The Fair Isle Marine Environment and Tourism Initiative NEWSLETTER 9: March 2012
The Fair Isle Marine Environment and Tourism Initiative NEWSLETTER 9: March 2012 Compiled by: Nick J. Riddiford Edited by: Elizabeth Riddiford For centuries Fair Islanders have looked after their resources - not for any altruistic reason, but because they had no other option. Greater mobility and changes in marine legislation in the 20th century meant that others now had access to a resource which had previously been largely for local use. The new user groups were free from the constraints of safeguarding stock for future use, because for them Fair Isle waters were only part of a wider resource. The islanders could no longer compete and the 20th century saw a wholesale and difficult shift from a subsistence economy with fishing at its heart, to a more mixed economy. What has not changed, however, is that the new economy still relies strongly on our ties with the sea. From traditional Shetland yoal boat-building to the tourist trade, the key element for those earning a living on the isle remains a healthy marine environment and maintenance of the marine resource. The Fair Isle community is very concerned that we are effectively excluded from having a say in the control and management of our marine resource – a resource which has sustained us for centuries and which remains at the heart of our economic and social life. The Fair Isle community recognises the imperative need to safeguard our resources, terrestrial and marine, for future generations. Our concerns are social and economic as much as environmental. A healthy, pristine environment is an essential ingredient for our future well-being. Photograph on front cover: Tall Ship ‘Sørlandet’ from Kristiansand, Norway, anchored off the south end of Fair Isle, with crew members in flit boat preparing to barter goods with Fair Islanders in exchange for traditional hand-knitted Fair Isle hosiery. Copyright Dave Wheeler. FIMETI logo by Fiona Mitchell. 2 CONTENTS…………………………………………………………………………Page 3 Editorial…………………………………………………………………………………..Page 4 News – Marine Environment……………………………………………………………Page 4 MPA Proposal……………………………………………………………………..Page 4 Petition to Scottish Parliament…………………………………………………….Page 6 MPA Stakeholders workshop in Edinburgh……………………………………... Page 6 Special Protection Area…………………………………….…………………..…Page 7 SSMEI (Shetland Pilot Study)………………………………………………….....Page 7 - FIMETI…………………………………………………………………………Page 7 WILDLIFE Fair Isle’s Seabirds: 2011 results and long-term population trends………...Pages 8 to 10 Sea Mammals………………………………………………………………Page 11 Fish in 2011………………………………………………………………...Page 11 Marine Invertebrates……………………………………………………………..Page 12 Wildlife Club……………………………………………………………………...Page 12 Coastline Botany The Oysterplant Mertensia maritima colony………………………………Page 13 Lower Plants.................................................................................................Page 14 Climate change……………………………………………………………………Page 14 CULTURAL HERITAGE Fair Isle Open Days: the Tall Ships Event on Fair Isle, 2011……………..Page 16 Da Voar Redd Up………………………………………………………….Page 17 EDUCATION & SCIENTIFIC INTEREST Education Fair Isle School…………………………………………………………….Page 18 Bird Observatory…………………………………………………………...Page 18 Scientific Research Two significant new publications………………………………….……….Page 20 Book review ’Standing into Danger – Shipwrecks of Fair Isle’……………Page 21 Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………...Page 22 3 Editorial Could 2012 be the year when Fair Isle’s voice is finally heard over the marine resource? A thoughtful, detailed proposal to the Scottish Government for a Marine Protected Area, backed up by a petition to the Scottish Parliament - signed by every adult on the isle – sends a strong message which we think is being taken seriously. Our task now is to make our aspirations as widely known as possible; and to indicate our willingness to participate and work with all interested parties to carry the proposal forward into a fully sustainable marine management programme. The MPA concept is a new departure, enshrined in the recent Scottish Marine Bill, and is as yet untried. Fair Isle offers itself as a model for the development of the process, involving local community, stakeholders and government in partnership. Details of this and other events, demonstrating Fair Isle’s continued absolute commitment to the marine environment, natural and cultural, are outlined below. NEWS Marine Environment MPA Proposal As indicated in Newsletter 8, the Fair Isle community has taken on the task of preparing a “third party” proposal to the Scottish Government for a Marine Protected Area around the isle. This proposal was undertaken through the Fair Isle Marine Environment and Tourism Initiative (FIMETI), which is a sub-committee of the Fair Isle Community Association, led by the community in partnership with Fair Isle Bird Observatory and The National Trust for Scotland. A first draft was completed in March 2011, then circulated widely. This led to a major revision, by a team of islanders, before a final version was ready for submission. The proposal was eventually submitted to Marine Scotland, the Scottish Government body responsible for the planned Scottish MPA network, in December 2011. A pdf copy of the proposal has now been made available to all interested parties and is also available through the FIMETI website http://www.fimeti.org.uk. The proposal is very detailed and clearly demonstrates the value of the site from environmental, social and economic viewpoints and its suitability for demonstration and research elements of the MPA process. The condition placed on further renewal of the Diploma by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers was identified in the proposal as a key factor in the submission. 