Iceland: Lundey Island (Puffin) declared protected area in Iceland

NordenBladet — The Environment Minister of Iceland, Guðmundur Ingi Guðbrandsson, has announced that Lundey Island off the north coast of Reykjavík has been declared a protected area due to the ten thousand seabird pairs that nest on the island every year.

Lundey joins the declaration of protected areas alongside its neighbors within Reykjavík’s Kollafjörður fjord, including Engey, Viðey, Þerney, and Akurey. These islands are already on the Nature Conservation Register, with the latter declared as a protected area in 2019. Once inhabited by people, this collection of islands now host a variety of bird and plant life.

“Akurey in Kollafjörður was the first area to be protected in a protection campaign that I launched in 2018 and now it’s time for her sister, Lundey,” explained Guðbrandsson.

Lundey is playfully nicknamed as puffin island as puffins are the prominent species that breed there, while kittiwakes, black guillemots, and eider ducks are also residing on the island. Plantlife, including common meadow grass, green sorrel, arctic fescue, and meadow buttercup, also call the island home.

Guðbrandsson comments, “It’s appropriately named, as the island is an important breeding and nesting area for puffins, which are under threat, and the protection is part of protecting the species here in Iceland.”