Protecting a piece of the jewel in South Devon’s Crown

Drive along the coastline in Torbay, and you will be able to catch a glimpse of ‘the jewel in South Devon’s Crown’. The Marine Conservation Zone of Torbay stretches from near Hope’s Nose at the bay’s northern extremity, to near Berry Head in the south. This beautiful habitat protects many rare underwater habitats and fascinating creatures.

Surrounded by the seaside towns of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham, Torbay nevertheless remains rich in wildlife, from harbour porpoises, to long-snouted seahorses, to thousands of seabirds nestled on the cliffs.

Berry Head, part of the Torbay Marine Conservation Zone (c) Dave Grubb

The bright green seagrass beds are home for the seahorses, as well as many molluscs and worms which burrow into the sediment. The beds also act as a nursery for young fish, which then become food for the birds.

The south coast’s most important breeding colony of guillemots is on cliffs at Berry Head, already a national nature reserve and a significant proportion of Britain’s overwintering population of rare black-necked grebes can also be found in Torbay.

However without protection at sea, these birds are at risk from fishing nets and recreational boats of all shapes and sizes. All that is needed is an extension to the MCZ of one kilometre from the guillemot colony. The birds are already protected on land, so why not at sea too?

Helen Booker, RSPB senior conservation officer, said: “We know that while on the water the guillemots get disturbed by passing boats of various types, so it makes sense to protect them as part of the Marine Conservation Zone.”

Common guillemot numbers have decreased rapidly throughout Europe (c) Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)

The RSPB is also urging that the black-necked grebe and common guillemot are designated as feature of the Marine Conservation Zones to protect the wintering populations of grebes and for the guillemots during breeding season.

How you can help

Please help by contacting your MP and asking them to write to Thérèse Coffey, Minister for Environment in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs about why the UK Government urgently needs to include this site in the public consultation.

Key points you might like to raise:

• Seabirds are in trouble. Numbers have dropped drastically since 2000 and without adequate protection and management they will struggle to recover.
• Marine Conservation Zones are important for seabirds to ensure that their important areas at sea are protected, just as their nesting areas are on land. These areas provide a safe haven where rare, declining or threatened species can be protected from harmful activity.
• Torbay is already a Marine Conservation Zone however the important grounds for seabirds whilst at sea fall just outside of this area. As an important site in England for common guillemot and black-necked grebes, the zone should be extended one kilometre seawards to include protection for these birds.
• A healthy marine environment does more than support healthy seabird populations. We get food from the sea, and it provides fishing jobs for isolated communities around the coast. Tourism and recreation, which depend on clean seas and plenty of wildlife to watch, are also important in small communities as well as bringing in substantial economic benefits to local businesses.

You can find your MP and the various ways to contact them via the Write to Them website. Also, all MPs can be reached by writing to them at House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA.

Please send copies of your letters or e-mails, and any replies, to Vanessa Amaral-Rogers, Campaigning Communications Officer, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2BR. Alternatively you can email us.

Seabirds really need your help; and we can do it with the help of the UK government. Action is needed now if we want to start protecting our iconic seabirds.