Blog by Rebekah Watts, Cumbria Wildlife Trust Foulney Island Warden Why is Foulney important? Foulney Island Nature Reserve is comprised of a shingle spit within Morecambe Bay SPA connected (via manmade causeway) to the mainland. The reserve is home to several wintering bird species such as knot, dunlin and wigeon and is an important breeding location in the spring and summer for shorebirds such little terns, Arctic terns, ringed plovers and oyster catchers as well as other bird species such as pied wagtails, meadow pipits, eiders and skylarks. The terns that choose Foulney as their nesting grounds are protected species and they are in decline. It is so important to offer them a safe place to lay their eggs and raise their chicks as they are easily disturbed by human recreational activities, dogs, aerial and ground predators (such as sparrowhawks and foxes). Their nests are vulnerable as they nest where there are no visual obstructions to allow them to watch for predators but this means that they nest out in the open, making their chicks and eggs susceptible to predation. Their eggs are at risk of being trampled by people, as their camouflage is very successful. Terns nest on shingle and require close access to the sea to feed. That’s what makes Foulney the perfect place for them. Terns return to the same colony to breed in most cases and Arctic tern travel 22,000 miles on their migration. This special little island hosts these incredible birds and it needs to be protected. Breeding Season Preparation Preparation for breeding season on Foulney Island is an intense operation! For this year, the main island was turf stripped to provide extra habitat for shore nesting birds. This new shingle area was fenced off to protect the birds using it to raise their young, from ground predators such as foxes, rats and hedgehogs. Turf stripping involves the removal of the top layer of vegetation and in this case, changing the habitat to shingle. The vegetation was then buried beneath the layer of shingle. This area has been used this season by eiders, ringed plovers and oyster catchers who’s chicks began hatching recently, proving the success of the change in habitat! Skylarks and meadow pipits also benefited from the ground predator protection in this area as they too nested here, inside the fence on the edge of the shingle where vegetation remains. In preparation for the electric fence the vegetation was strimmed. Insulator stakes were knocked into the ground and electric wires passed through the insulators. To prepare the public, signs were put up in the carpark, the causeway and on the island stating that dogs are not allowed and explaining why, and the rope fence to fence off the beach area, where the birds nest, was put up. Lastly, the caravan was put in place. Then it was time to begin surveying! Warden life on Foulney Hi! I’m Bekka, and I’m this year’s seasonal warden on Foulney island nature reserve. This beautiful little island reserve is home to many species of breeding birds over the summer including oystercatchers, ringed plovers, eider ducks and little terns. In addition to the birds, the island is home to and visited by mammals such as grey seals and voles; as well as insects such as butterflies and moths. Sharing an island with such beautiful wildlife is an amazing experience. Being the only person living on an island might seem lonely, but I have plenty of fishermen to chat to, and of course the wildlife! During the season I have been lucky enough to experience finding nests and watching parents lovingly incubate their eggs, and have watched eggs hatch into beautiful chicks. Watching eider females with crèches of up to 30 ducklings swimming across the water and oyster catcher parents leading their chicks across the shingle are sights that will never get old. As the warden, I spend my time monitoring eggs, chicks and adults, checking trail cameras and engaging with and educating the public. Explaining to the pubic the importance of reducing disturbance to nesting birds is an extremely vital part of my job. The natural threat response in nesting shorebirds is triggered by the public and their recreational activities, especially when dogs are involved. When threatened, shorebirds are forced to flee, leaving eggs and chicks vulnerable to predation, and forcing the adult bird to expend energy which should be used in incubation or finding food. In the worst case, an out of control dog can kill shorebirds, which unfortunately occurred on Foulney this season. It is so important that our shorebirds are protected. We all have our part to play! Now that chicks are hatching we are well into the season. Fingers crossed that all goes well here on Foulney island!
