1 00:00:35,767 --> 00:00:37,689 DAN ICETON: There we go I've just been pecked again so as 2 00:00:37,729 --> 00:00:41,411 they come close you can really hear them it's that sort of 3 00:00:41,431 --> 00:00:45,193 clicking clattering sound and then the screech as they bomb 4 00:00:45,273 --> 00:00:48,735 down. They don't always peck but when they do, you do feel it. 5 00:00:52,557 --> 00:00:54,738 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: The Farne Islands in the North Sea off the 6 00:00:54,758 --> 00:00:58,140 coast of Northumberland have a very special species of seabird 7 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:01,781 visiting from May to August each year. These seabirds have a 8 00:01:01,841 --> 00:01:04,782 reputation for fiercely protecting their young, but it's 9 00:01:04,802 --> 00:01:08,003 their ability to fly thousands of miles during their migration 10 00:01:08,103 --> 00:01:09,163 that sets them apart. 11 00:01:10,163 --> 00:01:12,564 I'm Ranger Rosie Holdsworth and for this episode, 12 00:01:12,804 --> 00:01:15,985 Northumberland-based Ranger Dan Iceton joins a Farne Islands 13 00:01:16,045 --> 00:01:19,486 Ranger, who despite being regularly dive-bombed by them, 14 00:01:19,486 --> 00:01:24,427 is a big fan of these seabirds. Welcome to Wild Tales and the 15 00:01:24,447 --> 00:01:26,128 Globetrotting Arctic Turns. 16 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:37,682 Arctic Terns come to the Farne Islands each summer to nest and 17 00:01:37,722 --> 00:01:41,825 breed. These small seabirds have bright red beaks and feet, grey 18 00:01:41,845 --> 00:01:44,367 and white feathers on their bodies and a cap of black 19 00:01:44,467 --> 00:01:47,829 feathers on their head. With their lightweight frame, short 20 00:01:47,889 --> 00:01:51,812 legs, forked tail and narrow angular wings, they're excellent 21 00:01:51,832 --> 00:01:53,753 at gliding through the skies on a breeze. 22 00:01:56,515 --> 00:02:00,217 In fact, they're famous for one of the longest migrations of any 23 00:02:00,297 --> 00:02:03,980 bird, experiencing more daylight hours than any other animal on 24 00:02:03,981 --> 00:02:04,240 the planet. 25 00:02:06,121 --> 00:02:09,402 Every year they migrate from the Arctic Circle to the Antarctic 26 00:02:09,462 --> 00:02:13,084 Circle, racking up miles by meandering across oceans and 27 00:02:13,104 --> 00:02:15,786 continents rather than flying directly north or south. 28 00:02:18,987 --> 00:02:21,948 Dan's catching up with Ranger Tom Hendry in the Inner Farne 29 00:02:22,068 --> 00:02:25,110 Information Centre to learn about the Arctic Terns, their 30 00:02:25,210 --> 00:02:28,051 record-breaking journeys and their special technique for 31 00:02:28,171 --> 00:02:29,212 seeing off intruders. 32 00:02:33,844 --> 00:02:34,465 DAN ICETON: Hello Tom, you alright? 33 00:02:34,665 --> 00:02:35,445 TOM HENDRY: Hi Dan, how's it going? 34 00:02:36,166 --> 00:02:38,628 DAN ICETON: So how many Arctic Terns have we got on the island? 35 00:02:39,008 --> 00:02:42,131 TOM HENDRY: Ah so we've about 500 pairs of Arctic Terns on the 36 00:02:42,132 --> 00:02:44,373 Farne Islands approximately at the moment. There were more 37 00:02:44,453 --> 00:02:47,355 previously, around a thousand pairs but they have suffered the 38 00:02:47,375 --> 00:02:50,358 past couple of years as a result of bird flu. But there are still 39 00:02:50,438 --> 00:02:52,460 some quite good numbers on the Inner Farne. They are everywhere 40 00:02:52,700 --> 00:02:55,662 and make their presence heard and felt as well. 41 00:02:57,544 --> 00:02:59,886 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: Arctic Terns have a bit of a reputation for 42 00:02:59,946 --> 00:03:02,088 aggressively defending their nests and young. 