Meet the New BNB Coordinator

Blog by Marie Dipple, RSPB Beach Nesting Bird Coordinator

The journey begins…! 
I am thrilled to introduce myself as the new Beach Nesting Bird Coordinator, working on the Life on The Edge (LOTE) project, taking over from the brilliant Lizzie Bruce. With 8 years in the conservation sector, and experience as a little tern warden at Chesil Beach in Dorset and Gronant Dunes in North Wales, I am eager to apply the knowledge I've gained in my career so far to this new role. 

Having worked on coastal restoration projects, building partnerships, and contributing to nature recovery strategies, I've learned invaluable lessons from my colleagues and fellow enthusiasts. Following in Lizzie's footsteps, I am determined to continue the great work already achieved and continue building relationships with existing partners and exploring new opportunities. The LOTE project wraps up this year, and I'm excited to be part of the culmination of efforts from our team as well as the dedicated project partners. Although in saying this, I realise I don’t want to be seen taking credit too soon, as I’ve conveniently come in as the reports are being written… 

In my first two weeks, I've already seen the immense dedication of reserves staff, volunteers, managers, and stakeholders towards beach nesting bird recovery in England. Collaborating closely with my LOTE colleagues, I've enjoyed diving into breeding data, case studies, and reports on species like terns, gulls, ringed plover, oystercatcher, and redshank. These birds depend on effective coastal and marine habitat management, and through adaptive management and sharing best practices, we can implement the most appropriate conservation measures.

Watch this space for this work developing! There will be some exciting outputs to follow.  

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I hope this role promises to challenge me, inspire growth, and allows me to work with incredible people. So far, it has absolutely delivered on the latter! I love connecting with people and am keen to collaborate with new and existing partners and stakeholders to drive this work forward; to halt species decline and promote recovery. Here's to new beginnings, and the exciting path ahead! 
 

Photo Credits: Marie Dipple