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Hello, my name is Mark Appleton and work as Beach Nesting Bird Project Officer along the Solent. I joined the RSPB in this role, this March 2023. So, what does a Beach Nesting Bird Project Officer do? I will attempt to explain some of the tasks I have undertaken so far. Thanks to the LIFE Programme (LIFE on the Edge) and the Solent Seascape Project, I was recruited to help change the fortunes of shore nesting birds on multiple sites, both on and off natures reserves across the Solent. This even includes working at the Browndown Military Training site. The area of Solent that I am responsible for ranges from Hurst Spit on the Western Solent to Pagham harbour on the Eastern Solent. Spread out across the Solent’s shingle and saltmarsh coasts, a diverse range of coastal ground-nesting birds make their home each summer. Ringed Plover, Oystercatcher and Little Tern regularly attempt nesting on our shingle beaches looking for new sites each year to raise a new generation as well as returning to old favourites. At the time of writing, we are in the very busy period where all our beach nesting birds are beginning to hatch, and a lot of my time is spent monitoring and trying to protect them Dense colonies of Sandwich Tern, Black-headed gull and Mediterranean Gulls take advantage of the water surrounded shingle and saltmarsh islands whilst common tern use a mixture of sites varying from man made structures to secluded shores. All these species are facing the growing challenge of fitting in on our very busy coasts. That’s where we are aiming to make a difference. I have been involved in the creation and deployment of these manmade structures, rafts for the common terns, working both with the RSPB Pagham wardens and volunteers to implement. Another part of the role is to develop, empower and support teams of volunteers to deliver shore nesting bird protection. Both the RSPB Pagham volunteers and RSPB Gunner point volunteers have been essential in providing support. Without them a lot of the jobs would not get done. At Hayling Island Gunner point this year we have continued developing the Ringed Plover Project that was set up by local conservationist Trevor Codlin. With the help of volunteers, we have cordoned off a section of the beach with mesh fencing to give Ringed Plover space to nest and bring up their chicks free from human and dog disturbance. The volunteers helped to install the fencing and regularly patrol the area to educate, raise awareness and inform visitors about how we can help Ringed Plover here by giving them lots of space and keeping away from fenced off areas so they can incubate their eggs without nest failures. I have created a Whatsapp group for the project so we can all provide each other updates on patrols and monitoring results. At the time of writing, we have had 3 successful nests with a total of 8 chicks with 2 very close to fledging. Unfortunately, our Ringed Plovers cant read and one family regularly wonders outside the fence. Only this week a dog was seen chasing the family and was only saved by the adult male luring the dog away by flying along the beach with the dog in close pursuit. This is why our brilliant volunteers are so important in raising awareness. To support our volunteer rangers I have created signage, a periodical update board and leaflets to inform the public. Deploying and creating signage is a very important part of the role as areas of prime nesting area need protecting Monitoring of breeding Ringed Plovers has identified that predation is one of the main factors in preventing hatching success. High levels of predation are likely to be exacerbated due to loss of good quality habitat, rising sea levels, and increasing human disturbance which could be resulting in birds nesting in sub optimal conditions and closer together. This year I have been part of the RSPB scientific study to test the effectiveness of nest cages on the hatching success of beach-nesting Ringed Plovers. So far the results are very encouraging and trail camera footage has shown protection from foxes, carrion crows, dogs, kestrel and even a tawny owl. An important part of the role is to continue building partnerships across a broad range of organizations so that we collaborate and achieve optimum success in trying to help nature. I try to provide updates and communication between organizations to achieve this and collaboration has include RSPB Pagham, Natural England at North Solent Nature Reserve, Hampshire Countryside Service at Lymington and Keyhaven Nature Reserve and Hook with Warsash , Browndown Military Training camp and many amazing volunteers. I hope this gives a flavour of some of the tasks involved with the role. If I had to summarise the role I would say: -
Buckler’s Hard Website: https://www.bucklershard.co.uk/events/conservation-awareness-day/ Facebook: https://fb.me/e/3h8QvEutw
