Manx shearwater

Short abstract from the book:
Manx shearwater is a common pelagic breeding bird in the Faroes. In the past it was more abundant, and it was hunted to a large extent. However, with the spread of brown rat, the breeding population has declined and is now assumed to number approximately 25,000 pairs, primarily on Mykineshólmur, Mykines, Sandoy and Skúvoy. It is still being hunted, but mainly the young fledglings (líri) are taken from the colony. 1,036 Manx shearwaters have been ringed in the Faroes, primarily on four locations: Skúvoy (474), Trøllhøvdi, Sandoy (224), Mykines (191) and Nólsoy (125). The first Manx shearwater was ringed in the Faroes in 1935 (Nólsoy). The birds are primarily ringed during the breeding season (21 June – 26 September). Of ringed birds, 37% were chicks and 63% were older (2y+). The chicks are mainly caught and ringed during early September, while the older birds are caught at the colony in June. There are 18 recoveries of Manx shearwater ringed in the Faroes, with one recovery from abroad. The bird was ringed as a chick on 12 September 1996 on Nólsoy and found dead on 11 November 1996 on Rockaway Beach, Long Island, USA, 4,950 km WSW of the ringing site. In total, 13 birds have been recovered on the ringing site. Four birds ringed as chicks were recovered 2-10 years after ringing, and nine birds ringed as adults were recovered 1-26 years after ringing. Four birds were recovered away from their ringing site. One bird ringed as an adult on 19 July 1980 on Mykines was caught and killed on 2 September 1985 on Skúvoy, where it was possibly breeding and mistaken for a fledgling. The oldest recovery is of a bird ringed as an adult on 18 July 1980 on Mykines and controlled 31 August 2006 on Mykineshólmur, 26 years and one month later. Of 18 recoveries, 11 were controlled and seven were dead. Three were caught and killed, and two were shot.

Read more about the species in the chapter from The Faroese Bird Migration Atlas here