The emotional politics of curlew conservation

Before chairing our event on curlews at the Hay Festival on Friday, I went to a lecture given by Karin Wahl-Jorgensen about “the emotional politics of Trump and the rise of angry populism”.  It seemed like a good way to warm up for our event and it was a sobering reminder of how anger has infected politics across the world with potentially dangerous consequences.  

During her talk, Karin quoted Immanuel Kant who said,

“All our knowledge begins with the senses, proceeds then to the understanding and ends with reason.  There is nothing higher than reason.”

The inference was that our current politics is stuck in ‘sensing’ mode feeding off emotion and that we are failing to move to understanding or reason.

I was reminded of this quote later in the evening during a question and answer session following Mary Colwell’s talk about her brilliant new book ‘Curlew Moon’.  There were some feisty exchanges about the impact of predation on wildlife with badgers and birds of prey in the firing line.  Despite being able to quote the findings of our recent review (of 81 relevant scientific papers and reports covering 908 cases where the effect of a predator on changes in the numbers of a prey species had been measured) of the impact of predation on wild birds, I failed to satisfy some in the audience that there is no evidence that birds of prey (e.g. buzzards) are having a population level impact on species like curlew.

The headlines from our review are that…

…Predator numbers have increased in the UK over the last decades.

…The UK has very high densities of red fox and crows compared to other European countries.

…Seabirds, waders and gamebirds are limited by predation whereas pigeons, raptors & owls, woodpeckers and songbirds are not limited by predation. A few exceptions to these general statements exist.

…There is a real need for research to understand how landscape-scale management could be used to provide longer-term sustainable solutions to reduce the numbers of generalist predators and their impacts on species of conservation concern.

As I have written previously, we use this science to inform our practice, guided by our own policy on how best to manage the impact of vertebrates on threatened species like curlew (whose UK population has nearly halved in three decades and of which the UK has about a quarter of the global population).

The RSPB is taking action where we can. For example, the curlew Trial Management Project is looking at the combination of habitat management and predator control required to stabilise breeding curlew numbers. We are also reviewing the work done for curlew on our own estate and have identified 27 priority reserves where we aim to improve management and enhance monitoring. Our bog restoration work with United Utilities at Dovestone has shown we can have a positive impact on curlew and other breeding wader populations.

But it’s clear that the RSPB (or any other organisation) can’t do this on our own. As curlew are widely dispersed across the landscape, if we are to make a difference for the species, then it will require working together with farmers, land-managers, other conservation organisations and communities.

And that message resonates so clearly in Mary Colwell’s book which documents her 500 mile walk from the west coast of Ireland to eastern England.   All the people she encounters are united in their desire to help restore the curlew population and it is a testimony to her curlew crusading skills that she has managed to bring disparate groups together to discuss curlew conservation. 

Now, the UK and Ireland Curlew Action Group (set up in 2016) co-ordinates and drives action for curlew across these countries following the framework provided by the international species action plan under the auspices of the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds. The RSPB chairs the group, which meets twice a year. There are representatives from the 4 statutory agencies, JNCC, NPWS Ireland, GWCT, BTO, WWT (Southern Curlew Forum) and Bird Watch Ireland.

We know that the decline in curlew across the UK is due to poor breeding success, which is linked to changes in land-use, primarily a reduction in good-quality habitat (changes in farming practices, conversion to forestry), and predation.  

That’s why we must all work together to grow our understanding of curlew conservation needs, and to continue to reason with politicians to ensure post Brexit reform of land management works for curlews.

You can find out more about the RSPB’s curlew work and how to help here.  If you are not yet convinced of the case for action, please do read Mary’s book!