Return of the Flying Penguin

Common Murres Make Their Way — in Their Own Way — Back to the Channel Islands

Common Murres on Prince Island | Photo: Chuck Graham

I could barely make out San Miguel Island in wispy “May Gray” fog as I kayaked east to west across the San Miguel Passage from Santa Rosa Island. I’d heard that common murres, a dual-winged seabird that resembles a penguin, had returned to the most northwesterly isle in the northern chain in 2011 following a 100-year absence.

Prince Island, a small, 40-acre islet just a half-mile northeast of San Miguel Island, had been the common murres’ most southerly breeding and nesting colony throughout their West Coast range. However, by the early 1900s, egg collecting and hunting had taken its toll, and over time, common murres disappeared from both Prince and San Miguel islands.

The recovery of flora and fauna has been well-documented across the Channel Islands National Park. There’s been plenty of human intervention helping with the recovery of species such as the island fox, bald eagle, peregrine falcon, and throngs of seabirds. Other species, once the stressors were removed, have returned on their own. Some, though, take longer than others.

Nature’s Way

Overall, San Miguel Island is exposed to all types of weather, with wind, swell, and fog engulfing its craggy 27 coastal miles. As I approached Cuyler Harbor, I veered off to the north, paddling straight for Prince Island. At the time, I had no idea where the common murres were nesting as I circled. I even began doubting the thought of locating them. I reasoned they would be nesting on the southeast end of Prince Island, away from the northwest elements, but I was wrong. On the most exposed part of the islet, throngs of common murres were reveling atop two towering spires above a U-shaped cove impacted by sea conditions from the northwest.

Beyond that wave-battered fringe, there was a huge rocky slab just northwest of Prince Island that was a great indicator for approaching swell before it crashed into the sheer columns of blocky rock. However, the surf was breaking well below where the football-sized seabirds were nesting. Where the two columns collided was where the U-shaped cove hooked inside. When the surf slammed inside the cove, it transformed into a frothy, jumbled whirlpool. In between sets, I paddled into the cove to assess the numbers of murres, always with an eye on that rocky slab.

That was in May 2020. It’s not an easy place to paddle to, so, I was curious to know how common murres had fared since then. Isolation at the Channel Islands National Park has its perks for all things flora and fauna. In the case of common murres, they’ve flourished because of that rugged natural shield.

Prince Island, a small, 40-acre islet just a half mile northeast of San Miguel Island | Photo: Chuck Graham

Spreading Their Wings

In May 2022, aerial surveys commenced across the Channel Islands National Park to gauge seabird colonies. The last time was 30 years ago, and according to National Park Service wildlife biologist Dave Mazurkiewicz, it was an exciting time to be a seabird biologist. From a helicopter, Mazurkiewicz and his team discovered that common murres had greatly expanded their nesting colonies to include nearby Harris Point, a wave-battered rocky finger on the northwest end of San Miguel Island.

“We picked up the colonization of Harris in the aerial flights we conducted park-wide in 2022,” said Mazurkiewicz, who has monitored seabirds at the park since 2006. “We had funding to survey across the park islands for all surface nesting species. There had been some aerial surveys for cormorants contracted by USFWS [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service] that picked up [common murre] numbers here and there for Prince Island since 2011, so we had some data here and there over the years since the recolonization. The Harris expansion we believe to be recent, as those other surveys did cover SMI [San Miguel Island] proper as well.”

A Common Murres on San Miguel Island | Photo: Chuck Graham

From that survey, they estimated 1,204 common murres between the two colonies. Prince Island still held most of the nests. At Harris Point, common murres were sharing their nesting site with Brandt’s cormorants.

“They are in the half-moon cove that is on the west side of Harris,” continued Mazurkiewicz. “Murres were not detected at any other islands in our surveys.”

The west side of Harris Point is another extremely exposed part of the island. Despite that exposure, common murres thrive in those types of sea conditions. Another aerial survey took place in July 2024. Seabird biologist Phil Capitolo from UC Santa Cruz counted at least 2,000 murres, nearly doubling the 2022 numbers.

If you build it, they will come, but in the case of common murres, their habitat was already there. They just took their time reclaiming it.