After razorbills yesterday we're moving on to their close cousins, the common guillemot. With the smallest breeding territory of any UK bird, these gregarious seabirds can be found around large parts of the UK coastline, crammed precariously on ledges that look barely wide enough to support the adults let alone an egg and chick.
Seabird colonies are noisy affairs and a lot of that emanates from this species - their rolling growls waft on the updrafts along with the ever present whiff of guano that hangs in the air at such a site; the razorbill, also a growler, is much lower pitched and more stern sounding.
But like the razorbill their time on the ledges is short lived. The chicks hatch in late May and early June and at just 2-3 weeks old the part grown chicks are coaxed from their ledges and complete the fledging process at sea with the male bird, far away from land and safer from predators than sat on a bare ledge. The female remains at the colony to guard the site from the ever inquisitive non breeders, but by mid to late July the colony will be near deserted once more, whitewashed cliffs the only sign of the chaotic rumpus that has gone before.
The bustling throng of a guillemot colony on the west coast of Ramsey
And so to this years numbers - and it's more good news. For the first time we have passed the 5,000 mark with 5,395 individuals counted (5286 on Ramsey and 109 on the Bishops & Clerks). Guillemots are less spread out around the island's coastline than the razorbills. 86% of the total are crammed onto the 2 main cliff colonies on the back of the largest hill on the island, Carn Llundain, where the sea cliffs tower to over 100m. The largest of the 2 cliff faces, Trwyn yr Allt, has 2,800 of those birds alone.
Graph showing the increase in the Guillemot population over the past 28 years on Ramsey
We have already had several reports from our boat operator friends of guillemot chicks, accompanied by dad, far our at sea. There is still time to experience the sight and smell of a seabird colony this year but hurry, it'll all be over for another season before we know it.
Although the fulmars will still be here for some time yet and we'll get to them next.....