PEMBROKESHIRE’s puffin population has taken a dramatic hit, following last winter’s harsh storms.

Around 5,000 puffins are believed to have died during the last year – roughly a quarter of the puffins on Skomer and Skokholm islands.

Dr Matt Wood, from the University of Gloucestershire, said this had been the worst year for puffins on Skomer, since records began in 1972.

And the long-term effects of the bad weather are still to be seen.

Earlier this year, around 50,000 seabirds - including puffins, guillemots and razorbills - were washed ashore across the UK and western Europe in just a few days.

Most were in a severely emaciated state – having basically starved as storm after storm prevented them from catching enough fish to eat.

Lyndsey Maiden, of The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, said this figure would also have included a lot of younger birds, who aren’t equipped with the skills needed to survive in tough conditions.

Added to the unknown numbers that died out at sea, this was the biggest seabird wreck recorded in Europe, and has worrying long-term implications.

Puffins can live for up to 40 years, but only return to Pembrokeshire about once every three years, which means it will be several years before the effect on breeding can be seen.

Dr Wood said: “The effects of the recent seabird wreck will only become clear over the next five to ten years.”

He added that long-term studies were vital to understanding how populations will cope in the long-term.

“The long-term seabird studies on Skomer are an amazing resource. One of the puffins that was still around until recently was first seen in 1973, the year I was born,” said Dr Wood.

“With studies like this, with birds we know and study as individuals, we can understand how populations work in the detail we need to face the challenges of the future.

“Will more storms impact seabird populations? I’d say ‘probably, yes’, but it’ll take us years to get a true picture of what happened in 2014, and only long-term monitoring at key sites like Skomer can provide reliable answers to questions like that.”