University of Edinburgh researchers film on Bass Rock for international documentary

Professor Caroline Nichol and Tom Wade have taken part in filming for a major new ARTE.tv documentary - Animal Crowds - currently in production, which will be distributed internationally across Europe, North and South America, China, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

Professor Caroline Nichol discusses the research on Bass Rock

 

The filming took place on Bass Rock, home to the world’s largest Northern gannet colony.  Surrounded by thousands of birds and their chicks, the team demonstrated the innovative research methods they are using to monitor seabird populations in the wake of the devastating outbreak of avian flu in 2021-22, where the gannet colony population fell from 75,000 to 55,000 apparently occupied sites.

As part of the documentary, the research team set up a heavy-lift drone used to carry out aerial surveys of the colony. These surveys, first undertaken in collaboration with the Scottish Seabird Centre at the height of the bird flu crisis in 2022, revealed the catastrophic impact of the disease. Since then, the team has returned to Bass Rock each year to track the population’s recovery.

By combining manual bird counts, with advanced computer vision techniques and convolutional neural networks – a type of computer programme that can ‘see’ and recognise patterns, for example ‘learning’ what features make a bird and then being able to reliably pick out and count the birds in a photo - the researchers have been able to generate highly accurate, colony-wide population data. These methods not only allow them to distinguish between adults, breeding pairs and chicks, but also to process data at a speed and scale that would have been impossible just a few years ago.

 

Bass Rock surrounded by the sea.
© School of Geosciences & Airborne Research and Innovation Facility, University of Edinburgh

 

This work has been vital in supporting the Scottish Seabird Centre’s conservation efforts. Seabirds are among the most threatened groups of vertebrates, with one in three species globally at risk of extinction. While it may take decades for the gannet population to recover to pre-bird flu levels, the new tools and methods are giving researchers and conservationists an unprecedented year-by-year view of how the colony is faring.

Looking ahead, the research team is committed to continuing their long-term monitoring of the Bass Rock colony. Their appearance in Animal Crowds will help share the story of these seabirds, their challenges, and the cutting-edge science being used to understand and protect them, with audiences around the world.

 

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