43 00:03:04,220 --> 00:03:05,601 TOM HENDRY: Where you're going past the visitor areas, the 44 00:03:05,621 --> 00:03:08,764 Arctic Terns are there to dive-bomb you, peck you, poo on 45 00:03:08,765 --> 00:03:11,246 you as well. But it's all from the best possible place though. 46 00:03:11,546 --> 00:03:14,869 They're here essentially for one purpose only and that's to rear 47 00:03:14,909 --> 00:03:17,571 young. They spend the winter all the way down in Antarctica. 48 00:03:18,011 --> 00:03:20,754 DAN ICETON: They're coming a long way to come here to nest so 49 00:03:20,934 --> 00:03:22,575 what's good about the Farne Islands for them? 50 00:03:23,176 --> 00:03:25,858 TOM HENDRY: The Farne Islands offers an ideal habitat for 51 00:03:25,918 --> 00:03:29,401 them. We've got great vegetation so we've got a nice mix of 52 00:03:29,421 --> 00:03:34,320 grasses, a sandy shingly area as well. They'll typically arrive 53 00:03:35,661 --> 00:03:38,262 end of April and the start of May, that's when we'll kind of 54 00:03:38,263 --> 00:03:41,984 first see the eggs. They can lay up to three eggs in a nest. So 55 00:03:42,204 --> 00:03:43,344 most often you'll get kind of... 56 00:03:43,844 --> 00:03:47,626 Most nests will have one or two chicks in the end. Whatever 57 00:03:47,686 --> 00:03:50,567 stage of their development at the moment they still rely on 58 00:03:50,568 --> 00:03:55,089 the parents. One parent incubating the eggs or small 59 00:03:55,129 --> 00:03:58,410 chicks to keep them warm. Once they're of a certain size both 60 00:03:58,450 --> 00:04:01,892 parents will be busily just going back and forth a conveyor 61 00:04:01,912 --> 00:04:04,253 belt of of chick provision. 62 00:04:05,453 --> 00:04:07,914 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: So the chicks take a lot of looking after, but 63 00:04:07,934 --> 00:04:09,735 what do the parents bring for them to eat? 64 00:04:11,456 --> 00:04:13,617 TOM HENDRY: The most common food that they like to eat this time 65 00:04:13,618 --> 00:04:15,838 of year is the sand eels. On the Farne Islands, part of the 66 00:04:15,858 --> 00:04:18,839 reason why they breed here, as well as the protection and the 67 00:04:19,220 --> 00:04:21,845 habitat, It's just the seas around the Farne Islands are 68 00:04:21,846 --> 00:04:23,106 just so plentiful. 69 00:04:23,927 --> 00:04:27,009 DAN ICETON: So the chicks, you know, they grow they fledge 70 00:04:27,790 --> 00:04:29,672 ready to leave the nest where they off to? 71 00:04:30,293 --> 00:04:33,235 TOM HENDRY: They start a huge journey they will make the trek 72 00:04:33,296 --> 00:04:35,958 down to Antarctica in a number of kind of steps. 73 00:04:39,061 --> 00:04:41,143 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: The long trip to Antarctica and back is 74 00:04:41,163 --> 00:04:45,847 impressive. It's a journey of around 50 000 miles a year. This 75 00:04:45,927 --> 00:04:49,188 means that over a lifetime some Arctic Terns are flying the same 76 00:04:49,228 --> 00:04:51,729 distance as taking three trips to the moon. 77 00:04:52,589 --> 00:04:55,050 TOM HENDRY: We had quite a famous ringed tern who was over 78 00:04:55,110 --> 00:04:59,431 30 years old and I think it was calculated that that individual 79 00:04:59,471 --> 00:05:01,871 would have flown over a million miles over the course of his 80 00:05:01,891 --> 00:05:04,352 life, which is sort of staggering. We've also had some 81 00:05:04,372 --> 00:05:06,533 researchers who've done some quite interesting stuff as well 82 00:05:07,133 --> 00:05:09,994 by putting these geolocator tags on their legs. 83 00:05:10,294 --> 00:05:13,155 Many birds would go the route what you might expect, you know 84 00:05:13,156 --> 00:05:16,797 go down the coast of West Africa and then sort of sometimes into 85 00:05:16,798 --> 00:05:20,159 the middle of the Indian Ocean and then down to Antarctica. But 86 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:23,482 they found one individual went into the Indian Ocean and then 87 00:05:23,642 --> 00:05:27,085 it actually went down to New Zealand before then going down 88 00:05:27,086 --> 00:05:27,726 to Antarctica. 