4 The MPA proposal is supported by an Executive Summary, which is repeated below: “This document comprises a third party proposal by the Fair Isle Marine Environment and Tourism Initiative, an initiative led by the Fair Isle community in partnership with Fair Isle Bird Observatory and The National Trust for Scotland. It puts forward Fair Isle’s case for a Demonstration and Research Marine Protected Area within the Scottish MPA network as outlined in the Scottish Marine Bill (2010). The proposed MPA is intended to serve three purposes: • • • to trial a series of management measures, supplemented by interpretation and dissemination, which demonstrate the role of MPAs in delivering fully sustainable marine management; to demonstrate the relationship between a fully functioning marine environment and the socio-economic stability of peripheral coastal communities; to meet a requirement of the Council of Europe in the form of a condition on the renewal of the Council of Europe Diploma for Fair Isle. The suitability of Fair Isle stems from its rich marine environment, a considerable amount of biological and physical data already amassed and cooperative studies with academic institutions already under way. Above all, Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust, assisted by the public purse, has invested heavily in a new building with excellent research facilities; and the community is fully in favour of and keen to support the MPA development. It is anticipated that sustainable management of the marine resource will bring many benefits. For the isle it means making full use of the research facilities on offer, the potential for development and extension of marinerelated economic activities of benefit to all stakeholders, bringing Fair Isle’s marine values to a wider audience to the benefit of tourism and allied ventures, and strengthening services, facilities and transport systems. For Scotland it offers the chance to address knowledge gaps while piloting measures of wide benefit to other coastal communities which depend on maintenance and enhancement of an essential socio-economic resource in the form of tourism, interpretation, education, heritage protection, recreation and sustainable economic use of the sea. The main body of text (Chapters 1 to 4) outlines the suitability of Fair Isle for a Demonstration and Research MPA, including the rationale, aims and objectives, feasibility, local and national values and benefits accruing and the various actions, activities and practicalities associated with the planning and implementation process. An outline work programme is also offered, though the isle accepts that a partnership approach incorporating input from government, academic institutions and stakeholders will be necessary to draw together the most effective and targeted programme. A series of Appendices follow which give much greater detail in support of the proposal. They comprise an evaluation of the many nature conservation and cultural heritage qualities, socioeconomic values, scientific information and research base, research facilities, benefits and the community attitudes, efforts and skills which qualify Fair Isle for a MPA. Maps to support the proposal appear at the end of the document.” 5 Petition to the Scottish Parliament As a further incentive for the Scottish Government to give serious consideration to the proposal, the isle decided to petition the Scottish Parliament. The petition was limited to Fair Isle residents. We felt that a petition containing 100% of the community would send a more powerful message than opening it up nationally and attracting a relatively small number of signatures in proportion to the overall population. Signatures were collected during January 2012; and of course, commitment was 100%. Every island adult signed it, apart from the young folk away at University and thus not available to sign. We have verbal acknowledgement that they too would sign if present; and indeed it is with their future in mind that we look to safeguard the qualities and resources of our environment. Our petition is intended to remind the Scottish Government of its responsibility in respecting the Council of Europe Diploma renewal condition that we get a Marine Protected Area. The petition reads: “We, members of the Fair Isle community, petition the Scottish Parliament to recognise the importance of the Council of Europe Diploma to Fair Isle and to Scotland by implementing the condition of renewal that Fair Isle waters are designated a Marine Protected Area.” It should be noted that conditions set by the Council of Europe and agreed by its Committee of Ministers require the condition to be met. Failure to do so risks loss of the Diploma at the next renewal, which for Fair Isle is in 2015. It would send a poor message internationally if one of only two Diploma sites in Scotland were to be lost. For readers unfamiliar with the Council of Europe condition, it reads: “In recognition of the internationally important seabird colonies and associated marine environment currently experiencing severe pressure, the United Kingdom and Scottish Governments should use the powers invested in them through the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 and the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 to establish the protected marine area which has been called for in successive diploma renewals. A new protected marine area should be in conformity with the Fair Isle Marine Action Plan.” MPA stakeholders workshop in Edinburgh FIMETI was invited to attend an MPA stakeholders’ workshop in Edinburgh organised by Marine Scotland in October 2011. The workshop was attended by two of the three FIMETI partners. Richard Luxmoore represented the NTS and Stewart Thomson (Quoy) attended from the isle, taking with him a near-final copy of the Fair Isle MPA proposal. Stewart reported that the criteria being used to identify MPAs remain very limited (for instance only one seabird species is included on the “search priority” list). However, Fair Isle has some of the listed priorities including certain substrata and habitats as well as basking shark Cetorhinus maximus, common skate Dipturus batis, minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata, Risso’s Grampus griseus and white-beaked dolphins Lagenorhyncus albirostris, sand-eels Ammodytes and the only bird on the list, the black guillemot Cepphus grylle. Stewart took the opportunity to draw attention to Fair Isle’s Marine Action Plan and the MPA proposal already at an advanced stage. He also noted that there were very few community-based MPAs. This ought to act in Fair Isle’s favour if the government wishes to encourage the “bottom-up” approach. 