11 Sep
2018
By
Chantal Macleod-Nolan
Neighbouring
BirdLife partners, RSPB (UK) and BirdWatch Ireland, have joined forces to put
Europe’s rarest breeding seabird, the roseate tern, on the road to recovery.
The
history of Europe’s rarest breeding seabird, the roseate tern Sterna dougallii, in Britain and Ireland
has been a rocky one. Its characteristic pink breast (in breeding) plumage was
once prized for fashionable hats, driving them to verge of extinction back in
the 19th Century. Although the creation of wildlife laws brought them
much-needed protection, the 1970s saw another population crash, with only 467
pairs remaining by 1989.
Long-term
conservation efforts at its remaining three colonies – Rockabill Island and
Lady’s Island Lake on Ireland’s east coast and Coquet in Northumberland, UK –
have been rewarded with steady growth, reaching a record level of 1,980 pairs
in 2018. As in previous years, the growth was mostly driven by Rockabill with
1,633 pairs recorded, but also Lady’s Island with 227 pairs and Coquet with 118
pairs. The productivity on Rockabill has been declining in recent years,
falling to a low of 0.66 chicks per pair in 2016 and only slightly better 0.83
last year. On the other hand, Coquet had an exceptional productivity of 1.50 chicks
per pair in 2017.
No comments:
Post a Comment