Residents will have an opportunity to tour and learn more about the history of Nonsuch Island this month.

The Bermuda Zoological Society is offering an educational cruise to the island on November 6 to discover more about its rich history.

“This is a great opportunity for locals and visitors to Bermuda to get a chance to tour this biodiverse sanctuary, which strictly limits public access,” the charity said in a Facebook post.

The tour, which will be led by Jeremy Madeiros, a government terrestrial officer, will begin at Flatts Dock, at the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo, aboard the MV Endurance from noon, with the vessel scheduled to return at 5pm.

Information will focus on the history and restoration work carried out on the island by the BZS and attendees will also have an opportunity to learn more about the cahow, one of Bermuda’s rare seabirds.

Cahows have begun to return to the island, marking an early start to the 2025 nesting season.

According to Nonsuch Expeditions, the popular CahowCam livestream recorded a cahow returning to its burrow on Nonsuch Island on the evening of October 23, followed a few hours later by its mate.

The Nonsuch Expeditions blog said: “Historically the cahows did not return for the month-long courtship, mating and nest-building period until November.

“However, with global warming, they are returning earlier and earlier with record numbers already back at the colony thus far.

“Stay tuned for another record-breaking season. This season’s internet access is being provided by Digicel, who we thank for their support.”

The BZS said that depending on conditions, there is a chance that the birds will be spotted during the upcoming tour.

It said that a similar tour, led by Mr Madeiros, will be held on November 23.

Meanwhile, the BZS will team up with the Bermuda Audubon Society to offer additional cruise tours during November aimed at educating visitors about the cahow.

On November 9 and November 30, visitors will board the MV Endurance, which will take them off South Shore beyond Cooper's Point to see where the birds are known to gather.

Miguel Mejías, an ornithologist, will guide the tours.

Mr Mejías said the tours offer people “a rare chance” to photograph the cahows at sea.

He said: “We usually observe these birds a few miles off of Cooper's Point.

“These acrobatic fliers use wind energy to rapidly ascend several feet above the ocean waves, quickly turn and pause at the apex of their climb.

“They then descend back slowly above the ocean waves, spectacles that commonly take place about ten feet from our vessel.”

He added: “As many as a dozen may be seen performing the dynamic soaring, either singly, or in synchronous pairs or trios.”

Cahows, also known as the Bermuda petrel, were largely wiped out by introduced predators and hunting by early English colonists. By the 1620s, the species was believed to be extinct.

However, it was rediscovered in 1951, with a handful of the birds found nesting on four rarely visited rocky islets, sparking efforts to rebuild the population.

As part of the project, man-made burrows were created on Nonsuch Island, with chicks translocated to the island in the hope that they would return to it as adults.

The project has borne fruit, with a growing number of birds fledging on the island and, for the first time since the 1620s, a cahow couple last year successfully dug their own burrow and raised a chick inside it.

A total of 76 cahow chicks successfully fledged this year, just short of the record 78 chicks fledged in 2021, with 25 fledging from the Nonsuch colony.

• To learn more about the BZS tour events, visitbamz.resqwest.com/web