Sad mystery of elastic bands found on remote Cornish island solved

Seabird conservationists perplexed by discoveries on Mullion island work out depressing explanation

There isn't a lot to Mullion island, a jagged outcrop of volcanic rock that rises out of a crystal-clear sea just off the Cornish coast. Nobody lives on the island and visitors need a permit to land.

So when conservationists who occasionally paddle across on kayaks to carry out seabird surveys began spotting brightly coloured elastic bands - thousands of them - there was a little bit of head-scratching.