89 00:05:30,969 --> 00:05:33,831 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: Arctic Terns form strong bonds and often stay 90 00:05:33,871 --> 00:05:37,214 with the same mate for many breeding seasons, reuniting 91 00:05:37,274 --> 00:05:41,317 after their long migration in the same colony each year. When 92 00:05:41,337 --> 00:05:44,079 the pairs get back together, there's some wooing. And a few 93 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:46,320 moves between the two. 94 00:05:46,321 --> 00:05:48,040 TOM HENDRY: They won't have seen each other for the whole winter. 95 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:52,982 To sort of re-establish this bond, the male will bring fish 96 00:05:53,342 --> 00:05:56,803 for the female. There'll also be a bit of a courtship display 97 00:05:57,023 --> 00:06:00,944 where both birds will almost bow to each other. It's quite sweet. 98 00:06:07,966 --> 00:06:09,986 DAN ICETON: What are some of the dangers towards that these birds 99 00:06:10,026 --> 00:06:10,766 have to face? 100 00:06:11,927 --> 00:06:14,776 TOM HENDRY: Yeah, so it's a very... very dynamic lifestyle 101 00:06:14,816 --> 00:06:19,277 out here and lots of threats along the way to the adults and 102 00:06:19,278 --> 00:06:22,099 the chicks. Many of the birds are at risk of predation from 103 00:06:22,159 --> 00:06:25,200 great blackback gulls, herring gulls for the chicks in 104 00:06:25,201 --> 00:06:27,901 particular. Disease is also a concern as well. 105 00:06:29,562 --> 00:06:31,803 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: Avian influenza or bird flu is an 106 00:06:31,823 --> 00:06:34,944 infectious disease that affects bird populations across the 107 00:06:34,945 --> 00:06:38,906 world. In 2022, the UK experienced its largest outbreak 108 00:06:38,926 --> 00:06:42,760 of bird flu in wild birds ever recorded. Putting many species 109 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,463 like Arctic Terns under pressure and having a devastating impact 110 00:06:46,483 --> 00:06:47,484 on the Farne Islands. 111 00:06:48,825 --> 00:06:53,128 TOM HENDRY: So 2022 and 2023 were quite bad. I mean, we lost 112 00:06:53,148 --> 00:06:57,472 over 9000 birds over those two years, you know, many of which 113 00:06:57,512 --> 00:06:59,894 were guillemots. But we also lost quite a lot of Arctic Terns 114 00:06:59,914 --> 00:07:02,636 as well. This is the issue with having these quite dense 115 00:07:02,696 --> 00:07:05,158 colonies. You know, they're really good for protecting each 116 00:07:05,198 --> 00:07:08,901 other. But then, you know, with disease, if the birds are so 117 00:07:08,981 --> 00:07:10,783 close together, it might sort of go through them. 118 00:07:10,943 --> 00:07:14,344 So it's important for us to kind of mitigate as best we can and 119 00:07:14,345 --> 00:07:16,805 then if there is signs of disease, it's kind of recording 120 00:07:16,825 --> 00:07:19,786 that properly and removing the birds from the area if we can. 121 00:07:20,146 --> 00:07:23,226 But last year, there wasn't much evidence of bird flu at all, you 122 00:07:23,227 --> 00:07:26,487 know, very few deaths. And this year seems to be the same, which 123 00:07:26,507 --> 00:07:29,968 is really good because there is evidence in other tern species 124 00:07:30,008 --> 00:07:34,010 that. You know, that immunity can develop towards bird flu. 125 00:07:35,290 --> 00:07:36,490 DAN ICETON: I think it'd be great to go out and have a look. 126 00:07:36,550 --> 00:07:38,771 Show us round, let's see if we can spot some chicks on the 127 00:07:38,791 --> 00:07:39,131 nest. 128 00:07:39,331 --> 00:07:39,831 TOM HENDRY: Let's do it 129 00:07:39,951 --> 00:07:41,031 DAN ICETON: See the terns dive-bombing. 