Nigel ‘no mates’ dies alone but for his fake love

A lonely gannet named Nigel has died on a New Zealand island surrounded by fake birds after years of solitude.

Nigel “no mates” was initially the only gannet conservationists managed to attract to Mana Island, a reserve off the west coast of Wellington, in 2015 using a colony of 80 concrete birds. It fell in love with one of the fake birds, even building his “partner” a nest from dirt and seaweed. Nigel’s body was found next to his concrete partner this week by Chris Bell, a ranger.