Report reveals trends for waterbirds in the UK

The report "Waterbirds in the UK 2007/08" produced by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), in association with the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) highlights trends for wintering waterbirds in Great Britain and Northern Ireland over the last decade.

The report covering 50 waterbirds (excluding gulls) shows there have been some very dramatic changes over the last decade. The birds faring the worst in the UK, compared with a decade ago, include: Ringed Plover; Pochard; Bar-tailed Godwit; and the Greenland White-fronted Goose. The five species recording the greatest increases over the period include: Little Egret; Whooper Swan; Black-tailed Godwit; Avocet and the Greenland Barnacle Goose.

Potential factors causing the change in numbers include the subtle responses of waterbirds to the effects of milder winters due to recent climate change, the recruitment of juvenile birds to the population (affected by the level of breeding productivity), to more tangible effects of pressures such as habitat loss, degradation and disturbance.

The United Kingdom is of outstanding international importance for waterbirds. Lying on some of the major flyways for Arctic-nesting species, large numbers of waterbirds are attracted, especially during winter, by the relatively mild climate and extensive areas of wetland, notably estuaries.

In the press release issued by the RSPB, David Stroud, Senior Ornithologist at the JNCC and co-author of the report, is quoted as saying: “The UK has been working with Greenland, Iceland and Ireland to develop an international action plan for Greenland White-fronted Geese under the Agreement on the conservation of African-Eurasian migratory waterbirds (AEWA). AEWA provides a legal framework for countries to work together to conserve such waterbirds that move between many countries in the course of their annual migratory cycle. The monitoring data from WeBS are essential to enable the UK to fulfil its obligations under AEWA and other international treaties.”

The Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) on which the report is based, is a joint scheme of the BTO, WWT, RSPB and the JNCC to monitor non-breeding waterbirds in the UK. The principal aims of the scheme are to identify population sizes, determine trends in numbers and distribution, and identify important sites for waterbirds in the UK. The scheme is based on the fieldwork of around 3000 bird surveyors participating in synchronised monthly counts at wetlands, including estuaries, marshes, lakes and reservoirs, across the UK each year.

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