At Net Let UK, we’re always looking to spotlight the places that make the UK so special. There’s so much to do in Pembrokeshire, and our holiday properties are located in prime locations to sample some of the very best going on in West Wales. Our media team have just taken a trip off the coast of Pembrokeshire to witness something truly extraordinary.
On Skomer Island, a new record has just been reached: 52,019 puffins have been counted there, marking it the second year in a row that the island has reached an all-time high population.
Each spring, thousands of puffins return to Skomer Island for one crucial reason: breeding. Puffins spend the vast majority of their lives out at sea, often months at a time in the open Atlantic. They only come to land during the breeding season to nest in burrows and raise a single chick. Skomer is ideal for this, offering predator-free ground and rich nearby waters full of sand eels and other small fish. These birds are built for life on the ocean; they can swim at speeds of up to 10 mph using their wings to cut through the water, and in the air they can reach speeds of up to 55 mph.
Outside the breeding season, much of the UK’s puffin population disperses widely across the North Atlantic, with many travelling as far as waters off Iceland, Greenland, and even the eastern coast of North America, making their annual return to the same cliffs of Skomer in West Wales all the more remarkable.
To capture this moment firsthand, our media team at Net Let UK travelled to Skomer Island as soon as these new statistics were announced to capture images of the birds. They sailed from Martin’s Haven, which is not far from many of our holiday cottages at Net Let UK.
What they saw and captured was unforgettable: burrows teeming with life, seals sunbathing on the beach to greet their arrival, diving birds from clifftops, and puffins waddling happily along clifftops. It’s one thing to read the numbers, but actually standing among tens of thousands of this unique species makes the news even more special.
Skomer Island itself is strikingly untouched. With no shops and minimal infrastructure, it feels a world away from the mainland, yet it’s less than a mile offshore.
What makes this milestone even more impressive is the local Pembrokeshire history behind it. Puffins haven’t always thrived at this scale on Skomer Island.
Back in the early 20th century, seabird populations across the UK, including puffins, faced severe decline from hunting, egg collection, and invasive species. Skomer itself underwent a transformation when it became a protected nature reserve in 1959, when it was purchased by the Nature Conservancy and the West Wales Naturalists’ Trust.
Since formal monitoring began in the 1980s, puffin numbers on the island have steadily climbed:
This fantastic result for the population isn’t a coincidence; it’s thanks to years of careful conservation, research, and monitoring by the team on the island.
Several key factors make Skomer an ideal home for puffins.
While puffin populations are declining at many UK sites, Skomer is proving what’s possible under the right conditions.
During our visit, we learned more about the meticulous counting process. Each year, wardens divide the island into sections and count puffins across land, sea, and sky, timed perfectly between their return from winter and the start of nesting.
This method, unchanged since the 1980s, ensures reliable long-term comparisons. It’s demanding work, but essential for understanding how populations are evolving.
Although puffins take centre stage, Skomer is home to an entire ecosystem of wildlife. The island supports:
It’s no exaggeration to say that Skomer, despite its relatively small size, is one of the most important seabird islands in Europe.
At Net Let UK, we believe places like Skomer Island highlight the importance of protecting the natural environments that make Pembrokeshire such a unique place to live and visit. Whether you’re drawn to coastal living, wildlife, or simply the beauty of the Welsh landscape, we have the perfect property for you. All of our holiday lets in Pembrokeshire are maintained to a high standard and positioned in popular locations such as Haverfordwest, Milford Haven, St Davids, Newport, Tenby and Saundersfoot.
Come and stay in one of our properties and book your visit to Skomer to not miss this opportunity to see these fantastic birds in their record-breaking year. The puffin population comes to the island from April to late July, but even outside puffin season, the island remains well worth a visit. The sea bird population and beautiful landscape can be enjoyed all year round.