Happy summer holidays but please remember to look out for our beach nesting birds and give them lots of space with dogs under close control 😊 Thank you for reading Mark My name is Jessie, and I’m this year’s seasonal warden at Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s South Walney Nature Reserve. South Walney is a beautiful reserve that I feel very lucky to be calling home this summer, and it’s a home I share with a lot of amazing wildlife. Whether it’s intently scanning our shingle beaches for the nests of ringed plover or oystercatcher, counting the hundreds of eider duck that roost here at high tide or chatting to visitors, there’s plenty to keep me busy here. I’m employed by Cumbria Wildlife Trust, but my job is a part of the Life On The Edge (LOTE) project, an EU funded project lead by the RPSB. LOTE is dedicated to understanding, monitoring and improving the quality of coastal habitats, with a particular focus on oystercatcher, ringed plover and little tern. Engaging with visitors and reducing the impact of visitor disturbance on nesting birds is one of the most important parts of this, which can include keeping people away from the most important nesting areas and strict rules on dogs. All of our breeding shorebirds are very vulnerable to disturbance, as although their incredibly camouflaged nests provide excellent protection from predators it also means that people don’t notice them and can very easily step on them. Sadly, dogs are also a threat – even the most well-behaved dog will be seen as a predator by a nesting bird, and repeated encounters with dogs can cause birds to abandon their nest. In the worst cases, out of control dogs can actually attack or even kill wild birds, although this is rare. All breeding birds are protected under UK law, so we all have a duty to do our bit to protect them where we can! Here at South Walney we don’t allow any dogs (except assistance dogs) and there is no public access to the beach, and this goes a long way to protecting the beautiful wildlife that calls this place home. The best part of my job has to be nest surveying. I have to scan far ahead of me on the beach for any signs of nesting or territorial birds, and be incredibly careful where I walk to avoid stepping on the very thing I’m looking for – eggs perfectly disguised as pebbles. These may be the eggs of oystercatcher – unmistakable with their black and white plumage and vivid orange bills – or of ringed plover – looking a little like a forgotten member of the Incredibles with their distinctive black mask. Nest finding requires patience, a keen eye and keeping on constant alert for the slightest movement or the faintest alarm call from a nearby ringed plover. Although I have to say oystercatcher alarm calls are never exactly faint, and often I find myself being shouted at by an oystercatcher 200m away that I hadn’t even noticed yet! In the last week I have been lucky enough to find 3 little tern nests. Little terns are the UK’s smallest breeding tern, with a bright yellow bill and a very distinctive chirping call. Like many seabirds, they migrate from Africa to Europe every spring to breed, and will return there again in the autumn. I’m very excited to have them breeding here at South Walney and will be crossing my fingers for a successful breeding season! Stay posted for regular updates from me and if you’re visiting you may see me out and about – come and say hi! By Audrey Jost - Assistant Warden at RSPB Seasalter Levels and Blean Woods May 2022 saw the completion of the habitat restoration works at Seasalter Levels. This massive project enabled the creation of 40 crossings/dams, 50 bunds/plugs, 20 islands and nearly 120,000 m2 of rills and scrapes, connected to waterways via culverts and elbow pipes. Over 2,000 m of ditches were restored and 3 trailer mounted water pumps were purchased to replace defective trash pumps, with solar pumps planned to be installed in 2023. 4,000 m of stock fencing and 3 new livestock corrals also were installed, allowing us to introduce large-scale grazing across the reserve. The addition of a bridge linking Alberta and Whitstable Bay Estate, in the north of the reserve further increased connectivity across the site. Spring brought colourful changes to the site as bunds and islands transformed from dark brown to bright yellow with the apparition of bulbous buttercups. This attracted lots of pollinators, with 365 bumblebees recorded by our volunteer surveyor in Alberta, our highest number since starting in 2018! The highlight of this survey was the record of 5 shrill carder bees, one of the UK’s rarest bumblebees. Several shrill carder bees were also spotted on the other side of the bridge in Whitstable Bay Estate, indicating that the species is slowly colonising the site. Unfortunately, we were unable to efficiently control water levels and flood fields this year due to