First Steps towards a Flyway Action Plan for Population of Bewick's Swan taken in Saint Petersburg

This population of the Bewick’s Swan, which breeds in the Russian Arctic and spends the northern winter in NW Europe, has declined by almost 40% since the mid 1990s (according to the data from the International Waterbird Census).

The workshop was jointly organized by Wetlands International, the WI-IUCN SSC Swan Specialist Group and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (UK) and was hosted by Lenoble Priroda (the local project partner in Saint Petersburg). The workshop was made possible through a BBI Matra project funded by the Dutch Government (LNV) and lead by Dienst Landelijk Gebied (DLG) - Land and Water Management Service of LNV.

Based on the results of the workshop, Wetlands International will develop a Flyway Population Action Plan and submit it for approval to the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA), which will trigger further coordinated actions led by the WI-IUCN SSC Swan Specialist Group in collaboration with the relevant governmental organisations, research institutes and non-governmental organisations.

For more information please see:

• Full Wetlands International Announcement: The first steps towards a flyway action plan for the North-West European Population of Bewick’s Swan
• Swan Specialist Group Website