Three-quarters of the Bermuda staff of XL Capital Ltd. took a day off their normal jobs yesterday to donate their time and effort to some community projects.

Their efforts were part of the business insurer's fourth annual Global Day of Giving, which this year entailed more than 2,200 employees working on close to 200 projects around the world.

In Bermuda, XL staff worked on 13 projects from one end of the island to the other. The projects included:

• Working on various activities at the Bermuda Aquarium & Zoo, such as painting of the Wallaby Wall, clearing and replanting of the Turtle Pool Garden, and clearing out and replanting a garden by the peacock's pantry

• Excavating a tunnel at the old Casemates barracks in Dockyard. The tunnel was discovered by XL employees during last year's Global Day of Giving

• Cleaning, painting, and gardening at the Windreach Recreational Village in Warwick

• Clearing non-native flora and planting endemics at Cooper's Island in St. Georges

• Washing, chopping and preparing vegetables as well as serving up food in special trays under the guidance of the dietitian at Meals on Wheels and helping with cleaning up at the facility and delivering meals.

XL chief executive officer Michael McGavick said: "We at XL are more than willing to spend a day giving our time, energy and expertise to those causes and organisations that sustain the communities in which we live and work."