6 This was entitled the 3rd National MPA Stakeholders Workshop but was the first in which FIMETI was invited to attend. This demonstrates that Fair Isle is at last being taken seriously at national level; and representatives’ presence at the workshop again raises awareness of the community’s efforts and needs. Another MPA stakeholders workshop Further evidence that the proposal is being taken seriously comes with an invitation for a Fair Isle community representative to attend the next MPA Stakeholders Workshop, also in Edinburgh. This is scheduled for 14th-15th March 2012 and Nick Riddiford will be attending from the isle. Special Protection Area (SPA) The Special Protection Area for Birds has now been officially extended to cover the inshore waters around Fair Isle. However, it is hard to see how this extension will meet the SPA conservation objectives unless accompanied by management measures – currently lacking. This shortfall can be addressed by means of the Fair Isle MPA, as a management programme is included as part of the proposal. SSMEI (Shetland pilot study) This study was put on hold in 2011 for lack of funding. A new source of funding was established recently and new staff appointed. The titles have been changed. It has dropped “pilot study” from its previous heading of the Scottish Sustainable Marine Environment Initiative (SSMEI) Shetland pilot study as it is seen as moving beyond the pilot stage. It has also changed its title to reflect changing roles. The Local Steering Group, on which FIMETI had representation, will henceforth be known as the Shetland Marine Spatial Planning Advisory Group. Nick Riddiford represented FIMETI at the first meeting, on 9th February 2012. The agenda included discussion of the Fair Isle MPA proposal. There was a generally positive response by the majority of those present, including comments that the Scottish Government must surely be pleased to have a site which has the full support of the local community. FIMETI FIMETI continues to keep all interested parties informed through the website www.fimeti.org.uk, reporting at quarterly Fair Isle Community meetings, other meetings, correspondence, word of mouth, poster displays at the Bird Observatory and during cruise ship visits at the Hall. Issue 8 of the FIMETI newsletter Making Waves was published in February 2011, distributed widely and placed on the website. FIMETI was part-funded in the early part of 2011 through a National Trust for Scotland/Scottish Natural Heritage concordat: and by the Blue Marine Foundation and an anonymous Charitable Trust for the production of the MPA proposal in the second part of the year. 7 WILDLIFE Fair Isle’s Seabirds: 2011 results and long-term population trends Editorial Observations It was yet another year of very low to zero breeding success for most species. Gannet Sula bassana and fulmar Fulmarus glacialis were the only seabirds to have reasonably successful breeding, though productivity was lower for both than in 2010. One glimmer of hope was the suggestion of at least a marginal recovery by the puffin Fratercula arctica (Table 2). Low breeding success over a long period of time is now beginning to impact on population sizes. The accelerating decline in breeding populations (Table 1) has to be of great concern. If these conditions continue it is not inconceivable that kittiwake Rissa tridactyla and shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis will be lost to the isle as breeding birds in the near future. The lack of seabird activity offshore has also become noticeable. The busy to-and-fro of seabirds off South Light in summer has been replaced by an empty seascape apart from a trickle of fulmars and gannets and occasional small flocks of guillemot and puffin. These are birds which traditionally attract tourists to the isle – so the situation is of economic as well as an environmental concern. Little wonder that the offshore zone is quiet. Sand-eels continued to be poorly represented amongst food provisioned to chicks and reports from the ongoing study of foraging seabirds using data-loggers were that auks and other seabirds again had to forage at great distances from the isle to secure food for their chicks. We are grateful to David Parnaby, warden of Fair Isle Bird Observatory, and the JNCC Seabird Monitoring Scheme for the following information Table 1. Population monitoring Monitoring parameters 2011 count Last census Change since last census Fulmar (plots) Fulmar (whole-island) Gannet (whole-island) Shag (plots) Arctic Skuas (whole-island) Great Skuas (whole-island) Kittiwake (plots) Kittiwake (whole-island) Arctic Tern (whole-island) Common Terns (whole-island) Guillemot (plots) Razorbill (plot) Black Guillemot (east coast) 303 AOS 29,640 AOS 4085 AON 20 AON 29 AOT 227 AOT 81 AON 1438 AON 9 AIA 0 AIA 995 individuals 23 individuals 161 BPA 2010 2006 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2008 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 -19/6% + 6.25% + 2.95% - 59.2% - 58.6% - 18.9% - 52.4% - 46.5% - 97.6% remains zero - 29.2% - 17.8% -16.1% Key AOS = Apparently Occupied Sites, AON = Apparently Occupied Nests, AOT = Apparently Occupied Territories, AIA = Apparently Incubating Adults, BPA = Breeding Plumage Adults 8 Table 2. Breeding success Monitoring parameters Productivity in 2011 Change from 2010 Fulmar (plots) Gannet (plots) Shag (plots) Arctic Skuas (whole-island) Great Skuas (whole-island) Kittiwake (plots) Arctic Tern (whole-island) Common Terns (whole-island) Guillemot (plots) Razorbill (plot) Puffin (plots) 0.52 chicks fledged per AOS 0.72 chicks fledged per AON 0.11 chicks fledged per AON zero chicks fledged 0.25 chicks fledged per AOT zero chicks fledged zero chicks fledged (as in 2010) zero nests (as in 2010) zero chicks fledged 0.02 chicks fledged per egg laid 0.39 chicks fledged per egg laid - 3.7% - 6.5% - 87.2% - 