Lundy: Lockdown puts island reserve at 'acute risk'

Grey seals are a common sight off Lundy Island

Coronavirus has crippled the finances of an island nature reserve, creating an "acute risk" for the island's future, managers have said.

Landmark Trust, which leases Lundy, 12 miles off Devon, said its 14-week closure had been a "devastating financial blow".

Cash reserves had been significantly hit, jeopardising future conservation works, it said.

The island is home to 28 members of staff.

It supports a further 15 jobs on the mainland and works with about 200 local businesses and suppliers in North Devon

Lundy Island is managed by the Landmark Trust

Lundy is also home to rare species of birds including puffins and Manx shearwaters, insects, marine life and plants, as well as being the site of 43 scheduled monuments and many major archaeological sites.

The island, which is owned by the National Trust, would usually get about 20,000 visitors a year, but it was shut for more than three months from 23 March because of Covid-19 and the lockdown.

Derek Green, Lundy's general manager, said those who lived on the island "work tirelessly throughout the year to conserve the habitats and historic structures which make the island so special".

Puffins are among the wild birds that flock to Lundy

The National Lottery Heritage Fund had granted Lundy £250,000 from its emergency fund, but it "will only go so far", Mr Green said.

The Landmark Trust has launched an appeal to "help secure the future for the island, and its way of life, that tens of thousands of visitors know and love".

Mr Green said: "In these extremely difficult and challenging times, we don't ask for help lightly but every donation to our urgent appeal will help secure the future for the island."

Island warden Dean Woodfin Jones said: "It is vital that we continue to protect the island's unique habitats, and that our conservation and education programmes can continue to inspire future generations of conservationists."