Bernie's Blog

Extracts From The NRBO Summer Newsletter…… 

“Recent Island Events

The main event in our summer calendar is SheepFest, an annual event started in 2016 that sees volunteers from across the Britain and further afield descend upon the island for a week of dyke building and other activities. The festival was once again a resounding success thanks to the hard work of Heather and Tim, with many newcomers and returning volunteers working hard to build and repair sections of sheep dyke. The evening activities also proved extremely popular, with crafts such as felting and weaving attracting quite the crowd. As always, the highlight of the week for many was Saturday, with Islanders vs Visitors football match and the evening Dance. This year saw some quality football played, with the match being anyone’s game right down to the final whistle. Finishing 4-3 to the Islanders, the trophy was returned to its rightful owners after the Visitors clinched the title the past two years. The match brought a great turn out of spectators, and a well-deserved BBQ was on offer after the game which saw money being raised for the North Ronaldsay Trust. Despite some stiff legs, the Dance in the evening was a highlight for many, with the dance practice on Friday evening proving helpful for some to dust off their dancing shoes for another year. Again, this highly popular event included a Community Association raffle and silent auction of a felted picture raised money for the next SheepFest.

With Storm Floris arriving imminently on Monday, many took the opportunity to leave the festival early on the Sunday excursion boat. Those that braved the weather had the Quiz to look forward to, this year hosted by Obs staff member Charles. Unfortunately, Storm Floris had other ideas for the evening, and the Quiz had to be postponed when a glass panel in the conservatory smashed in the wind. Thanks to islanders, staff, and Rendall’s Builders who were luckily out for the evening, the conservatory was secured and everyone made it to bed safely!

Despite the dramatic end to this year’s Sheep Festival, we are extremely grateful to everyone involved in its running, and to all the volunteers who made the week possible. We are already looking forward to next year!

In sadder news, much loved island resident Winnie Scott passed away in mid-May. Winnie was always the first to make new Obs staff feel welcome to the island, and her door was always open for a whisky and a chat (if you didn’t want to get out birding that day!). She will be greatly missed by the whole island and our thoughts are with her family at this sad time. 

Obs News

Not too much has changed at the Obs since our last newsletter, with the biggest addition being new windows in the bar, guest rooms, and staff rooms. The Obs certainly feels a bit less drafty during high winds, but it did mean Storm Floris was able to pick out a weak point in the conservatory as mentioned previously! Observatory staff remain unchanged since the Spring, with the addition of Laura and Lara Doyle helping out over the Sheep Festival period and beyond.

Summer also means the erection of Storm Petrel nets at Twingness and nets for Arctic Terns and waders at Bewan. The former has already given us some very successful overnight catches, and the latter is still yet to be tested out this year. Pruning round Heligoland traps and the permanent mist nets at Ancum and Holland has kept them operational throughout the summer, but most of our attention has been turned towards the ringing of Arctic Tern and Black Guillemot chicks. Both species seem to have had a successful breeding season, with nearly 200 Arctic Tern chicks ringed across five colonies (including some that are now part of our colour flagging project), and over 200 Black Guillemot chicks ringed around the coast. We still have Fulmar chick ringing to look forward to, and we are hoping this species is doing just as well.

The (hopefully!) last punding of the year took place in late July, with sheep brought in from the coast for shearing. A very hot day in the sun saw all the Obs sheep sheared and released back out onto the coast, with the ewes and lambs to follow suit shortly. Obs staff also helped out with punding across the rest of the island, which went far more smoothly than usual!

The new ringing hut at Holland is now finally complete with all the furniture and displays in pride of place. The space is such a great improvement on the previous ringing hut, which now boasts information boards, recovery maps, and dissertation posters all for the enjoyment of visitors interested in knowing what ringing is all about. Be sure to check it out and ask Obs staff for a ringing demo next time you visit us!

If you’d like to get a piece of the North Ronaldsay birding action for yourself, then we still have room availability in 2025 – contact us at enquiries@nrbo.org.uk or phone 01857 633200 or check out the online bookings through our website at www.nrbo.org.uk.