Greetings fellow enthusuasts!

As I live and seawatch on the East Anglian coast just south of Lowestoft, I
have been following recent news of a Fulmar 'die-off' in the Southern Bight of
the North Sea with some interest. This event resembles a similar high
mortality or 'wreck' that occurred on this coast in 1962, and for which I offer
the
following two references.

(i) Moss Taylor (' Birds of Norfolk', 2002) states that c.200 Fulmars were
found on Norfolk beaches in February-March 1962 - part of a mortality recorded
all around the southern North Sea, and even reaching Sweden. Severe and
prolonged Atlantic storms that winter were thought to have caused food shortage,
and
led to weak and starving birds coming inshore. (As this year, no significant
mortalities of other species were noted).

(ii) Ivor Rees has found the following UK paper which summarises the data and
conclusions from an inquiry into the 1962 wreck : Pashby, B.S. & Cudmore, J.
(1969). The Fulmar 'Wreck' of 1962. British Birds, Vol.62:97-109. (I have not
yet been able to consult this paper).

On March 9th, our local BBC TV channel showed an item about the recent
Norfolk wreck. It was stated that c.150 Fulmars had been found in the preceding
week; 40 emaciated birds were taken into care at a local wildlife rescue centre;
some corpses will undergo autopsy.

Best regards,

Peter Dare

(PS. This is a repeat message; apparenetly there were problems with the
original dated March 9th!)


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