Northwest Europe's threatened Bewick's swan
population has been boosted by a bumper year for chicks.
Numbers of the bird have declined dramatically
since the 1990s.
Up to 7,000 Bewick's swans usually migrate to
the UK, arriving in October and flying back to Russia in March.
But surveys this year show the number of young
among these wintering flocks has risen to 17.6%, compared to an average of
around 10% over the past 10 years.
Ornithologists have reported an overall average
of 14% young swans in flocks across northern Europe, the highest since 2001.
"It really is fantastic to see so many
cygnets arriving back. They have certainly been few and far between in recent
years," said Julia Newth from the Wildfowl and Wetlands trust (WWT).
Bewick's swans travel 2,500 miles (4,000km) from
their breeding grounds within the Arctic tundra in Russia to spend the winter
in the warmer British Isles and other parts of northern Europe, such as the
Netherlands and Germany.
The smallest swan in Europe, Bewick's swans are
distinguishable from fellow migrant whooper swans by their size and small
yellow blob on their black beaks, rather than the whooper's yellow wedge.
Continued:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/20800129
No comments:
Post a Comment