100% - 59.7% - 100% no change: remains zero no change: remains zero - 100% up from zero in 2010 + 17.9% Key AOS = Apparently Occupied Sites, AON = Apparently Occupied Nests, AOT = Apparently Occupied Territories NB: previously monitored east coast plots for black guillemots were no longer viable due to insufficient sites Photo: Shags regularly seen in numbers on the stacks off the south end of Fair Isle during 1986. A thing of the past?... Copyright Elizabeth Riddiford. Adult survival From a total of 127 colour-ringed puffins known to be alive in 2010, 71 were re-sighted in 2011 giving a year-to-year survival estimate of 55.9%. This was relatively low compared with the 2009 to 2010 estimate (80.4%). The long-term trend is that adult survival was relatively high and stable from 1987 to 1999 (> 85% in the majority of years), but has dropped slightly since 2000 (< 85% in the majority of years). The kittiwake adult survival study at Goorn is no longer viable. Nesting has not occurred at this site since 2009. Kittiwake numbers have severely declined on Fair Isle and during the 2011 whole-island census, no sites were found that would be suitable for adult survival monitoring. Diet The number of occasions when fish were brought to chicks by adult common guillemots during a 24hr feeding watch was 77.9% less in 2011 (27 flights in with fish) than in 2010 (122 flights in with fish). Sandeels (51.9%) and clupeids (33.3%) were the most commonly recorded prey-types brought back by guillemots during the 24hr feeding watch, as was true in 2010. The majority (59.3%) of fish brought back by guillemots were 1 to 1.5 times the length of the bill in 2011. No prey samples were collected from European shags, black-legged kittiwakes, razorbills and guillemots in 2011 because, within the accessible colonies, no adults were encountered that were 9 carrying food. Chick starvation was apparent throughout the breeding season. Many chick corpses were seen in the colonies during all visits. The total number of occasions when fish were brought back to burrows by Atlantic puffins during a 24hr feeding watch was 69.8% less in 2011 (86 flights in with fish) than in 2010 (285 flights in with fish). In 2011 and 2010, Rockling and small Sandeels were the most abundant prey-types in food samples collected from puffins and the most abundant prey-types seen during 24hr puffin feeding watches. Other seabird studies on Fair Isle in 2011 Seabird tracking Research was undertaken by RSPB and Aberdeen University to determine the foraging behaviour of northern fulmars, European shags, black-legged kittiwakes, common guillemots and razorbills and identify important feeding areas. The project involved fitting adults with GPS trackers and TDR data loggers and integrates into a UK-scale study lasting 3 years (Future of the Atlantic Marine Environment project, 2010-2012; www.FAMEproject.eu). It is hoped that aspects of this work, in particular the field-based studies using remote tracking devices, may be continued by Fair Isle Bird Observatory in 2012. Puffin population monitoring using time-lapse photography Monitoring of puffin populations using a remote camera and time-lapse photography was trialled at the Roskilie colony. This research was part of a PhD study supervised by Glasgow University and 2011 was the pilot year. The photographic data collected by staff at the Bird Observatory will be analysed by Glasgow University over the winter of 2011-12. Great Skua diet analyses Prey-types and the proportions of different prey-types in the diet of great skuas were assessed through the breeding season by systematic analysis of regurgitated pellets and prey remains found in the nesting territories of all great skua pairs on Fair Isle. This was a baseline survey which will hopefully be repeated in future and facilitate between year comparisons of skua diet. Leach’s Storm-petrel surveys Breeding by Leach’s storm-petrels has long been suspected on Fair Isle, where a downy juvenile was found at the South Lighthouse in October 1975, three adults were heard calling from the north cliffs in July 1981 and at least two adults were heard calling from the cliffs and scree in the Kirn o’ Skroo in July 2006 and July 2007. Using call-playback, nine sites were surveyed for burrows occupied by Leach’s storm-petrels, but none were found. This work was part of a Shetland-wide project looking at burrow occupancy by Leach’s storm-petrels and the breeding status of adults. 10 WILDLIFE (continued) Sea Mammals Orcas (killer whales) in South Harbour, Fair Isle on 30th July, 2011. Copyright Thomas H Hyndman. Fair Isle continues to observe cetaceans on a regular basis. 2011 was particularly notable for several sightings of pods of up to 8 killer whales Orcinus orca, giving excellent prolonged views for visitors – another resource which promotes tourism to the isle. Other cetaceans seen on more than one occasion during the year were harbour porpoise Phocoena phocoena, minke whale Balaenoptera acutorostrata, Risso’s dolphin Grampus griseus, white-sided dolphin Lagenorhynchus acutus and white-beaked dolphin Lagenorhynchus albirostris. Fair Isle waters in general are now recognised as being within an area of international importance for cetaceans, and especially the harbour porpoise. A submission has by made to the European Commission by the WWF, with the support of the Sea Watch Foundation and other environmental NGOs, proposing waters east of Shetland south to Orkney - and encompassing all of Fair Isle - as a Special Area of Conservation for harbour porpoise under the EU Habitats Directive. “Although this Annex 2 species is not as abundant as it was 20 years ago, it is proposed as an area with historically important populations which could benefit from conservation measures” (PGH Evans in litt.). Fair Isle is also home to seals. Grey seals Halichoerus grypus mainly pup on inaccessible beaches along the west and north coast. The annual census, conducted by FIBO, indicated that the number of pups was similar to the previous year at c60. During the last 20 years common seals Phoca vitulina became an increasingly frequent sight in places