Chris Bailey, Advisory Manager for RSPB Scotland, provides an overview of some of our current work with others to help secure a future for waders in Scotland
If you live in Scotland it is more than likely you will come across at least one species of wader when you are travelling around the countryside. Scotland holds a significant proportion of the UK population of curlews, redshanks, lapwings, oystercatchers and snipe. Whilst still relatively common, compared to other countries in the United Kingdom the numbers of many of these waders have declined significantly over the last few decades. In Scotland, the Breeding Bird Survey highlighted that between 1995 and 2015, curlews declined by 59%, lapwings by 58% and oystercatchers by 37%. Snipe fortunately have bucked the trend increasing by 22%.
These trends are of great concern to Scottish government, environmental organisations, landowners and land managers alike.
Oystercatchers in Scotland have declined by 37%. Image: www.rspb-images.com
RSPB Scotland proactively supports initiatives at both national and local level aimed at reversing these declines, many of them working in partnership. At the national level, we are a partner in the Working For Waders Initiative (WfW). This initiative, started in 2017, aims to tackle the decline of wading birds across Scotland. The project is open to anyone with an interest in waders and is currently supported by a wide range of organisations and individuals, from farmers and conservationists to gamekeepers and birdwatchers. Partner organisations include Scottish Natural Heritage, British Trust for Ornithology, Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, Scottish Rural College, Scottish Land and Estates, Scottish Moorland Group, James Hutton Institute, The Heather Trust and Scottish Association for Field Sports.
WfW aims to do three things:
With funding from Scottish Natural Heritage, WfW partners have worked together to agree a series of priority actions which will be delivered before April 2019. These actions include funding for a new website, development of best practice guidance, identification of key wader hot spots to help inform decisions about where we focus management and the production of a new wader project map allowing us to collate information on all the key projects currently being undertaken across Scotland.
Better fortunes: Snipe have increased by 22% in Scotland according to the Breeding Bird Survey. Image: www.rspb-images.com
At a more local level WfW is providing funding for some of RSPB Scotland's local advisory work in Clyde Valley and East Scotland as well as curlew advisory work in Caithness. Over the course of the next few months as the actions are completed, summary information will be highlighted on the WfW website on each project. If you are interested in more information on the initiative or the various actions or are based in Scotland and want to get involved, please visit the website.
Away from WfW, RSPB Scotland was a partner in the Scotland Curlew Conference held at the end of September. Entitled “Whaup’s Up? – The Status and Future of Curlew in Scotland,” it was the fourth in a series of meetings to highlight the drastic decline of breeding curlews in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and to seek ways of reversing this trend, particularly in lowland and farmland areas where the decline is even more serious than in the uplands. The agenda for the day was split between a series of presentations in the morning looking at their ecology, the latest Scottish research, identification of key issues affecting their population and a series of case studies looking at work being undertaken. The afternoon session was a workshop identifying actions which could be undertaken. This was a very important meeting highlighting the importance of the Scottish Curlew population both at a UK level and internationally.
To see the presentations and a summary of the event please go to Curlewcall.org.