Boating for Seabirds

Our Green Initiative Officer, Lynsey Bland, has just completed the new Biosecurity Accreditation Scheme for commercial boat operators around Scotland 'The Predator Free Certification: better boating for seabirds'.

Hebrides Cruises is very aware of the need to protect our seabird islands from invasive species, such as rats and mice, as we cruise these islands.  But it’s important not to be complacent and we will introduce simple measures provided by attending the course, to ensure we have no stowaways on board .  These include two kinds of surveillance tool, namely chew card and wax blocks which are both used to record rodent tooth marks. We will check these on a regular basis and invite guests to take part while chatting about the importance of protecting our seabirds. Putting rope guards on throw ropes prevents any rodent climbing aboard and there is even a conservation detection dog who can come aboard to reassure us that our vessels are free of any invasive species.

The greatest terrestrial threat our seabirds face is invasive predators such as rats, mice, stoats, hedgehogs and feral cats which will eat both seabird eggs and chicks.  The good news is that this threat is something we can take action with, so the more we ensure prevention and spread the word to boat operators and owners to get involved, the better.

One of the best examples of black rat eradication is The Shiant Islands in The Minch.  Following a 3 year eradication program to remove black rats, the islands were declared rat-free in 2018 with breeding storm petrels and a chick recorded for the first time on the islands that year.  These simple measures taken by boat owners will ensure invasive species never return to the Shiants or are introduced to any of our precious seabird colonies