The place have they gone? – 10,000 Birds

Counting the Birds

I used to be in my teenagers after I undertook my first bird-survey: it was discipline work for the British Belief for Ornithology’s The Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Eire. Printed in 1976, The Atlas was, I imagine, the very first work of its sort. I subsequently helped with The Atlas of Wintering Birds in Britain and Eire (1986), The New Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Eire: 1988-1991, and most not too long ago Fowl Atlas 2007-11. The breeding and wintering birds of Britain and Eire. Look fastidiously and you will see my title in Appendix 1 of the latter, together with the hundreds of different observers who contributed to this spectacular 700-page work.

Like most birdwatchers, I get pleasure from doing survey work, although it may be irritating. A couple of years in the past I helped with the BTO’s Turtle Dove Survey. I used to be allotted the places I had to take a look at, however was dissatisfied to attract an entire clean, with not even a glimpse of a dove. This was maybe not stunning, because the Turtle Dove is Britain’s quickest declining hen. There have been, nevertheless, compensations, akin to discovering breeding Yellow Wagtails on a close-by farm the place I’d by no means seen them earlier than.

Final month I volunteered for the BTO’s Winter Gull Survey. The web page explains finest what it’s all about: “Gulls flock collectively to roost communally on lakes, reservoirs and estuaries, in teams that may attain the hundreds. The Winter Gull Survey (WinGS) will run over the winters of 2023/24 and 2024/25 to gather up to date info on the numbers and distributions of those wintering gulls within the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. WinGS volunteers go to gull roost websites, counting six key species: Black-headed Gull, Widespread Gull, Mediterranean Gull, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Herring Gull and Nice Black-backed Gull. These gulls are all of conservation concern, and their breeding populations are both Amber- or Pink-listed within the UK. Gathering extra detailed details about wintering populations, and which roost websites they depend on, will assist us defend them and develop simpler conservation methods.”

Volunteers are allotted websites the place massive numbers of gulls are identified, or suspected, to roost. My location was an intensive decorative lake, set in enticing parkland, just a few miles from my residence. Sadly the landowner determined not enable entry to the location, having initially agreed to take action. This meant that I needed to undertake my depend from a public highway that passes near the lake. Not likely a hardship, nevertheless it made the depend much less gratifying.

I arrived, outfitted with my telescope, lengthy earlier than nightfall. There have been loads of birds on the water to maintain me entertained, with near 60 Greylag geese, 50 Canada Geese, 80 Wigeon, 250 Coots, plus a superb assortment of Tufted Geese, Gadwall, Shoveler and Mallard. Nevertheless, gull numbers had been poor: simply three Herring Gulls. I waited hopefully for an enormous inflow of roosting gulls. A flock of 17 Herring Gulls and a single Lesser Black-backed Gull did arrive, paused briefly, after which moved on. As nightfall started to fall, only a single Herring Gull remained. I think that I’ll nicely have recorded the smallest gull roost within the nation.

One depend I undertake yearly is the Sport and Wildlife Conservation Belief’s Massive Farmland Fowl Rely. Based on the web site “The Massive Farmland Fowl Rely is an annual occasion that encourages farmers and land managers to document the hen species and numbers on their farms. The depend goals to boost consciousness of the vital position that farmers play within the conservation of farmland birds, and to measure the influence of the conservation work that many farmers and shoots perform.” It’s not a classy affair. Observers are requested to easily document the birds that they see throughout a 30-minute interval.

I undertake the depend for 3 native estates. One could be very massive (10,000 acres, or 4250 hectares), the opposite two are each round 1,000 acres, or 425ha). With the previous there’s such quite a lot of habitat that it’s troublesome to know the place to pay attention my efforts. I often base my depend round one of many farm’s reservoirs, because it ensures quite a lot of wildfowl. 

The 2 smaller estates are each managed in a wildlife-friendly method by farmers who’re additionally eager conservationists, so there’s often loads of birds to birds to see. Alas, there wasn’t this yr, however this wasn’t resulting from a sudden collapse in hen numbers, however the climate. On the day of my counts the temperature was an distinctive 17degC – the typical February daytime temperature on this a part of the nation is 8degC. Three years in the past after I undertook my counts the temperature was near freezing, and had been for some days. This led to distinctive numbers of finches and buntings being drawn to the wild-bird cowl, with flocks of over 200 Linnets, Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings, plus good numbers of Gold- and Greenfinches and even Tree Sparrows. This yr I didn’t see a single Yellowhammer, and the Reed Bunting whole was simply two. There was some compensation: quite a few Skylarks had been singing as if spring had all of the sudden arrived, which maybe they thought it had.

Current heavy rain had soaked the countryside and flooded many fields, so there was a terrific selection of wetlands for wildfowl and waders to maneuver to. The reservoir which is often so productive did produce a small number of geese (Shelduck, Mallard, Gadwall and Tufted Geese), however the regular wintering flock of Wigeon was absent. Within the close by river valley I did discover a cheap flock of Lapwings, together with a small flock of Greylag and Egyptian Geese, however not loads else. I didn’t, for instance, see a single Fieldfare wherever.

The GWCT Massive Farmland Fowl Rely is extra about encouraging farmers to look at their birds than to provide you with critical scientific information. When this yr’s depend is analysed, it’s virtually sure to indicate far fewer birds in each quantity and selection than in earlier years. Typically, nevertheless, the counting is extra vital than the depend itself.