such as South Harbour. The upward trend ended a few years ago and the species has once more become scarce. Fish in 2011 Stewart Thomson (Quoy) continued to monitor fish stocks and reported the following: Monitoring was done on suitable days until September. Thereafter, poor weather conditions severely curtailed any visits to the sea. Positive notes for the summer were: good haddock Melanogrammus aeglefinus and cod Gadus morhua numbers on inshore grounds – much better than in any recent year (Stewart puts this down to reductions in fishing activity as trawlers visit 11 Fair Isle waters only infrequently now); and mackerel Scomber scombrus, numerous through the summer to September. On the debit side, piltocks (saithe Pollachius virens) were scarce and mainly as sillocks (the local name for juveniles). In addition, the sillocks were tiny – less than half the size of the norm for the time of year. Stewart suggested that this may indicate food shortages. The stomach contents of piltocks caught comprised mainly tiny shrimps (Crustacea). One notable absence from stomach contents of most fish (all species) was sand-eels Ammodytes. This essential food source for fish and birds remains at a very low ebb. Marine Invertebrates The year was notable for occasional short-lived influxes of zooplankton. In early June a Fair Isle Wildlife Club visit to North Haven found large amounts of one of the opossum shrimp group which proved to be the chameleon shrimp Praunus flexuosus – so called because it can change colour depending on the background. As these were in open water, they were entirely transparent apart from the gut. If this species was small, other members of the “cloudy” water were minute! Divers report that Fair Isle has some of the clearest waters anywhere in the British Isles, but in summer that clarity can be reduced by the proliferation of plankton. The tiny dots swimming around in the samples were copepods and under the microscope it was clear that a minimum of four species was involved. The most abundant by far was a Calanid copepod which may have been Pseudocalanus elongatus. The plankton identifications must be considered tentative but other species, in order of decreasing abundance, showed features of Temora longicornis, Calanus cf. helgolandicus and Zaus spinatus. It was a close relative, Calanus finmarchicus – now disappeared from Fair Isle waters - that sustained the summer sand-eel population. Two days later the entire zooplankton swarm had gone, suggesting that concentrations do not stay long enough to provide a substitute food source for the sand-eels. Wildlife Club Photos: Some Fair Isle Wildlife Club members sampling marine life in Fair Isle’s North & South Havens on 4th June, 2011. Copyright Elizabeth Riddiford. Time constraints on the leader and inclement weather limited the number of FIWC activities in 2011. The programme did, however, include activities with the island, visitors and workcamps, and visiting yacht crews during the Tall Ships Race stop-over. Themes were Arctic-Alpine plants of Ward Hill, coastal biodiversity, plankton of North Haven and rare plants of the coastal fringe. 12 Coastline Botany The Oysterplant Mertensia maritima colony Photo: Oysterplant Mertensia maritima at Muckle Uri Geo, Fair Isle. Copyright Rona Burton. Flora & Vegetation The total number of oysterplants Mertensia maritima in the 2011 census was c2062, up from 1510 in 2010. The counts were as follows (with 2010 counts in parentheses): Small Medium Inside MUG exclosure c560 (c700) c495 (c500) Outside, north 25 (17) Outside, east 130 (14) 1 (0) Outside, south 65 (19) 3 (0) Outside, west 460 (111) 5 (2) Peerie Uri Geo 1 (3) 3 (0) Sma Geo 1 (5) 1 (1) Large 312 (c310) Key: MUG = Muckle Uri Geo This is a welcome return to increase. However, the increase was almost entirely due to large numbers of plantlets establishing themselves outside the exclosure. Despite evidence of sheep grazing on these unprotected individuals, many were undamaged and one of the medium sized plants outside on the west side was in flower. The three Peeri Uri Geo plants from last year had survived and converted to medium despite obvious grazing damage; and all three were in flower. Small and medium plants within the exclosure were estimated. However, a big effort was made to count each of the large plants individually. This gave a total very close to the estimate from 2010. There may be signs of natural population senescence as three of the large plants were apparently dead or dying. Other plants: the exclosure also had five Scots lovage Ligusticum scoticum plants: the well established mature plant, another smaller individual in flower and three new non flowering plants. There was no sea rocket Cakile maritima this year. 13 Maintenance of the enclosure is undertaken by Fair Isle Bird Observatory with support from Scottish Natural Heritage. Lower Plants Mosses More and more sites are being discovered for the extremely rare St Kilda Hook-moss Sanionia orthothecioides in many parts of the isle, both scattered plants and large patches. A particularly robust colony is present at the foot of a rock face in Funniequoy Gully. Another excellent find was Persson’s stubble-moss Weissia perssonii, a rare species of coastal habitats. This adds to Fair Isle’s growing list of biota adapted to extreme North Atlantic coastal conditions and not or rarely occurring elsewhere. Climate change There was a whole series of occurrences in 2011 which may be linked to climate change. Species moving north In 2009 a small cushion star Asterina phylactica was discovered at Shalstane, a major range extension northwards for this species. The discoverer, ten-year-old Henry Hyndman, re-visited the site this year and found that a colony of 25, all within a small area had become established. Some were laying eggs. Oceanic currents In late July there was another influx of plankton into North Haven, including a number of jellyfish and their allies. They included the spectacular Physophora hydrostatica, an amazing combination of orange body, transparent tubes ending in a narrow cylindrical float and a trail of yellow droplets held by