.


Having had our guide giving us the details of the great care to be taken around these wonderful creatures and the other inhabitants of the island, we headed off to the main puffin spotting area.


... and what was the first thing we saw? - a short eared owl! - but then ----



Puffins everywhere



..and more!



Puffins everywhere!. Dodging between the feet, skimming overhead, diving into burrows and just being puffins I guess!



They really were everywhere in this particular nesting area. It was good to see the food that they were bringing back looked like their normal fish diet. Follow this Link for more information.
There were other birds on the island, believe it or not, such as this Redstart.



Female Redstart

But the other highlight of the trip was to come. Just before we were to embark on our boat to return to the mainland ..... Back came the short eared owl!


This particular shot was taken just after we landed when we were treated to a brief flyby.



The Short Eared Owl returned with a display and a capture of what looks like a Skomer Vole for supper. We were well pleased to capture these images of this iconic creature at such close range. All in all, a great day, and a great few days away.



Location: Skomer, United Kingdom

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