130 00:07:42,652 --> 00:07:44,492 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: Dan and Tom head outside the information 131 00:07:44,552 --> 00:07:47,433 centre, and immediately come across some heads peeping out 132 00:07:47,473 --> 00:07:48,594 from under the vegetation. 133 00:07:49,114 --> 00:07:50,954 TOM HENDRY: We have some Arctic Tern chicks just to the right of 134 00:07:50,955 --> 00:07:51,274 us here. 135 00:07:51,654 --> 00:07:53,695 DAN ICETON: Oh yeah, I can just see one poking its head up 136 00:07:53,715 --> 00:07:54,535 there. Fantastic. 137 00:07:54,536 --> 00:07:56,976 TOM HENDRY: Yeah, I mean... If you didn't know they were tern 138 00:07:57,056 --> 00:08:00,357 chicks, you probably wouldn't know by their appearance because 139 00:08:00,397 --> 00:08:02,858 they look nothing like the adults really. These ones are 140 00:08:02,859 --> 00:08:06,078 quite brown and sandy with kind of black spots. Shall we try and 141 00:08:06,158 --> 00:08:06,799 see some bigger ones? 142 00:08:06,919 --> 00:08:07,799 DAN ICETON: Yeah, let's go see. 143 00:08:08,791 --> 00:08:11,052 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: As they wander further across Inner Farne Dan 144 00:08:11,072 --> 00:08:14,034 and Tom spot some more chicks with parents close by. 145 00:08:17,476 --> 00:08:19,417 TOM HENDRY: So this guy is a different story really. 146 00:08:19,497 --> 00:08:19,857 DAN ICETON: Oh wow 147 00:08:19,998 --> 00:08:23,520 TOM HENDRY: You know so this one's looking more like an adult 148 00:08:24,420 --> 00:08:28,162 you know so you've got you see the tips of the wing feathers 149 00:08:28,222 --> 00:08:31,124 there they're they're almost fully developed you know they're 150 00:08:31,125 --> 00:08:34,066 really kind of adult feathers but it still has that sort of 151 00:08:34,146 --> 00:08:38,624 downy fluff that all the chicks have So eventually it'll lose 152 00:08:38,764 --> 00:08:42,508 all the fluff and then it'll eventually start to stretch its 153 00:08:42,568 --> 00:08:43,909 wings to practice flapping. 154 00:08:44,549 --> 00:08:47,752 And then one day it'll just kind of go up literally a few feet 155 00:08:48,473 --> 00:08:52,216 and that's it kind of, oh I can fly now So this one will be 156 00:08:52,376 --> 00:08:56,740 probably more about kind of four weeks old so it's not too far 157 00:08:56,741 --> 00:08:57,300 from fledging. 158 00:08:58,081 --> 00:09:03,606 As you can see I mean it's got shorter bill and shorter wings 159 00:09:03,666 --> 00:09:07,029 and not much of a tail But it's similar size to the adults now 160 00:09:07,149 --> 00:09:12,835 so you know too big for the adult to sit on it but still 161 00:09:12,895 --> 00:09:15,238 fully reliant on parents for food. 162 00:09:15,678 --> 00:09:21,124 DAN ICETON: Yeah so we've got one clattering just over my 163 00:09:21,184 --> 00:09:24,245 head. They do look quite vicious don't they, especially with that 164 00:09:24,385 --> 00:09:25,226 sharp bill on them. 165 00:09:25,366 --> 00:09:28,748 TOM HENDRY: Well they've got... It's almost like a bandit mask 166 00:09:28,828 --> 00:09:32,570 over them which gives them that evil look but they're amazing. 167 00:09:32,670 --> 00:09:34,351 DAN ICETON: It's the blood red beak as well though isn't it? 168 00:09:34,352 --> 00:09:35,092 TOM HENDRY: Blood red beak yeah. 169 00:09:35,632 --> 00:09:36,412 DAN ICETON: It's intimidating. 