RSPB celebrate vulnerable bird’s record year for breeding
Conservationists are celebrating a record year for a rare and vulnerable breeding bird species in the UK.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) said the black-neckedgrebesawasurge inthenumberofbreedingpairs in 2023.
It comes after a series of dedicated conservation efforts to provide and restore vital wetland habitats at RSPB nature reserves that can support the water birds, which have tufts of golden feathers and red eyes.
Black-necked grebes are on the UK’S Birds of Conservation Concern’s “amber” list, meaning there is moderate concern for the species among conservationists.
This time of year marks the species’ breeding season when they start to perform a courtship dance.
The rise in breeding numbers hasbeenparticularlyprevalent at RSPB’S St Aidan's Nature Park, near Leeds, in West
Yorkshire, which celebrated a record year for black-necked grebes in 2023.
Habitat work was undertaken by conservationists at the nature reserve, including a team of volunteers, to carefully manage water levels and create new areas of shallow water and dense reedswithinwhichthe birds can perform their dance, feed and nest.
The record 18 breeding pairs that were counted also fledged the joint second-highest count of chicks of 12 in total, bringing hopes that fledgeling numbers will increase in future.
The reserve is now home toaround30percentof theukbreedingpopulation, the RSPB said.
John Ingham, warden at RSPB St Aidan's,said:“blacknecked grebes aren’t just one of the rarest breeding birds in the UK - they are also one of the most beautiful.”
Basedonthesuccessfulbreeding season last year and mild winter, we would hope for good numbersofblack-neckedgrebe againthisspringatrspbstaidan's."
But Mr Ingham also warned that the birds face many challenges such as loss of wetland habitats, extreme weather events caused by climate change, declines in small fish and invertebrates they rely on for feeding, predation and potentially,increasedincidencesofdiseasessuchasavianinfluenza.