Ninety-three miles off the Scottish coast, the Buchan Alpha oil rig is a desert of steel and salt spray.
But just the other day, the crew spotted two ears twitching against the gray horizon.
Two rabbits were sprinting across the helideck.
The rig sits far from land, surrounded by nothing but the ocean. No ships nearby. No obvious way for animals to survive.
Then, just as the shock began to settle, a third animal was found.
And the way this rabbit was discovered raised even more questions. How can land animals reach such an isolated part of the world?
How a hare-raising discovery was made in the open ocean
The North Sea is a graveyard for land mammals, yet these creatures were bone-dry.
Biologically, rabbits can only swim short distances in calm water.
They didn’t fall from the sky. They didn’t swim. Yet, they were darting between heavy machinery with a chilling lack of fear.
How could two rabbits reach an oil rig almost 100 miles from the shore?
The crew stepped in to capture and protect the animals.
But a lingering question remained that needed answers. How did two rabbits end up on this Scottish oil rig in the sea?
A noticeable trail that left no footprints or evidence
Initially, this odd happening looked like a one-off.
Energy projects have been found to attract birds and marine life. But rabbits?
While the first two rabbits played on deck, the rig’s internal sensors began to glitch.
Deep within the ‘Moonpool’—the rig’s central opening to the sea—the crew found the third.
Unlike the first two, this rabbit wasn’t playing. It was guarding a narrow maintenance shaft, staring into the dark with wide, unblinking eyes.
It had been on the rig much longer than the others.
Not out in the open like the others.
This rabbit was tucked away in a tight and concealed part of the structure.
Like it had been there the whole time. That specific detail changed everything.
If one had been hiding all along, could there have been more? It seems energy projects are attracting species that certainly shouldn’t be there.
The timing of the third rabbit raised even more questions for the crew.
Why had it not appeared earlier, like the other two?
The crew began to search the rig more extensively. They realized this wasn’t about animals wandering in.
Something had obviously brought them here. But what? Or perhaps whom?
What could transport land animals to such an isolated part of the world?
Captain, we have found several stowaways on board this ship
The ocean hides a world of strange creatures. But how could it hide bunnies?
The SSPCA (Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) tracked a supply barge that left the Port of Aberdeen three days prior.
Logistics logs show a container of specialized drilling equipment was left open for six hours during a night shift.
But a container only explains a ride; it doesn’t explain how the third rabbit survived the vibration of a 2,000-horsepower forklift.
This particular container was transported from Aberdeen to be loaded onto a vessel headed to the oil rig.
Which explains how the first two got there. But what about the third?
It turns out the third was hiding inside a forklift compartment.
The mystery of the third rabbit’s strange behavior was solved at the vet clinic. It hadn’t been acting strangely out of fear—it was protecting a nest.
The ‘stowaway’ was a mother who had given birth during the 100-mile transit.
The first two rabbits were her older kits, lured out by the sun, while she stayed behind in the forklift bay to protect her newest litter.
They survived on nothing but hydraulic grease and condensation.
All three are now being rehabilitated at a wildlife center in Fishcross.
The need for energy has come with a few unexpected implications for wildlife.
A simple oil venture ended up hiding three ‘alien’ rabbits.