A real dark situation to be in': thousands of starving seabirds stranded in biggest wreck' in a decade

"The pair probably starved to death, unable to find enough food out in the Atlantic Ocean where they spend the winter. It was really sad—they're such beautiful little birds, so charismatic. The scene is one reported from beaches all over Europe, with tens of thousands of seabirds washing ashore in the past few weeks."

"Puffins have been particularly affected as they hunt by sight and need clear water to find food. Rough seas make it difficult for them to do this. Without alleviating pressures and with events like this, we will start to see seabirds wiped out from our shores."

"It is the biggest seabird wreck in Europe in a decade, with reports spanning thousands of miles of coastline from southern Portugal to the northern tip of Scotland. Seabird wrecks occur when large numbers of dead or exhausted seabirds wash up on coastlines with no obvious cause of mortality."

A major seabird wreck is occurring across European coastlines, with tens of thousands of dead and exhausted seabirds washing ashore—the largest event in a decade. Puffins are most severely affected, with over 300 recorded in Cornwall alone by late February. The birds died primarily from starvation caused by severe Atlantic storms including Goretti, Ingrid, and Chandra since January. Puffins hunt by sight and require clear water to locate food; rough seas make this impossible. Other species including guillemots, razorbills, and terns have also been recorded. The affected area spans thousands of miles from southern Portugal to northern Scotland. Without addressing underlying pressures, such events threaten to eliminate seabirds from European shores.

Read at www.theguardian.com