Guest blog from Rebecca Tanner, former Visitor Experience Officer at Rathlin Seabird Centre
For six months last year, I had the privilege of living and working on Rathlin, a small isle off the coast of Northern Ireland. My time there was packed full of the most incredible wildlife encounters, and I wanted to share some of those special moments.
Guillemots and jumplings
With around 150,000 birds, Rathlin has the largest guillemot colony in the whole of the UK and Ireland. Being able to watch the season progress was amazing, from spotting the first eggs in July to witnessing the chicks make their phenomenal leap from the cliffs in mid-July.
Rare Manx Shearwater spotting
Sadly Rathlin Island’s Manx Shearwater population has died out due to the introduction of rats and ferrets, which easily predate on these burrow-nesting seabirds. An eradication project is underway, which will hopefully allow Manx Shearwater to recolonise the island. Getting to hear their calls as they flew close to land at night was a highlight of my summer.
It’s a common sight to those visiting the island, to witness dolphins racing alongside the ferry on the way in and out of the island, but it never gets old spotting them in the waters. This past summer a large pod of them appeared quite close and spend a few days around the island, foraging close to the shore and wowing everyone with their incredible acrobatic displays.
In September, another marine visitor gave me the best sighting of the season! Two male killer wales ‘John Coe’ and ‘Aquarius’ these famous killer whales are usually spotted in Scotland, so to see them at Rathlin was truly incredible. Sadly, these two males are the last of their pod, as the rest have been affected by increased mortality and infertility due to long-lasting pollutants (known as Persistent Organic Pollutants) in the environment.
Of all the wildlife I saw during my time on Rathlin Island, I felt incredibly lucky to be the first to record a sighting of the rare striped hawk moth during a 3am search for Manx Shearwater with the LIFE Raft team.
For anyone who is thinking about applying for a role as Visitor Experience Officer on Rathlin Island, go for it! Spend a summer immersed in the beauty of this wild isle and discover all the nature it has to offer.
Find your summer role here: www.rspb.org.uk/careers