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Wardens “reintegrate” back into society 12.09.14

BIRDWATCHERS have described how they've had to get "reintegrate" back into society after spending the entire summer on an Irish island smaller than a football pitch.
Brian Burke and Donnacha Woods stayed on the uninhabited Rockabill Island seven kilometres off the north Dublin coast from May to August.
The BirdWatch Ireland castaways got a salary of €400 a week and free but very basic accommodation.
Rockabill wardens Brian left and Donnacha.
Brian from Co Roscommon and Wicklow's Donnacha left the island last month and returned to their mainland lives with some trepidation.
"We allowed ourselves a week's rest to try and reintegrate ourselves into society - meeting people, seeing stuff like cars and crows for the first time in months," said Brian.
They also relished "eating proper food, the luxury of electricity, and the unfamiliar feeling of walking around with little or no risk of being attacked by common terns".
The two wildlife conservationists/zoologists are now compiling their final report for the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Sunrise on Rockabill. Photo by Brian Burke courtesy of BirdWatch Ireland.
After that, they will be job-hunting and hope their unique work experience on Rockabill will considerably boost their prospects.
Meanwhile, their final survey shows a new record high for the numbers of the endangered roseate tern breeding on the island.
They counted 1,250 breeding pairs of roseate tern this season - an increase of about 50 pairs since last year. Roseate terns only numbered 180 pairs when the BirdWatch Ireland programme first began in 1989.
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