Observations from Heligoland 2024: Northern gannets, common guillemots and black-legged kittiwakes struggle with the consequences of avian influenza and the threat posed by Dolly Ropes. Populations show concerning declines. From afar, their scent and calls are unmistakable: Heligoland’s northern gannets. As always, in early June, the island’s plateaus and cliffs are fully occupied. Northern gannets, common guillemots, razorbills and black-legged kittiwakes share the nesting sites. Up to this point, it is just like every year we have conducted our observations on site. Yet, some things are different this year. In 2022, avian influenza devastated the northern gannets. In 2023, according to the latest censuses, only 887 breeding pairs returned to the “Lummenfelsen” and the “Lange Anna”, a decrease of one third compared to the previous year. In 2024, many of the northern gannets still exhibit the altered dark eye colour indicative of a survived avian influenza infection. The number of northern gannets returning to the cliffs does not yet appear to be increasing. For the common guillemots and black-legged kittiwakes, 2023 was particularly severe: volunteers collected 700 dead common guillemot chicks at the base of the cliffs, victims of avian influenza. The parent birds retreated to the open sea and remained there. Visibly, many common guillemots returned to the cliffs this spring, but preliminary estimates indicate that one third of the original population was lost in 2023. Figures for 2024 are not yet available; the counts are just beginning. Once again, in 2024, dead common guillemops are hanging from the cliffs, strangled in Dolly Ropes. Encouragingly, the nests of the northern gannets contain a high proportion of natural materials, grass and seaweed. Grass currently appears to be highly popular on the plateaus, fortunately for the birds. Nevertheless, several northern gannet chicks are once again entangled in Dolly Ropes. The hope remains that they can free themselves and do not perish in them, as is so frequently the case. Thus far in the current year, the colony has been spared from avian influenza. We can only hope for a positive outcome for Germany’s largest seabird and its related species.
