UK's wetland birds feeling the heat
Overall numbers of ducks, geese, swans and wading birds spending winter in the UK have doubled since the 1970s, according to a new report, but the winter numbers of seven other species are in decline.
The report, The State of the UK’s Birds 2006, which was produced by a consortium of conservation organisations, including the British Trust for Ornithology and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), states that the populations of 39 species of waterbirds, particularly the black-tailed godwit and the avocet, have grown significantly in the past three decades, largely as a result of conservation efforts. In contrast, seven other regular visitors, including the shelduck, mallard and turnstone, are declining. The precise reasons for their decline varies depending upon the species, but a common theme, says the report, appears to be climate change.
Every winter, more than five million birds fly to Britain and Ireland from northern Europe, Greenland, Siberia and Arctic Canada, enticed by the relatively mild climate and ice-free conditions. But it appears that some birds no longer need to fly as far to enjoy their preferred conditions.
‘The UK has had both the perfect climate and perfect habitats for these birds, but the evidence is growing that climate change is starting to bite,’ said Dr Mark Avery, the RSPB’s conservation director.
October 2007
The report, The State of the UK’s Birds 2006, which was produced by a consortium of conservation organisations, including the British Trust for Ornithology and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), states that the populations of 39 species of waterbirds, particularly the black-tailed godwit and the avocet, have grown significantly in the past three decades, largely as a result of conservation efforts. In contrast, seven other regular visitors, including the shelduck, mallard and turnstone, are declining. The precise reasons for their decline varies depending upon the species, but a common theme, says the report, appears to be climate change.
Every winter, more than five million birds fly to Britain and Ireland from northern Europe, Greenland, Siberia and Arctic Canada, enticed by the relatively mild climate and ice-free conditions. But it appears that some birds no longer need to fly as far to enjoy their preferred conditions.
‘The UK has had both the perfect climate and perfect habitats for these birds, but the evidence is growing that climate change is starting to bite,’ said Dr Mark Avery, the RSPB’s conservation director.
October 2007
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