threads below – giving it the English name of “hula skirt siphonophore”. It is a deep sea species but, being a slow swimmer, is vulnerable to being swept to the surface by currents. Five were collected, and there were many more. Other species present included the blue jellyfish Cyanea lamarckii – which occurs from time to time; mauve stinger Pelagia noctiluca – which normally occurs further out to sea (but there was a massive invasion in autumn 2010); a number of the comb jelly Bolinopsis infundibulum – a very common summer visitor to Fair Isle shores; and Ptychogena crocea - a thecate hydroid usually found on rocky substrates well below the tidal zone. Neither the Physophora nor the Ptychogena had been recorded previously for the isle. The influx also included numerous smaller plankton. By far the most numerous was a Calanus copepod – probably Calanus helgolandicus which is a recent late summer invader of our waters (replacing Calanus finmarchicus which has disappeared in response to climate change). The most interesting capture was a blue and green coloured copepod called Anomalocera patersoni. The blue markings appeared luminescent in some lights. This is a surface waters dweller of North Atlantic origin, quite widespread but having suffered a major decline in population since the 1970s. The components of this influx appear to comprise largely pelagic species of Atlantic 14 oceanic origin. Their exceptional arrival inshore may be linked to changes in strength or pattern of ocean currents. Extreme weather The outermost part of a rocky platform which forms the southern “barrier” to Shalstane is normally dominated by a carpet of mussel Mytilus edulis spats. This was not the case in 2011. Apart from those in fissures and cracks, the carpet had completely gone; an estimated two years of spats had been eliminated. The reason is unknown. However, in the Solway (south-west Scotland), mussels and cockles are vulnerable to severe frosts leading to occasional major population losses (S Wilson, cockle-picker and former Fair Isle resident, pers. comm.). Winters 2009/10 and 2010/11 have been particularly severe on Fair Isle, at least in comparison with the recent winter norm, with snow lying even on the outer stacks. The loss of spats is perhaps best explained by their vulnerability to these severe conditions, with those hidden within the cracks experiencing a less lethal micro climate regarding exposure to sub-zero temperatures. In December 2011, islanders noted that the colour of the dominant lichen of the walls, sea ivory Ramalina siliquosa, had turned red. In the more exposed areas this classic lichen of maritime habitats was largely rusty red on the windward west-facing wall, but the usual glaucous greygreen on the eastern leeward side. This formerly rare occurrence has become far more frequent in recent years. A similar occurrence on the Hill Dyke was noted in February 2010; and there was one particularly severe event in the mid 1990s – the first time it had been noted. This event always occurs after a prolonged period of very high winds with no or little accompanying rain. Thus the lichen gets a heavy dose of salt which clearly affects it. However, it does not kill the lichen although it does take up to several months to return to its former colour. What seems to be happening is that the algal partner, which is the green element (as its role is the photosynthesis), is wiped out – perhaps because the salt lowers moisture levels to the extent that the alga cannot survive. The recovery of the lichen to its former colour must mean that the fungus can capture and nurture free-living algal cells or spores; or perhaps just a few algal cells survive within the plant but take time to re-populate fully. Extreme weather events of this sort appear to be becoming more frequent. Photo: Salt-affected lichen. Copyright Nick J Riddiford. 15 CULTURAL HERITAGE Events Official Opening of the new Fair Isle Bird Observatory Photographs: (left) New Fair Isle Bird Observatory. Copyright Deryk Shaw. (right) Fair Isle Bird Observatory Conference Centre and Visitor Information Centre. Copyright FIBO. 2011 was a year of events. The Bird Observatory held an official opening ceremony in June attended by the entire island and invited guests. Tall ships Photos: Bartering of traditional Fair Isle fishermen’s keps with crew of Tall ship ‘Sørlandet’ from Kristiansand, right: Copyright Wheeler, Fair Isle OpenNorway. Days: Left the to Tall Ships EventDave on Fair Isle,Elena 2011Mera-Long and Elizabeth Riddiford. In July Fair Isle was a guest harbour for Cruise In Company making it an official port of call in the Tall Ships Race. To mark this occasion the isle organised a two-day festival around its rich cultural heritage, offering talks, a rolling slideshow, guided walks, demonstrations of craft and artwork, tours of the museum and lighthouse, a children’s workshop, bartering of hand-knitted keps (traditional Fair Isle fishermen’s hats), lunches in the hall and an evening barbecue on North Haven beach accompanied by music from the talented local musicians and choir. Feedback from the visiting crews was that it was the best and most welcoming of all the venues they had visited. A series of stop-frame animations taken from drawings and music sessions held during the workshop with local children and the school culminated in an animated film entitled ‘When the Tall Ships came to Fair Isle’. The film can be viewed on-line at http://vimeo.com/28191928. 