[3] The soils, developed from the underlying basalt and slate, has been highly manured by bird droppings, rich in nitrogen and phosphate, and sea beet (Beta vulgaris subsp maritima) and tree mallow (Lavatera arborea) are the dominant plants.

[4] Great black-backed gull (Larus marinus) breed on the island, along with common guillemot (Uria aalge), Eurasian oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus) and possibly razorbill (Alca torda).

European shag (Gulosus aristotelis) and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) were also on the island during a visit by West Cornwall Ringing Group on 16 June 2015.

[5] A visit by National Trust rangers in 2019 found the island littered with thousands of elastic bands.

It is thought that the gulls mistake the bands for food while feeding in fields on the mainland and are later regurgitated by birds roosting on the island.