Tiny trackers are being fitted to the backs of seabirds in the UK as part of a Europe-wide effort to better understand their behaviour. Scientists are tagging birds on the Fair Isle, Orkney and Colonsay in the Hebrides. The project called Future of the Atlantic Marine Environment (Fame) also includes species on Bardsey Island in Wales and the Isles of Scilly. The RSPB said Fame used technology similar to car sat nav systems. Trackers are also being fitted to birds in Ireland, France, Spain and Portugal.
Dr Ellie Owen, a scientist working on a European Union-funded project, said very little was known about the movements of birds as they hunted at sea.She said: "We know more about the journeys of albatrosses in the Southern Ocean than we do about some of the seabirds around our own shores.
"For example, we know how many kittiwakes there are in the UK, and we know they've declined by 30% between 2000 and 2010. "But we don't know where these ocean travellers are going to fish for their chicks' suppers. But now, just when these birds need our help, we're on the cusp of filling this information void with vitally-important data."
Why not check out the news from the wildlife enquiries team?