Monitoring European storm petrels on Mousa

The sparrow-sized European storm-petrel is the smallest seabird in the Atlantic, nesting only on the most remote islands, around the coasts of north-west Europe.

Monitoring how storm-petrel populations are faring can help us identify the threats they face and develop conservation solutions which work. On the island of Mousa part of RSPB Shetland Nature Reserve, scientists have been testing a new method for monitoring storm-petrels in the hope that it can be used at sites that are particularly difficult for humans to access.