Bird migration to and from UK reduced by climate change
CLIMATE change has cut the number of birds such as ducks, geese and swans migrating to and from the UK, a new report has revealed.
New data suggests that milder winters in northern Europe have removed bird’s need to migrate to the UK.
Discoveries from the 2022/23 Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) and the Goose and Swan Monitoring Programme (GSMP) have shown that climate change is dramatically shifting migration patterns.
These surveys are an annual assessment of ducks, geese, swans, waders and other waterbirds residing on, or passing through, our coasts, estuaries, lakes, reservoirs and rivers. It uses data from more than 3,800 volunteers.
Historically, harsh conditions in northern and eastern Europe would see huge numbers of birds migrating to the relatively mild conditions of a British winter.
Global warming, however, has made these normally frozen landscapes increasingly accessible, allowing birds to stay closer to their breeding grounds in a phenomenon known as short-stopping.
The birds that do still make the journey to the UK have been found to arrive later and leave earlier, particularly the Bewick’s swan, which has declined by 96 per cent in the past 25 years.
Other affected species include the goldeneye which has halved in numbers and the dunlin which dropped by a third.
The survey also revealed that waterbirds such as coot are being affected by milder winters as they were hit by a decline in breeding populations.
Dr Kirsi Peck, evidence specialist at the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, said: “Long-term monitoring by the Wetland Bird Survey and Goose and Swan Monitoring Programme has revealed short-stopping as a contributor to the observed changes, mostly declines, to our wintering waterbird populations. However, we must not forget that some of these species, such as the Bewick’s swan, are also experiencing declines in their breeding populations.
“Continued monitoring here in the UK and international collaboration on flyway scale are important to tracking future population changes as migratory bird populations continue to be impacted by climate change–induced changes in their breeding and wintering habitats.”
On the flip side, birds that would normally leave the UK in autumn for warmer climates are now staying put.
This has led to an increase in species such as the black-tailed godwit.
Simon Wotton, senior conservation scientist at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, added: “The Wetland Bird Survey alongside the Goose and Swan Monitoring Programme is an invaluable tool for better understanding the impact of climate change on our wintering waterbirds that typically breed further north and east.
“The scientific community owe a debt of gratitude to the volunteers whose coordinated efforts make these long-term studies possible.”