A new off road Polaris Ranger vehicle has been delivered to the Calf of Man, and it will be used by the estate warden and ornithological warden to carry out their duties.
Previously, wardens Harry Savage and Judit Mateos used a quad bike to survey the area, but this was coming to the end of its life, said properties manager at Manx National Heritage Shaun Murphy.
They decided to replace it with the Polaris Ranger because – being enclosed, with seat belts and a roll bar – it affords greater protection if there’s an accident in the rough terrain it is required to cover.
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The Friends of MNH donated the £13,500 for its purchase for which MNH is very grateful.
‘It will be used for a mixture of things,’ said Shaun. ‘The transporting of guests and luggage from the boats, estate maintenance work, also by the bird warden. It’s got the capability of being able to go off the beaten track’.
There are around 33 species of birds breeding annually and the Calf is located on one of western Britain’s major migration route.
They include Manx shearwater, which once occupied the island in large numbers, but they declined catastrophically following the arrival of longtails believed to have come off a ship wrecked off the coast in 1781. Their numbers this year are of particular interest as MNH carried out a major operation to rid the island of its main predator, the longtail.
Bird warden Judit, who is Spanish, will be using the Polaris Ranger to access burrows and assess if shearwater númbers have improved.
The new vehicle is also good news for visitors who can stay in self-catered hostel standard accommodation (which must be pre-booked) in the Calf, they will benefit from being conveyed in far greater comfort from the harbour to the conservatory.