Hi, I’m Ellen, and I spent a month on the Calf of Man as a bird volunteer, helping with the daily census and ringing. This was my second visit to the Calf, having spent a few weeks last year in September volunteering. I had such a great experience the first year that I decided to come back for another month.

It was interesting the difference a month made to the wildlife present on the Calf.  While on my previous visit I was able to catch the Manx Shearwaters before they migrated, as I arrived a month later in October, I instead was there for the thrush migration with large numbers of Redwing and Fieldfare passing through.

My typical day would involve running the Heligoland and Meadow Pipit traps in the morning, and if the weather was appropriate, opening up the mist nets. We would play recordings of bird calls in the hopes of luring in particular species, with the main tapes we played being Redwing, Goldcrest, and Chaffinch. In the afternoon I would do a census of the island, alternating between the north and south sides and counting all the wildlife I saw along my route. If the morning had been very busy with ringing, the census was a nice way to wind down by going for a walk and reconnecting with the island. The weather would also make for some interesting walks, especially when the wind was strong and you would get some very dramatic seas, with some of the highest waves I’ve seen.

I recently gained my C-permit for ringing, allowing me to ring passerines, and I have been working towards gaining my mist net endorsement. Spending almost every day ringing was a great opportunity to build my confidence, especially with identifying and aging species I have less experience with and using a range of ring sizes. Some of the new species I ringed included Cetti’s Warbler, Garden Warbler, Skylark, and Purple Sandpiper. One memorable moment was when we caught a Buzzard, only the second to be ringed on the Calf. Seeing such a large bird up close was amazing, you could really appreciate the strength of their wings and deadliness of their beak and talons.

In addition to ringing and census, I also helped with a variety of practical tasks. One personal achievement was building a new catch box for one of the Heligoland traps. This pushed me out of my comfort zone, using a circular saw for the first time, and having to get resourceful as materials were limited.

While the experience I gained from my month on the Calf was incredibly valuable, what made my time there so enjoyable was definitely the people. Everybody was so welcoming and some of the best times I had were watching The Traitors in the evening and having a communal curry night.

Anybody looking for ringing experience, or experience living and working on a remote island, I would highly recommend the Calf of Man. It’s a great way to meet like-minded people and get involved in a whole range of tasks all the while getting to stay on a dramatic island.