by Kirsty Cox
Today was not the day that I had expected. It all started with a run down to the Landing Bay this morning to check on a seal pup that had been born there yesterday. I wanted to check how it was doing before I set off on Housekeeping for the day as my other island duties meant that I wouldn’t be able to pup check until much later in the afternoon. Sadly, the pup was hauled out above Christie’s Quay and was calling loudly. There was no sign of its mum and I was worried about how it would be during the day as today was a boat day so a lot of vehicles and people would be down on the jetty. When the working day started, I spoke to staff working on cargo and also to Simon and Tara who would be down to meet the boat so everyone was on alert to keep an eye out for the pup.
After a spot of Seal ID and Seal Admin, and feeding the chickens for one of the staff members who is off island at the moment, I joined other staff for a catch up over Toast and then headed off with the Housekeeping team.
We started in Millcombe and then went to both Brambles properties before we split into the driving team and the walking team. I was on the walking team so we headed for Castles and then onto Government, meanwhile the driving team went up to Old Light and Quarters. And then we all met back in the Square. A lot of beds were made, bathrooms scrubbed, kitchens cleaned, surfaces dusted and floors hoovered. I remember when I was here last year being so interested to get to see inside all the properties, and you definitely start to have your favourites as do so many of the visitors!
When we were at Castles, Tara came to find me to talk to me about the pup. The situation wasn’t improving and there was still no sign of its mother. We decided to call for advice from BDMLR (Bristish Divers Marine Life Rescue) who coordinate rescues of seals and cetaceans across the UK using trained Marine Mammal Medics. I did the training last year and was confident we could catch the seal pup as it was in the Landing Bay area which is accessible, unlike many of the other beaches on Lundy. And if we were going to do it, it had to be today as the pup would need to travel on the boat and after today the next sailing isn’t until Tuesday which would likely be too late. But we needed approval from BDMLR and also a guarantee that there was a space available in a Rehabilitation Centre if we were able to get the pup off island.
After calling BDMLR and getting approval and the guarantee of a rehab spot, it was all go for seal rescue! I met Tara in the Landing Bay, after leaving the very understanding Housekeeping team, and running down the hill with the various items we needed. It was a real team effort: Tara was helping me on the beach while I caught the pup; Matt drove the tractor with the cargo box, which we would need to house the pup for the trip; Joseph was keeping the passengers moving to the boat; the feral stock management team helped with lifting the pup into the cargo box; and the Oldenburg crew winched the cargo box onto the deck and into place. Simon was travelling off island today so luckily he was able to monitor the pup in transit and also to liaise with the BDMLR Medic on arrival at Ilfracombe.
All went relatively smoothly and I was even able to carry out some basic assessments on the pup for Simon to pass onto the team on the mainland - it’s amazing how training kicks in when you need it to! As we waved the boat off it felt good to know that we had been able to help the pup and hopefully it will thrive in rehab.
To try and relax from the day, I went off on a very late pup check. As the tide was high by now I didn’t see many pups but it was good to get out and walk the day off a bit! And when I got back there was a message to say that the pup had been successfully unloaded at Ilfracombe and transferred into the BDMLR Medic’s car and by now will be well on its way to RSPCA West Hatch. 
Seal Pup in Transit
A successful end to a very unexpected day!
Elsewhere on the island there were more unexpected arrivals, a Coal Tit, the first since 2021, a Wryneck, a Great Egret and a Red eyed Vireo. 
Red eyed Vireo
And from the Oldenburg there were sightings of a Fin Whale and large numbers of auks, mainly Guillemots.