Currently listed as vulnerable on the UICN red list,meaning their global population is on a downward trend, the Atlantic puffin faces an uncertain future. Several factors contribute including unsustainable fishing, marine pollution and invasive ground predators, but the main threat arises from the change in distribution and numbers of their primary food source, sandeels, due to our warming seas. The puffins’ fate and sandeels are entwined; if we lose the sandeels we run the risk of losing our puffins.

Europe hosts ninety per cent of the world’s Atlantic puffin breeding population, the greatest stronghold being Iceland, home to sixty percent of the world population. Living in colonies makes the birds vulnerable to any adverse changes in environment such as oil spills or unforeseen natural disasters that might affect their feeding grounds. With their low reproductive rate of only one egg per pair during the season, such events are likely to have a massive impact with populations taking decades to recover.

Across Europe puffin numbers have been declining, mainly because rising sea temperatures reduce the numbers of plankton, the main food source of sandeels which, in turn, are the puffin’s primary food. Reduced plankton has a monumental impact on the food chain, and some birds have been forced to abandon their regular feeding grounds in the North Sea, instead journeying far into the Atlantic in search of food. These travails leave parent birds exhausted, and pufflings without food for extended periods, greatly increasing mortality rates

A warming world means greater extremes in weather, which was emphatically demonstrated in the summer of 2019 when the Farne Islands experienced an unseasonal heavy rainfall of five inches in just over twenty-four hours. This resulted in the loss of many pufflings, whose burrows were flooded when they were at their most vulnerable. Thankfully, enough survived to keep the island population stable, but this is just one example of what can happen and a warning for the future.

Sadly, Atlantic Puffin populations, especially those in the northeast Atlantic, have been in decline for decades. The Norwegian colony on the island of Rost was once home to over a million breeding pairs but, since the 1970s, this population has declined by over eighty percent. Elsewhere, such as on Skomer Island, other colonies are thriving. Contrasting fortunes such as these across Europe are under serious investigation.

The University of Oxford’s Department of Zoology has tracked the movement of puffins from four different colonies in Iceland, Norway, and Wales, monitoring where they fish, how often they feed their chicks, and what prey they are eating. Puffins are not the most energy-efficient of birds in flight, and therefore sensitive to any changes in their feeding grounds. Their studies conclude that a reduction in food supply near the colonies is the main cause of population decline. Where this lack is most severely felt, longer flights are required to locate food and, since puffins aren’t built for long-haul flights, these longer forays demand more energy for smaller returns, meaning the chicks grew more slowly or, in worst cases, starve. This research is key to locating the birds most affected by climate change and human impacts, in turn guiding us in the better management of our marine ecosystems

Oceans cover three-quarters of the Earth’s surface, but at present, only a tiny fraction lies within recognized, highly protected zones. Sadly, its well-being faces many threats from industrial overfishing, deep-sea mining, toxic waste, an onslaught of plastic pollution, and course climate change There are plans in place to protect 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030, in an attempt to reverse the damage being done by these threats. No country can achieve this alone; an international effort is required. It’s ambitious but achievable if action is taken now. The intention is to create a global network of marine protected areas, similar to protected areas on land such as national parks and conservation areas, which will preserve the delicate ecosystem by limiting certain human activities such as drilling, fishing and diving

In a report published in November 2021, The British Trust for Ornithology suggested that the UK puffin population could fall by as much as 90 percent by 2050 largely due to changes in the marine environment caused by climate change. Saving our oceans is critical not only to marine life but all life on earth. With these protections, marine habitats will recover, fish populations revive, plastic pollution reduce, and the greatest crisis that we and the puffins now face, the climate emergency, will be to some extent addressed

Despite this, it is all not bad news. Around two thousand breeding pairs on Skokholm Island and six thousand pairs on Skomer make these Welsh islands two of Britain’s most important puffin colonies. With numbers now reaching their highest levels since the 1940s, they are seemingly unaffected by the food shortages and other woes that plague the rest of the world’s populations. Research may show why numbers are increasing at these isolated breeding grounds, and the answer may hold the key to the future of other colonies.

Skomer Island, like many popular destinations, has its unique set of challenges to meet. Tourism is a key factor in raising money for conservation, but increased footfall brings its own problems. Managed by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales (as is Skokham), a set trail has been roped on both sides with signs warning tourists not to leave the footpath. Many puffin burrows are on the edge of this footpath and a single false step, caused by an understandable moment of excitement, could bring a burrow in on itself. The wardens do a great job of managing, but if the burrow cannot be reopened quickly the puffling may starve. For the adults, returning to their burrows can be stressful, with other, larger, birds only too anxious to steal their catch and, possibly, onlooking tourists inadvertently blocking their routes back.

With over ten million adult puffins globally, it is not too late to reverse the downward trend although, since the turn of the century, climate change, overfishing, and pollution have increasingly made it more difficult for these wonderful birds to find food and raise the next generation. There is still hope, but salvation can only come from changes in human attitudes and better stewardship of our oceans and coastal environments

Since it was humans who created the threats to our seabirds, it is only reasonable to ask what we can do, as individuals and families, to put things right. Every decision we make impacts our planet more than we think and, by making only a few simple changes in our lifestyles, we can help protect our marine environments:

• Reduce Our Carbon Footprint

In just twenty-five years, the temperature in the North Sea has risen by 1C˚, shifting the distribution of the sandeel population. Tackling global climate change demands international cooperation, but we can play a part by reducing our carbon footprint in simple ways such as car-sharing and reducing or eliminating air travel.

• Eat Sustainably

Unsustainable fishing severely impacts our marine environment and is arguably the most damaging, regarding puffins. Food availability presents the greatest threat to their well-being, and overfishing means that their key prey species are in serious decline. We should aim to only buy sustainably caught seafood.

• Reduce Our Plastic Waste

Plastic waste badly impacts our oceans, as was shown so movingly in the series, Blue Planet II. It is estimated that by 2050 there will be more plastic in our seas than fish. Let’s reduce our use of single-use plastics and if we must use them, make sure we dispose of them correctly