170 00:09:38,874 --> 00:09:43,016 So as they come close you can really hear them. It's that sort 171 00:09:43,017 --> 00:09:46,899 of clicking clattering sound and then the screech is they bomb 172 00:09:46,979 --> 00:09:50,669 down. They don't always peck but when they do you do feel it. 173 00:09:51,829 --> 00:09:55,211 We've walked past now and they've gone back to their nest. 174 00:09:55,212 --> 00:09:58,473 They don't really follow you, do they? It's more once you get out 175 00:09:58,513 --> 00:10:00,774 of the area of their nest they're okay. 176 00:10:01,454 --> 00:10:03,876 TOM HENDRY: You'll get individuals who are more feisty 177 00:10:03,896 --> 00:10:06,937 than others so they will follow you a bit further or peck you a 178 00:10:06,938 --> 00:10:10,199 little bit harder and sometimes draw blood. 179 00:10:10,499 --> 00:10:11,100 DAN ICETON: They're pretty good. 180 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:13,541 TOM HENDRY: I respect you a lot but quite painful. 181 00:10:14,862 --> 00:10:19,085 DAN ICETON: I've just been pecked there. And again, they're 182 00:10:20,106 --> 00:10:21,807 really quite feisty here aren't they? 183 00:10:22,247 --> 00:10:22,468 TOM HENDRY: They are. 184 00:10:22,469 --> 00:10:22,948 DAN ICETON: Really good. 185 00:10:23,508 --> 00:10:23,949 TOM HENDRY: Good area. 186 00:10:24,910 --> 00:10:27,832 DAN ICETON: Is there a tactic to not getting pecked? 187 00:10:28,092 --> 00:10:31,255 TOM HENDRY: I think again just find someone taller than you and 188 00:10:31,315 --> 00:10:33,517 sort of crouch behind them I think is the main tactic. 189 00:10:33,897 --> 00:10:35,198 DAN ICETON: So that's good to know okay. 190 00:10:35,438 --> 00:10:36,159 TOM HENDRY: Good for me anyway. 191 00:10:37,840 --> 00:10:40,202 DAN ICETON: What a deterrent, it really does work and you can see 192 00:10:40,242 --> 00:10:44,306 how it's so effective but what a privilege it is to be here and 193 00:10:44,386 --> 00:10:45,507 sort of experience this. 194 00:10:46,443 --> 00:10:50,584 TOM HENDRY: It's a privilege to work with these birds and to 195 00:10:50,604 --> 00:10:53,525 help them along their way in their breeding cycle. And it's 196 00:10:53,565 --> 00:10:56,426 great to have people and visitors to come on to enjoy it 197 00:10:56,427 --> 00:10:58,767 as well, but also contribute to protecting them. 198 00:10:59,247 --> 00:11:00,267 DAN ICETON: Brilliant, thank you very much. 199 00:11:02,488 --> 00:11:05,148 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: It's time for Dan to leave the island. But 200 00:11:05,188 --> 00:11:08,069 before he heads off, he reflects on his day with the Arctic 201 00:11:08,129 --> 00:11:08,549 Terns. 202 00:11:09,530 --> 00:11:11,250 DAN ICETON: I've really enjoyed seeing the Arctic Tern colonies 203 00:11:11,290 --> 00:11:13,551 here on the Farne's and learning more about these incredible 204 00:11:13,591 --> 00:11:16,640 birds. While it's sad that the numbers have been depleted by 205 00:11:16,701 --> 00:11:19,202 bird flu and the numbers were really down these last couple of 206 00:11:19,222 --> 00:11:23,165 years. It's good that we've seen a good number of chicks and 207 00:11:23,665 --> 00:11:26,627 there's sort of healthy population back on the Farne's. 208 00:11:27,108 --> 00:11:28,989 The future is looking really positive for these 209 00:11:29,009 --> 00:11:29,629 globetrotters. 210 00:11:53,976 --> 00:11:55,517 ROSIE HOLDSWORTH: Thanks for listening to this episode of 211 00:11:55,537 --> 00:11:59,038 Wild Tales. If you liked it, why not give us a like or a follow? 212 00:11:59,378 --> 00:12:02,079 And if you want to see the Farne Islands Arctic turns, head to 213 00:12:02,139 --> 00:12:06,100 Instagram at wildtalesnt. We'll be back soon with another 214 00:12:06,160 --> 00:12:08,761 episode in a couple of weeks. But if you can't wait that long, 215 00:12:08,941 --> 00:12:12,122 why not check out our other nature podcast, Nature Fix. Or 216 00:12:12,142 --> 00:12:16,063 if you like your history too, there's Back When. I'll see you 217 00:12:16,083 --> 00:12:16,643 next time.