Nature / Helping waders in Shetland to buck the national trend of decline
RSPB seeking crofters and farmers willing to implement wildlife friendly farming methods
IMAGINE those long and beautiful spring evenings with the haunting call of the curlew; lapwings acrobatically displaying overhead while the unmistakeable sound of snipe drumming adds to the sense of wonder.
It is not long now until skylarks start singing again and the first oystercatchers have already been seen, but overall Shetland’s skies are much, much quieter these days than 20, 30 or even 50 years ago.
A lot of natural habitats – and with it biodiversity – has been lost over the decades, not just in the UK, or in Scotland, but also here in Shetland.
And yet the islands are still faring better than many other places.
Waders such as curlew (or whaaps in local dialect), lapwing (peewits) oystercatcher (shalders) have all suffered dramatic decline.
In the last 30 years, Scotland has lost nearly two thirds of its curlew population, and the number of lapwings has halved, mainly because of the intensification of farming and the disappearance of wetlands and wet grasslands through drainage.
Shetland has not been affected by this intensification and the associated changes in the landscape to the same extent as elsewhere in Scotland.
Annual surveys carried out in the isles since 2002 have shown that although lapwing numbers have declined at a similar rate to the Scottish Mainland, remarkably curlews appear to have held on.
However, other waders such as oystercatchers and redshank are also in a marked decline.
This is why the RSPB, in partnership with NatureScot and with supported from the National Lottery, is working on the Scotland-wide Species at the Edge programme in a bid to save 37 of the country’s most vulnerable coastal and island species.
In Shetland the focus is on eight of these species: curlew, lapwing, twite, red-necked phalarope, oyster plant, endemic hawkweeds, moss carder bumblebee (Shetland bee) and the plantain leaf beetle, with the first two species mentioned very much the priority.
Conservation advisor with the RSPB, Nathalie Pion, said although the situation in Shetland was much better than elsewhere, it was important to act now.
“It doesn’t mean we are safe,” she said, “and that’s why we do these projects, trying to make sure that they don’t start declining in the same way, or unintentionally create problems that would affect them.
“Lapwing have declined, while curlew has not suffered in the same way, but it is a long-lived bird which means they could be around for a long time even if they don’t produce any chicks.”
And any work to improve the habitat for curlew and lapwing is also likely to positively impact on redshank, oystercatcher and snipe.
Project officer Harry Britton said these farmland waders all depend on wildlife friendly-farming and crofting to maintain safe nesting sites and to feed on small invertebrates in wetlands and wet grasslands areas.
“Waders require specific conditions in their environment to feel safe enough to breed and raise their young,” he said.
“Controlling vegetation height with focussed grazing regimes, maintaining an open landscape, creating wader scrapes (shallow pools with muddy edges providing rich feeding ground), or altering when livestock graze and machinery is used so birds can nest undisturbed can be simple but effective ways of managing your land to meet their requirements.
“Farmers and crofters’ local knowledge, and their skills in land management, are key to maintaining good quality habitats for waders and securing their future.
“We are looking for land managers who are interested in learning about the birds nesting on their land and what they can do to protect them.”
The RSPB team is planning a number of information events throughout spring as well as site visits to allow crofters to share knowledge and experiences of managing land for waders in Shetland. Two such events, focussing on twite, will be held in the Eid hall on Saturday 15 March (10am to 3pm) and in the Dunrossness hall on 22 March, also between 10am and 3pm.
Information events for waders will be held once the birds are here, in May and June, with dates to be confirmed.
Anyone interested in a site visit is asked to contact Harry Britton on harry.britton@rspb.org.uk
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