Predatory feral ferrets removed from an island for the first time ever

The invasive, non-native ferrets were believed to have been let loose on to the picturesque island off the Antrim coast in the 1980s in a bid to reduce its wild rabbit population. Photograph: Life on white/Alamy

Predatory feral ferrets have been removed from an island for the first time ever, in a boost for Northern Ireland’s largest seabird colony.

Rathlin Island is ferret-free after a £4.5m five-year partnership led by RSPB NI involving islanders, charities, volunteers and a red labrador called Woody.