Northern Fulmars are one of the commonest seabirds in northern Britain and are present year-round, with no pronounced migration after becoming adult. They usually nest on wide ledges near the top of cliffs, but will also nest on more gently sloping land, under boulders and in puffin burrows on islands free from mammalian predators. They feed at sea on a variety of foods ranging from zooplankton and small fish to offal and discards produced by commercial fishing and consequently are ubiquitous companions of fishing vessels in northern waters.

 

An increase in food discarded by commercial fishing has been suggested as a contributing factor to the spectacular growth in numbers and distribution of Northern Fulmars in Britain and Ireland and the North Atlantic. Prior to the mid-18th century, they bred in only one or two colonies in Iceland and in St Kilda (Western Isles). They then expanded their breeding range around the coast of Iceland and onto the Faeroe Islands and in 1878, formed a second British colony on Foula (Shetland). Subsequently, they have spread around Britain and Ireland and NW Europe and across the Atlantic to Canada. Throughout most of the twentieth century numbers of Northern Fulmars have rapidly increased, but Seabird 2000 found that during the last 15 years of the century, this rise ceased and in some areas numbers decreased.

 

The recommended count unit for Northern Fulmars during Seabird 2000 was the apparently occupied site (AOS). This approximates to breeding pairs, however some sites may be occupied by non-breeders (maturity is not reached until around 9 years of age) and failed breeders. There was almost total coverage during Seabird 2000 with only a few gaps, notably Sula Sgeir (Western Isles) and Inishnabro (Co. Kerry). This was an improvement on both previous censuses: In the SCR Census (1985-88) around 25% of Fulmars in Ireland were not counted including 10% in Counties Antrim, Kerry, Clare and Mayo, and 40% in Donegal. The quality of coverage during Operation Seafarer (1969-70) was more difficult to ascertain, as some large sections of coastline were covered rapidly or late in the breeding season.

 

The environmental change which is most likely to have affected Fulmars since the 1970s has come from a decline in the North Sea whitefish industry and a corresponding decline in the amount of offal discharged from its fleets - a trend which is likely to continue. Declines in the abundance of natural prey such as sandeels in the North Sea and of certain species of zooplankton in the North Atlantic are also likely to have had a detrimental effect on the population. Large numbers of Northern Fulmars are also caught and killed accidentally by the long-lining fleet in the Norwegian Sea and also probably in the North Atlantic.

 

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