Manx National Heritage (MNH) and Manx Wildlife Trust (MWT) are delighted to have won the award for Environmental or Sustainable Initiative of the Year at the Media Isle of Man Awards for Excellence for their long-term partnership work on the Calf of Man.
Since 2012, the two charities have collaborated on an enduring conservation project that has transformed the ecological outlook for the incredible island nature reserve, working to remove invasive species and restore natural habitats, enabling the return of key seabird populations, particularly ground-nesting species vulnerable to predation from brown rats (Rattus norvegicus).
The population of Manx shearwaters, whose population had been declared extinct on the Calf of Man, is now up to 1,500 pairs of breeding Manx shearwaters. Eiders (a locally endangered ground-nesting sea duck) have risen from zero to over 100 pairs. Ground-nesting and vulnerable Wheatear have now established their largest Manx breeding locality on the Calf with an annually growing population of around 40-50 pairs. In the last two years, the formerly locally extinct Water Rail have re-established a local breeding population of two pairs on the Calf, with high productivity. 2025 saw the highest number of records of Puffin landing on the Calf in over three decades, with individuals seen to land in all three of the decoy Puffin colonies that were created. A confirmed breeding attempt took place in 2021 and there is great optimism that Puffins will resume breeding again shortly.
