RSPB: Woody the detection dog joins Rathlin Island seabird saving team - on its way to world-first eradication

An adorable new recruit on a mission to save seabirds has joined Rathlin Island’s ground-breaking LIFE Raft project.

A two-year-old fox red Labrador nicknamed ‘The Unit’, Woody will help sniff to out any remaining ferrets on Rathlin Island, off the north coast of Northern Ireland. Both ferrets and rats are invasive, non-native species on Rathlin, and they have been wreaking havoc on its internationally-important seabird populations.

Puffins and guillemots are among the island’s protected species which have seen their numbers decimated, with only one in three ‘pufflings’ surviving last year. LIFE Raft, a project led by The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Northern Ireland (RSPB NI) and the Rathlin Development Community Association (RDCA), is determined to make Rathlin Island a seabird haven once more - by removing these ferrets and rats.

The team has been trapping ferrets since October 2023 and has caught 98 of them to date, meaning a world-first feral ferret eradication was now in sight. But their success depended on leaving no stone unturned, following up every community sighting and deploying every tool at their disposal, the RSPB said in a statement.  

Woody, who has been in training for quite some time, arrived on Rathlin this month and immediately got to work - alongside his handler, fieldwork manager Michael Rafferty. “We have all been so excited to welcome Woody to LIFE Raft. It’s been no easy feat attempting a world-first eradication, and we knew we needed the best dog for the job to get us over the finish line. Woody's ludicrous energy levels, uncanny sniffing skills, and goofy grin ticked all our boxes,” he said.

He started his new life with a tour of the island and meeting the locals, Rafferty said. After spending the summer ferret-finding, Woody will likely be retrained - using his favourite reward, a ball on a rope - to tackle the next big threat: brown rats.

This second invasive species found their way to the island in the 1800s, and like the ferrets, have found ground-nesting seabirds to be easy prey. In September, the team will begin placing almost 7,000 bait stations across the island, kick-starting the final push to free Rathlin of non-native predators.  

But the impact of the LIFE Raft project went beyond wildlife alone, RCDA chair Michael Cecil added. “This project isn't just about protecting wildlife. Thousands of people travel to Rathlin every year to experience the sights and sounds of the amazing seabirds, so protecting the wildlife means protecting a whole way of life, as well as securing the livelihoods of many of the people who live here. This project has the potential to protect the future of this historic island.” 

Wider seabird populations across the British Isles are in trouble, and are facing a number of other threats too. A years-long avian influenza (or bird flu) outbreak has emerged as one of the biggest threats many species now face. The RSPB says other issues including unsustainable fishing practices threatening their food sources, and climate change and the warming seas it causes.

Amber Allott is NationalWorld’s environment and sustainability specialist, covering all things green - from climate to conservation. If you liked this article you can follow Amber on X (Twitter) here and sign up for the free daily NationalWorld Today newsletter here - with Amber bringing you the UK's most important, pressing, weird and wonderful environmental stories every Tuesday.