Nigel fell in love with a concrete seagull and cared for it daily, showering it with affection because this seabird was so lonely.
Nigel is a seagull living in the waters of New Zealand. Over the years, Nigel earned a rather unfortunate title: the loneliest bird in the world.
In 2015, Nigel was invited by humans to Mana Island. At that time, local authorities harbored hopes of attracting seabirds back to New Zealand. Seabirds are the largest birds in the North Atlantic, with wingspans reaching up to 2 meters. While they can be found in the southern hemisphere, they are incredibly rare. To lure the seabirds to New Zealand, decoys made of realistic-looking concrete birds were placed on cliffs, equipped with speakers emitting the calls of this species.
Nigel – the seagull “tricked” into the South.
Nigel accepted the invitation and arrived in New Zealand in 2015 as the first seabird on the island in 40 years. However, none of Nigel’s kin accompanied him.
Months went by, and Nigel remained alone on the island, alongside 80 fake birds. He would never find any real companions, having become trapped there. Perhaps Nigel himself chose to stay in New Zealand rather than fly back home.
Nigel developed an affection for one of the 80 decoys. He even built a nest for his beloved. There were thousands of recorded moments of “the loneliest bird in the world” tenderly preening the cold concrete feathers of his “lady love”. Nigel communicated and interacted with the concrete bird as if he truly believed it was a real seagull with emotions, reciprocating his feelings.
Nigel loved a concrete bird until death.
In February 2018, Nigel – the loneliest bird in the world died. He passed away right next to the concrete bird in his unreciprocated love nest. He left this world thousands of kilometers from his homeland. The bright orange-yellow feathers on Nigel’s head still glimmered in the sunlight of the island.
“Whether he felt lonely or not, it’s certain that Nigel would never return home, and that must have been a very strange experience. I think we all empathize with him because he faced this quite hopeless situation,” shared Chris Bell, a conservation ranger who also lived on the island.
As the story of the lonely seabird’s enduring unrequited love was reported in the media, Nigel gained a considerable following. Mana is a scientific reserve in New Zealand. Thanks to Nigel, this place attracted a good number of tourists. People wanted to visit to meet Nigel and keep him company for a while.
In fact, over the years, another seabird did come to visit Nigel. Its name was Norman, but being male, it couldn’t pair with Nigel. Norman only stopped by Mana Island briefly in 2017 before flying back north.
New Zealand’s project continues.
Perhaps the saddest part of this story is that immediately after Nigel died, three other seabirds arrived to settle in Mana, after conservation officials adjusted the sound system used to attract them.
“This feels like a wrong ending to the story. Nigel died just before the miracle happened,” Bell said.
However, Nigel, known as “the lonely bird without a mate,” will forever be remembered as a pioneering figure who signaled to the new trio that Mana was a suitable habitat.
