Scilly Birder Special Pelagic

The Scilly Birder Special Pelagic is the premier dedicated offshore seabird trip in England — a 7-hour voyage aboard the MV Sapphire out of St Mary's Harbour in the Isles of Scilly, skippered by Joe Pender and co-managed by seabird researcher Bob Flood. Scilly Pelagics has operated pelagic trips out of the Isles of Scilly since 2000, building a 25-year record as the most productive offshore seabird experience in the southwest Atlantic approaches. Birder Special trips run on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays throughout June to September, reaching capacity — sometimes a full year in advance — during the peak Wilson's Storm-petrel window of late July to early August. The MV Sapphire is a 15.5-metre Kingfisher workboat built solidly for the Atlantic swell conditions typical in the waters southwest of the British Isles, with open deck space for unobstructed seabird observation.

The Isles of Scilly occupy a uniquely productive position in the eastern North Atlantic: 28 miles southwest of Land's End at the outer limit of the British continental shelf, where the warm waters of the residual North Atlantic Current meet the cooler Atlantic upwelling. Scilly Pelagics departs from St Mary's Harbour and steams 6–15 miles offshore into the open Atlantic before drifting on a chum slick — a mixture of fish oil and liver that spreads across the surface to attract seabirds at close range to the vessel. The chumming operation runs in parallel with a Blue Shark tagging research programme, meaning every trip contributes to conservation science while delivering exceptional seabird encounters; the same oily slick that draws sharks to the stern draws petrels pattering and hovering within metres of the hull.

The signature species of the Scilly Birder Special is Wilson's Storm-petrel — a tiny, long-legged storm-petrel that breeds in immense numbers on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands and migrates north into the North Atlantic during the austral winter to spend its non-breeding season feeding on productive ocean waters. Classified among the most numerous birds on the planet, Wilson's Storm-petrel is nonetheless rarely seen from land anywhere in Britain; the chum slick off Scilly draws these delicate birds in at close range — multiple individuals hovering simultaneously in the slick, feet dangling in the water — with the peak window running from the last ten days of July to the first few days of August. The combination of Scilly's position, the reliability of chumming, and two decades of accumulated skipper knowledge makes this one of the most dependable Wilson's Storm-petrel experiences in the North Atlantic.

Large shearwaters are the other great draw. Great Shearwater — a massive, boldly-patterned tubenose breeding only on Tristan da Cunha, Gough Island and Inaccessible Island in the South Atlantic — migrates north through the eastern North Atlantic on post-breeding dispersal and is reliably present in Scilly waters from July through September, sometimes in groups of a hundred or more birds circling and plunging around the chum slick. Cory's Shearwater, the largest shearwater in the North Atlantic, is abundant from July onward, its lazy, deep-winged banking flight distinctive on calm days and in heavy swell alike. Sooty Shearwater, the dark, scimitar-winged shearwater of southern hemisphere colonies that migrates north in millions through Atlantic waters, is a near-certain sighting from August through early October. Balearic Shearwater, the Critically Endangered shearwater breeding only on the Balearic Islands with a global population of approximately 20,000 birds, is present in the English Channel and the approaches to Scilly on virtually every trip, its browner coloration and faster, stiffer wingbeats distinguishing it from the more languid Manx. Manx Shearwater itself, breeding on Skokholm, Skomer, Rum and other British islands in their hundreds of thousands, is a near-constant background species on every voyage.

The storm-petrel showing is excellent throughout the season. European Storm-petrel, one of the smallest seabirds in the world and a colonial breeder on British and Irish offshore islands, flickers around the chum slick with characteristic bat-like flight, often in close company with Wilson's Storm-petrel for direct size and flight-style comparison. Leach's Storm-petrel, the longer-winged, more erratic flier breeding on St Kilda and other remote northwest British islands, appears with some regularity in late summer and early autumn. Skua diversity is outstanding: Great Skua (the 'bonxie' of northern island colonies), Pomarine Skua in its impressive spoon-tailed breeding plumage, Arctic Skua in its multiple colour morphs, and Long-tailed Skua during its elegant autumn passage are all recorded with regularity. Northern Gannet, the largest breeding seabird in the North Atlantic, is a near-constant presence throughout. Atlantic Puffin, Guillemot, Razorbill and Black-legged Kittiwake add to the species count on most trips, while Sabine's Gull, Grey Phalarope and other Atlantic specialties appear in peak passage conditions.

Booking is essential and strongly recommended months in advance, particularly for the late July to early August Wilson's Storm-petrel peak: the Birder Special product pages on the Scilly Pelagics website list all available dates with a booking calendar. The website at scillypelagics.com provides full trip information, species checklists from recent trips, and links to Bob Flood's published seabird identification work.