MIKE ALEXANDER | INTERVIEW
Conservationist Mike Alexander has devoted his life to investigating Pembrokeshire’s Skomer Island – discovering opium-trading gentlemen farmers, prehistoric settlements and groundbreaking climate research. With a lavish book of photographs published this month, Elouise Hobbs spoke to him about it.
So how did a school trip to Skomer lead to a lifetime of conservation work?
I was brought up in Tumble, south Wales. Living at the edge of the coalfield, everything was black. I remember the first time I visited the island very clearly. It was a bright, sunny, day. There were puffins all around, the bluebells were in flower. The contrast between what I knew and what I experienced was mindblowing. I decided I wanted to be the warden of Skomer on that day, as a 13-year-old.
I became warden from 1976 to 1985 and once I left the island, I began managing nature reserves – one of which was Skomer. Over my career, I became an international expert in conservation management planning – the thinking bit of conservation, where we make decisions. While semi-retired, I started writing the Skomer Management Plan and there was this wonderful opportunity to just spend a few years researching the island. It eventually led to this book.
While researching, what did you learn about the past inhabitants?
We now know that there was extensive occupation during the Iron Age. Thanks to advances in technology, archaeologists have discovered a medieval period that they were completely unaware of until a few years ago. But the Victorians had the heaviest footprints of all the island’s inhabitants. These people were brutal – just about anything that could be cultivated to grow wheat or to produce food was.
Through my research, I was able to contact the families of past inhabitants. Davis, one of the last island farmers, was a very odd character. He was an opium trader and discovering the ship’s manifest and the correspondence between his family speaks volumes. What I realised is that Davis’ ability to maintain such a comfortable lifestyle was probably entirely a consequence of the money that he made in the opium trade. Although it doesn’t have an impact on the way we manage the Island now, it’s so interesting to see these people not just through statistics or a ruined building, but as real people.
More recently, the people behind the Wildlife Trusts of south and west Wales – a voluntary organisation that’s managed Skomer Island for 60 years – have helped make the island a global success story.
Skomer is known for its seabirds but why are they so special?
The most exciting thing about Skomer is the population of Manx shearwater: 360,000 pairs. They are nocturnal seabirds and when they arrive, the island is simply alive. The shearwaters have a special adaptation for sea living. They have extremely long wings, like an albatross, but their legs are at the back of the bodies, like a duck, so they can hardly move on land. This means they’re incredibly vulnerable, so they nest in burrows.
Adult shearwaters feed the young in the burrow. Eventually, the adults will stop feeding and on a good, dark night the young emerge, ready to fly. They just leap off the cliff. They fly down south, brushing off the coast of Africa, then swing across the Atlantic, around Argentina and South America. Eventually, they’ll come back to the island. When they make this first flight, they are completely alone. They’re very spectacular birds, with an incredible story.
These seabirds, and Skomer, have been extensively studied. What have we learned?
Skomer has helped us develop the science of nature conservation. When we study Skomer, it’s like dipping your elbow, metaphorically, into the Atlantic and testing it. As we have very carefully monitored all the seabird populations, we understand the trends – using the birds, in a sense, as a measure of the health of the Atlantic.
There’s groundbreaking research in terms of the movements of birds: where they feed, the conditions they need to thrive. Then there’s the marine conservation zone, where people are looking at the flora and fauna. All of this comes together to measure, like a barometer, the health of all the seas around Skomer.
How has this research contributed to our wider understanding of our planet?
The most significant thing is in respect of global climate change. We are aware that temperatures are rising. Climate scientists predict massive increases in energy in the atmosphere, with the consequence of increasing storms.
A few years ago, there was a terrible winter: constant storms from December to March, winds of a hundred miles an hour. Seabirds living in cold waters rely on an insulating layer of fat. In the storms, the birds were unable to feed, lost weight, and simply died of exposure. I’ll never forget it. On some of my favourite beaches in Pembrokeshire, there were just dead birds everywhere – and we knew immediately where these birds came from. Due to the study on Skomer, many birds were tagged, so we could identify them and actually begin to quantify and understand what’s going on.
As conservationists, there’s not much we can do about global climate change. What we can do is provide the evidence that the others need to persuade politicians that we’ve got to wake up. We’re on the edge of a precipice and we need to see governments taking action.
What would your hope be for the future of Skomer Island?
Simply, that there are puffins and shearwaters, and that people continue to enjoy it. That’s the easy bit. The big picture is trying to get an international appreciation of the dreadful state of our environment. Some species of seabirds ingest an awful lot of plastic. Then there’s oil pollution – a threat that’s always present.
On Skomer, we’ve made a reasonably bold decision to liberate nature and as long as nature is doing the right thing, maintaining these huge populations of seabirds, we’re very happy about it.
Skomer Island – Its History And Natural History by Mike Alexander is published by Y Lolfa. Price: £29.99. Info: here.
Skomer Island booklaunch, via Zoom, Thurs 6 May, 7pm. Free to register. Info: here
words ELOUISE HOBBS photos MIKE ALEXANDER / HUGH LEMPRIERE BRIDGER