the inability to obtain an abstraction licence. The licence acquisition is however planned for 2023, with a year’s worth of water levels, salinity and flow rates monitoring required by the Environment Agency. Despite all this, the breeding season at Seasalter Levels showed encouraging results, as a small part of the site retained rainwater naturally. Species that successfully bred on the reserve included lapwings, little grebes, pochards, shovelers and gadwalls! After breeding season was over, we carried out habitat management tasks, putting our new tractor into good use as we undertook topping across the site. Despite the site quickly drying out due to the drought and the impossibility of pumping, many different species visited the Levels throughout summer. They ranged from waders such as greenshank, redshank, green and common sandpipers to raptors such as hen harrier and hobby. Rarer birds such as purple heron and glossy ibis were also amongst the reserve’s visitors. We even had a surprise bittern in the reedbed! The remaining water pockets of the site are not to be outdone. The newly created shelf in the main ditch between Alberta and Whitstable Bay Estate is a good example where up to 30 little egrets are seen on a regular basis! If you’re lucky, you may even spot cattle egrets amongst them! 5 months after the official end of the habitat works, the restoration of Seasalter Levels is still a work in progress. Changes are definitely happening but it will take time for the reserve to become a fully functional wetland. Stay tuned for future updates!
Links to the previous blogs on the restoration of Seasalter Levels: Part One and Part Two By Will Bevan – Beach-Nesting Bird Field Officer in East Norfolk After spending last summer helping to protect the beach-nesting birds of East Norfolk, in April this year I was eagerly anticipating my return for another season. Being largely nocturnal in 2021, with my exploits as a night warden detailed on this blog, in 2022 I returned as a fully-fledged Field Officer. Our work covers three sites in East Norfolk and North Suffolk, with a team of dedicated volunteers and Field Officers working day and night over the breeding season to provide protection. Methods involve three sets of fencing (rope, electric, and poultry netting), signage, round the clock wardening, and public engagement and education on the beach and in the wider community. The focus is mainly on little terns, but this protection benefits other beach-nesting birds including ringed plovers, oystercatchers, and avocets. Little tern conservation is fraught with worry, as the odds seem to be stacked against them so heavily it is a wonder that any chicks fledge! Nesting in vulnerable spots on shingle beaches just above the tideline, they face numerous threats including human disturbance, dogs off leads, egg thieves, high tides and stormy weather (made worse by climate change), and predation from ground and aerial predators. Despite early disappointment last year with failures at two of our colony sites, mainly due to aerial predation pressure, the season ended up being a success overall with these failed birds moving to another site and re-laying, with around 137-216 fledglings leaving in mid-August. However, this was still just below the productivity target of 0.75 required to maintain or increase the population. This result also highlighted the importance of having several sites set up and ready to receive little terns which might fail elsewhere but have a second attempt at breeding in another location. With all this and stories from previous seasons in mind, it’s always a good idea not to raise hopes too high early in the season, as any number of things can go wrong. However, it was hard to not to be excited this year as the breeding got under way at the start of May. Whilst last year the terns took longer to prospect potential nest sites, eventually spreading out over all three of our protected colony areas, this year they settled in just one location. From our first egg being found on the 21st of May, just two weeks later we were counting around 300 active nests, making it the largest colony in the UK in 2022. This is compared to a peak count of 116 nests at the same site last year! The excitement started to spread as we realised that we might have a mega year on our hands. When managing several colonies there is always a difficult choice to be made because resources are limited, especially when it comes to the time of the volunteers and Field Officers. In many years the colony with the largest number of nests is prioritised as the one which receives the most protection, although a presence is still maintained at all sites. This is difficult because every breeding pair counts when it comes to little terns, with a potential for two or three fledglings which may live for two decades and have many more offspring over that lifespan. It