16 Museum News Photos: Maritime display at George Waterston Memorial Centre and Museum, Fair Isle. Copyright Elizabeth Riddiford. For the George Waterston Memorial Centre the season was a memorable one. Sadly, two members of the team, Stewart Wilson (committee member and secretary) and Jane Wheeler (trustee), died this year. We remember them with much affection and miss them both immensely. With Fair Isle as a Guest Port for the Tall Ships, three new displays were created in the Centre. Two are sea based, one touching on a few of the many ships known to have foundered on our shores and the significance of coastguard, lifesaving crews and the lighthouses; and the other highlighting the importance of the Fair Isle yoal in every aspect of Fair Isle’s history. The third display, covering Fair Isle knitting from the 1880s - 1980s, dovetailed neatly into our one day exhibition of the 49 traditional Fair Isle Fisherman’s Keps, knitted over the winter by a group of us specifically to reintroduce the tradition of bartering with passing sailing ships. The seven keps left over from the Tall Ships visit have been auctioned on Tommy’s blog page (http://www.fairisle.blogspot.com) and have raised £2,770 for our museum extension project. The conversion work on our museum store at the South Light is almost finished. We have received two grants from Museums Galleries Scotland which have enabled the museum to purchase much needed storage equipment and to employ Carrie Gunn to update our collection catalogue. The digital age is upon us! Vitally for the future of the museum and collections (and for my peace of mind!) the George Waterston Memorial Centre was awarded Full Accreditation in November. Da Voar Redd Up Once again the tidy up of land and beaches, organised by the schoolchildren but with the entire isle participating, was held in May. Da Voar Redd Up is the Shetland term for this activity and indeed this is a Shetland-wide event held annually in May. 17 EDUCATION & SCIENTIFIC INTEREST Education Fair Isle School Fair Isle Primary School has now been awarded its 4th Eco Flag. This was achieved after a report was submitted outlining all the initiatives the schoolchildren had developed and details of the scientific work they had conducted in collaboration with resident and visiting scientists. The school continued to work with the Fair Isle Ranger. The theme in 2011 was native habitats and the plants and animals which live in them – an excellent introduction to the subject of ecology as this is the basis of all ecological studies. Bird Observatory The Bird Observatory enjoyed a busy season in its first full year of operations in the new building, completed in 2011. It was also under new management with new wardens David and Susannah Parnaby taking over. Retiring wardens Deryk and Hollie Shaw were not lost to the isle, however, moving the short distance down the isle to take over a recently vacated croft. Although the Bird Observatory was open to visitors from the spring, the official opening was held on 4th July and was attended by various dignitaries, eminent ornithologists and previous wardens and their wives. The entire community was also present. The Bird Observatory took the opportunity of the visiting ornithologists and past staff to assess the worth of current scientific activities and discuss future scientific planning. The consensus was that the types of long-term monitoring already in place were of immense value because of their continuity and the existence of a large and growing database of information at a time of great environmental change. This database was seen as a great asset not just for the isle but for the nation. The specialist group recommended no dilution of these activities, whilst establishing a smaller working group to study what further activities could usefully be done within the facilities, finances and staff available. The new Observatory is eco-friendly with a high tech energy system that features innovative ‘breathing-building’ insulation and heat recovery. This means that any waste heat from, for example, the kitchen or laundry room, is captured and used to heat the accommodation, while filters in the walls deliver fresh air and keep heat loss to a minimum. There are also photovoltaic cells panels on the roof, which convert sunlight into electricity. Although the Observatory is still very much a working environment, geared to research, it is also full of new original artwork, which helps to make it an attractive place to stay. There are bright wall hangings commissioned from Orkney artist Sheila Scott. Sheila has also helped design interpretation boards explaining the key bird life and natural heritage of Fair Isle, as well as 15 striking, metallic maps, showing the flyways of Fair Isle’s best known migrants, and a mobile depicting a flock of Arctic terns Sterna paradisaea being pursued by a couple of Arctic skuas Stercorarius parasiticus. 18 The stated aim of the Bird Observatory “is to continue the research work on our seabirds, migrants and breeding landbirds but in a setting where we can provide a welcoming environment for all visitors to Fair Isle.” (Dr R Riddington, FIBOT Chairman) Ranger Service The Ranger Service continues to be hosted by the Bird Observatory. In addition to the normal range of activities - guided walks and other activities with visitors, islanders and the schoolchildren - the Ranger (and other Bird Observatory staff) played a major part in the Cruise In Company weekend. The main activity with the schoolchildren was native habitats and their inhabitants. Visitors In 2011 the Bird Observatory was open to visitors from the beginning of May to the end of October. Guest house demand was particularly high in May, June, September and the first half of October, with good numbers of visitors throughout July, linked to the official opening of the Observatory and to the Tall Ships events mid-month. The Observatory continues to attract a wide range of guests, with spring and summer dominated by shorter-stay domestic and international tourists visiting as part of a wider tour of the Shetland Islands and the autumn almost exclusively focused on long-stay birdwatching trips. The spring and summer months were also notable for the number of Shetlanders booking long weekend breaks, perhaps linked to the publicity surrounding the official opening of the Observatory. Reassuringly, feedback from guests suggested that the Observatory is able to satisfy the interests of serious birdwatchers, whilst also making non-birdwatching visitors feel welcome. Indeed many guests were observed developing an unexpected interest in the work of the Observatory as a result of participating in activities such as puffin walks, ringing demonstrations and slide shows. The range of services offered to visiting yachts at the Observatory continued to prove popular, particularly during the Tall Ships event, and although some landings were cancelled due to poor weather, guided walks were also provided for good numbers of cruise ship passengers. Photo: Visiting cruise ship anchored off North Haven, Fair Isle. Copyright Rona & Peter Scientific Research Burton. Photo: Cruise ship visitors at Fair Isle Community Hall. Copyright Elizabeth Riddiford. 