Puffin Colony — Skomer Island

About this spectacle

Each spring, Skomer Island's clifftops and grassy slopes come alive with over 40,000 Atlantic puffins — a spectacle that is both visually stunning and endearingly absurd. Visitors watch birds return from the sea with beaks crammed full of sand eels, landing with ungainly crash-landings at their burrow entrances. The air fills with the low whirring of wings and the occasional guttural growl of puffins squabbling over prime burrow positions. At clifftop viewpoints, birds launch themselves off the edge in wobbling, cartoon-like takeoffs before vanishing into the sea below. Morning hours are especially active, with constant aerial traffic overhead. The island's short turf is pocked with burrow entrances, and puffins stand sentinel at each one, utterly unbothered by patient observers who can approach remarkably close. The surrounding sea glitters with rafts of birds resting between fishing runs, adding a second layer of spectacle to the clifftop theatre.

When to go

Apr — Jul

Getting there

Nearest airport: CWL. Nearest city: Haverfordwest.

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