UK bird numbers at their lowest since records began

Bird numbers across Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK have stabilised – but are at their lowest point since record keeping began.

This is the verdict of the 2003 report State of the UK's Birds, published today by three bird conservation charities: the RSPB, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and the British Trust for Ornithology.

Dr James Robinson, Conservation Manager, RSPB Northern Ireland said: "The good news is that bird numbers have remained unchanged over the last few years.

"However, its important to bear in mind that they are also at their lowest levels since record keeping began in 1970. Some species have recovered slightly, however if nothing is done many once common birds could become extinct, not just from Northern Ireland, but the UK as a whole."

Farmland and woodland birds in particular look set to qualify for this dubious honour, as the food and shelter which these birds rely on becomes scarcer and scarcer.

"The Common Agricultural Policy from Europe has been the main mover behind the drastic falls in some of our most beloved species such as the peeweet, yellow yornie and curlew," Dr Robinson said. "The corncrake, once a common visitor to these shores is all but extinct in the North and struggling at record low levels in the South. Seabirds have suffered from a combination of over-fishing and possibly climate change, and diseases, such as botulism from landfills, have been behind the plummeting levels of gulls."

It is not all doom and gloom however, good land management by farmers and conservation organisations, such as the RSPB, have shown that with some help nature does manage to recover.

A case in point are the choughs on the North Antrim coast, which until last year, were extinct in Northern Ireland. They have managed to breed successfully again this year, fledging three chicks.

Reserves managed by the RSPB in Northern Ireland have also formed safe havens for birds and in places such as Belfast Harbour Estate, a little goes a long way. "Lapwing and redshank bred for the first time in a recently cleared nature conservation area next to the City Airport," said Dr Robinson, "showing that people and birds can co-exist and do so successfully. The message we need to take away from the report is not to get depressed, but to do something now so that the environment is safeguarded for people and wildlife," he concluded.

(MB)