19 Photo: Guided walk at South Light, Fair Isle. Copyright Elizabeth Riddiford. Research Fair Isle Bird Observatory was again the main hub of research. Long-term monitoring by FIBO is centred on migration and seabird ecology. The seabird work is particularly important because it feeds into the national Seabird Monitoring Scheme, coordinated by the UK’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Other ongoing studies included: the long-term investigation into the genetics and ecology of Fair Isle starlings Sturnus vulgaris, undertaken by a team of researchers under the leadership of Dr PGH Evans (now of Bangor University) and Dr Jane Reid of Aberdeen University; the feeding ecology of wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe by a student from the University of Wales (Cardiff), working in conjunction with the Macaulay Institute; the causes of death amongst bird casualties in conjunction with veterinary specialist Jason Waine; and activities by island ecologist, Nick Riddiford, to record and monitor terrestrial and marine wildlife – with special emphasis on moths, spiders, fungi and maritime biodiversity. It was also the third year of the investigation of foraging activities of seabirds, using data-loggers. This RSPB-sponsored study again demonstrated that seabirds were travelling huge distances to find food for their chicks, which leaves the chicks vulnerable to predation during the adults’ absence as well as at risk of starvation. Important additional biodiversity information was provided by visiting scientists Alison Murfitt of the NTS (grassland fungi) and Sandy Payne and Clare Geddis (bryophytes); and for the second year running, tephra (Icelandic volcanic ash) samples were collected for analysis by Dr Alison McLeod and Ian Matthews at Royal Holloway College, London. This time the source was the Grimsvötn volcano eruption of May 2011. Two significant new publications • Riddiford, N. J. & Riddiford, E. A. (eds.). 2011. Proposal for a Marine Protected Area for the Waters around Fair Isle. FICA, FIBOT & NTS. FIMETI Fair Isle. (A full pdf version of the MPA Proposal is available via the FIMETI website (http://www.fimeti.org.uk). An Executive Summary is also available at the beginning of this newsletter.) • Sinclair, Anne. 2011. Standing into Danger – Shipwrecks of Fair Isle. NPP Booklet Series. FIMETI Fair Isle. 20 Sinclair, Anne. 2011. Standing into Danger – Shipwrecks of Fair Isle. NPP Booklet Series. FIMETI Fair Isle. Price £7.95 plus P&P per copy. The author is Fair Isle’s resident social historian and curator of the George Waterston Memorial Centre and Museum. With 41 pages, several B&W photographs, sketches and a fold out map, this booklet contains a very readable and interesting account of over 100 recorded shipwrecks around the coast of Fair Isle, from the first - a Viking longship in AD. 900, to the last – a scallop vessel from Buckie in Scotland on her way to Shetland - in 2001. Also included are the Spanish Armada flagship El Gran Griffon (1588), the Lessing (1868) and the Fair Isle Disaster (1897). Where known, details are given of the ships’ cargoes, number of crew and passengers on-board as well as some very poignant descriptions of dangerous and heroic rescues in hazardous seas by the local men of Fair Isle using their small Fair Isle yoals and of the difficulties of providing food and accommodation on the Isle for so many rescued souls. This and other NPP booklets are available for sale on Fair Isle and also by mail-order via the Feedback form on the FIMETI website (http://www.fimeti.org.uk). Further information See www.fimeti.org.uk for a link to the MPA proposal, earlier FIMETI newsletters, reports, other web publications and marine environment news, www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk for greater detail on the ornithology and www.fairisle.org.uk for general information about the island. 21 Acknowledgements This newsletter was edited by Elizabeth Riddiford from information provided by Nick J Riddiford, David and Susannah Parnaby (FIBO), Anne Sinclair, Stewart Thomson, Henry Hyndman, Lise Bracken and the staff and children of Fair Isle Primary Eco-school. Photographs were provided by Dave Wheeler, Elena Mera-Long, Thomas H Hyndman, Elizabeth Riddiford, Rona and Peter Burton, Deryk Shaw, Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust and Nick J Riddiford. Newsletter production costs were met by The National Trust for Scotland. The FIMETI team instrumental in preparing the proposal for a Marine Protected Area were Nick J & Elizabeth Riddiford (editors), Thomas H Hyndman, Fiona Mitchell, Emma Perring, Dr Naomi G Riddiford, Deryk Shaw, Anne Sinclair, James W Stout, Neil Thomson, Stewart Thomson and Dave Wheeler. FIMETI also acknowledges input and advice from NTS Staff and FIBOT Directors and Staff. The Blue Marine Foundation and an un-named Charitable Trust are gratefully acknowledged for grant-aiding the production of the MPA proposal. The seabird information for this newsletter was obtained through the JNCC’s UK Seabird Monitoring Scheme and provided by Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust. Field equipment for marine activities was funded through a NTS/SNH concordat and specialist camera equipment part-sponsored by Meiji Technical. The amount of interest and effort applied by the Fair Isle community to study, enjoy and safeguard our invaluable marine resource is clear from in this newsletter. Many of the participants are mentioned in the text. We thank them all but also those not mentioned by name, whether members of the community, visitors or friends who support us from a distance. 22
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