Isle of May puffin numbers plummet after extreme weather

The survey involved researchers sweeping back and forth across the island over a six-day period, counting burrows and assessing whether they were used by puffins or rabbits.

The island is also home to guillemots, fulmars, terns and gulls, thanks to its lack of predators.

In the autumn and winter months, it also plays host to thousands of breeding seals, while about 250 species of migrating birds use it as a stopover point.

Mark Newell, UKCEH’s field manager on the Isle of May, said he was concerned future “extreme weather events” could affect the breeding ability of puffins and other species.

He said: “We believe that the puffin population has recently suffered from a series of extreme climate events, including marine heat waves and intense storms affecting survival in three of the last five winters.

“The concern for puffins and other seabirds is that climate scientists are predicting an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme events.”