was a relief this year to be able to put everything into one site, allowing us to have a more of a presence to deter predators and egg thieves, as well as to engage with the public on the beach. A cabin was brought down to the site for all our amenities, with solar powered lights for night shifts and a generator for charging equipment. This was a great place to get out of the weather, especially with the extreme heat we have had so far this year, as well as for observing the colony. From my experiences last year out at night in a tent, which flapped uneasily in the wind, the cabin made the night shifts almost luxurious in comparison. The first hatching date approached in mid-June with eager anticipation, as well as an increase in nerves. In previous years kestrels have been a large cause of mortality for younger chicks and fledglings, and on occasion decimated the colony. For example, a report from 2001 when the little terns nested at Great Yarmouth states that kestrels took a total of 526 chicks! Whilst we have been doing work on diversionary feeding to try and provide local kestrels with alternative food sources, a determined adult will continue to go after the terns despite our best efforts. The first tern chicks were sighted on the 14th of June and the weeks went by with only glimpses of kestrels, which luckily didn’t show interest in the colony. This did not stop the terns giving them hassle! A hobby started visiting regularly, trying to take adults and chicks, but the sheer number of little terns watching for predators and willing to mob them was enough to deter it on most occasions. This confidence lessened as the terns began to leave, and unfortunately for a few stragglers remaining towards the end of July, the hobby was much more successful. High spring tides can also be a challenge for the little terns, especially combined with strong north and easterly winds coming off the North Sea. Nests can be moved a small amount at a time, so long as we make sure to replicate the pattern of stones around the nest, but if the tide is high enough it can wipe out a large percentage of the colony. Luckily, we had no incidents where the nests were at risk this season, with the highest tides not coinciding with strong winds. Public engagement on the beach was also very positive this year, and this is a key part of our work in making people more aware of beach-nesting birds on the coast and educating them about responsible dog walking. I had some great conversations with those who knew about the birds already and many who were seeing them for the first time, and it was rewarding to be able to use scopes to allow adults and children to see the chicks up close. Dog owners were more than happy to put their pets on leads, showing that effective signage and friendly engagement can lead to positive behavioural changes. Little terns also need plentiful stocks of small fish in shallow water near to the colony, and this seemed to be no problem for them this year as they were constantly flying to and from the sea with fish for their growing young. It seemed like the stars aligned for this year’s season, and the full scale of what the terns had accomplished became apparent as the fledgling numbers built up on the shore. Our fledgling count was a whopping 585 on the 14th of July, and this is the lower estimate, with a potential for between 650- 700 leaving the site overall. This year was also productive for our ringed plovers, with a total of 17 nests and 18-25 fledged across our sites. Usually, plover nests are spread out along the coastline, but many choose to nest within our fencing as they are much less likely to be disturbed. For rogue pairs outside our main fence, we can put up some posts with a bit of rope and cross our fingers, and this year we had eggs successfully hatching from just such a nest! We also had two oystercatchers and three avocets fledge from our Suffolk site. Another joy of the season was watching a pair of plover chicks grow up into fledglings which had become habituated to our presence around the cabin, and on a night shift they often would run around my feet as I sat out in a camping chair! In a year when there has been lots of bad news, especially with bird flu and how it has affected our struggling bird populations, it is a relief to be able to share something positive. Although every year is different, we are all hoping that this is the beginning of a trend where we can start stabilising or even increasing the numbers on the East Coast and the U.K. Once again this has only been possible thanks to a truly incredible team of volunteers and staff, an extremely supportive local community, and the funding and support of Natural England and Great Yarmouth Borough Council. |
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Photo credits: Oystercatcher by Katie Nethercoat (rspb-images.com)
LOTE Logo credits: Saskia Wischnewski |