Manx Shearwater Burrow Cam

A Hidden World Beneath Skomer

This infrared camera looks straight into a nesting burrow on Skomer Island, a National Nature Reserve off the Pembrokeshire coast. Unlike surface cameras, this lens shows the private underground chambers where seabirds raise their young away from gulls and the elements.

The Manx Shearwater

Skomer holds one of the world's largest colonies of Manx Shearwaters, birds that spend almost their entire lives at sea and only return to land to breed. Each pair digs or reuses a burrow, laying a single egg and raising one chick entirely out of sight of aerial predators.

Life Underground

The downy chick visible on camera relies on regular feeds delivered by its parents, who navigate back to the exact burrow using scent and memory after long foraging trips across the ocean. Nesting material lines the chamber, insulating the growing bird until it is ready to fledge.

A Conservation Icon

The reserve is managed by The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, whose long-running monitoring programme has made Skomer's shearwater colony one of the best-studied seabird populations on Earth. This rare underground view highlights the delicate balance of island conservation.