RSPB Highlight Sandeel Slaughter

[Ken Davison South Wales]

The RSPB is making waves about the over fishing of sandeels and other small shoal fish.

 

'Time running out' for seabirds

 

Hundreds of fulmars starved to death last year

Thousands of seabirds are at risk from starvation unless curbs on industrial fishing in the North Sea are introduced, a wildlife charity says.

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is monitoring the number of dead birds on the UK's coastline in order to assess the health of the population.

 

The survey follows a disastrous breeding season last year, in which thousands of birds starved to death.

 

Without action, time is running out for the birds, the charity warns.

 

Hundreds of volunteers will check 1,560 miles of coastline, starting in the north of England on Saturday, looking for the bodies of birds washed ashore.

 

The RSPB will then try to assess how the birds died.

 

Starving to death

 

In 2004, hundreds of fulmars - a gull-like seabird - were washed up on North Sea beaches after dying of starvation.

 

The breeding season saw hatchings fail and chicks starving to death.

 

A shortage of sand eels, an important part of many seabirds' diet, was blamed for the crisis.

 

But the RSPB said the growth of industrial fishing, where factory ships harvest millions of tonnes of small shoaling fish to become feed for fish farms and other livestock, will worsen an already difficult situation.

 

The charity welcomed government proposals, announced last month, aimed at regulating fishing.

 

But the organisation's North of England conservation manager, Nick Mason, said action was needed before it was too late.

 

"We welcome the government's commitment for new legislation to help safeguard our seas, but this needs to be implemented rapidly and the content needs to be robust enough to tackle some major issues.

 

"If the government does not fulfil its promise quickly, sea life will decline, fishermen will have little left to catch and conservationists and industry will battle over proposals for any form of development."

 

I stated on an earlier thread that I had not seen the shoals of sandeels on the beach last year. When I was to wading out for casting they used to be all around me, last year was a different story.

[Jaffa]

Ken,

 

Got to love the way the RSPB flag up the shortage of sandeels but make no mention thats its more likely environmental changes are to blame. Then don't touch the implications of reduced white fish discards .

 

Its all a lot more complicated but guess thats a difficult message to sell and fails to bring in donations.

 

I doubt sandeels had much to do with the death of the Fulmars for instance...

 

Changes to fishery policy effect the WHOLE ecosystem. From the journal Nature :

 

quote:

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It is clear that discards from commercial fisheries are a key food resource for many seabird species around the world. But predicting the response of seabird communities to changes in discard rates is problematic and requires historical data to elucidate the confounding effects of other, more 'natural' ecological processes. In the North Sea, declining stocks, changes in technical measures, changes in population structure and the establishment of a recovery programme for cod (Gadus morhua) will alter the amount of fish discarded. This region also supports internationally important populations of seabirds, some of which feed extensively, but facultatively, on discards, in particular on undersized haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) and whiting (Merlangius merlangus). Here we use long-term data sets from the northern North Sea to show that there is a direct link between discard availability and discard use by a generalist predator and scavenger—the great skua (Stercorarius skua). Reduced rates of discarding, particularly when coupled with reduced availability of small shoaling pelagic fish such as sandeel (Ammodytes marinus), result in an increase in predation by great skuas on other birds. This switching of prey by a facultative scavenger presents a potentially serious threat to some seabird communities.

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More here: http://forests.org/articles/reader.asp?linkid=29505

 

But lets just blame the fishermen for the death of the Fulmnar seems the RSPB angle. Be a hard sell to tell the public that tying up the whitefish boats will lead to the death of millions of birds so it seems they draw a veil over that side of it

 

Chris

[Jaffa]

More gloom; last years Shetland seabirds hardly raised a chick, and these are huge colonies:

 

From the Shetland Times

 

quote:

---

 

 

Hans J Marter

 

15 October 2004

 

SHETLAND’ world famous bird colonies had one of the worst breeding seasons ever; species include guillemots, shags and fulmars.

 

And islands ornithologists predict that due to the failure of guillemots to raise any sizable number of chicks, colonies along Shetland’ coastline will further decline over the next years.

 

Shags had virtually disappeared from the island of Foula, where “some thousands of shags” were missing following counts.

 

The lack of sandeels in the waters around Shetland was given as the obvious reason for the failure. Sandeels are the prime feed for a number of seabird species. The RSPB has already entered into an agreement with local fishermen to limit sandeel catches.

 

In addition, record sea temperatures in the North Atlantic and the North Sea during 2003 are thought to impact on ocean currents and the abundance of feed available.

 

Writing in the latest issue of the Shetland Bird Club newsletter, the club’s chairman Martin Heubeck draws a bleak picture.

 

In spring this year, Mr Heubeck rang the alarm bells when whole colonies of guillemots failed to return to their cliffs at Sumburgh Head, in Shetland.

 

Now, at the onset of autumn, he described the failure of the guillemots to raise any chicks as the “unexpected and perhaps most defining aspect of the 2004 breeding season”.

 

“At best, perhaps a handful (of young birds) made it to sea from Sumburgh Head, Noss, Foula, Hermaness and other smaller colonies but they probably did so in poor condition and may not have survived long.

 

“No chicks were ringed on Fair Isle (1,500 – 2,000 would be ringed in a normal year) because the very few encountered on ringing visits were very weak and dying.”

 

He added that during a survey of individual shags on the island of Foula this summer only 468 were counted, which indicated the loss of thousands of birds as the island’s population had been estimated to be nearer 6,000 birds.

 

Fulmars were also in decline, Mr Heubeck said, as colonies at Troswick Ness, Eshaness and Sumburgh Head didn’t return the same number of chicks than in previous years.

 

And he warned: “What is clear is that low chick production will, for at least some species, mean further population declines in a few years hence.

 

“What is also possible those that those adult seabirds which did at least try and raise a chick or two this summer may have ended up in a pretty poor body condition themselves, and may have compromised their over-winter survival.”

 

There is no simple explanation as to the reasons behind the dramatic changes. However, scientists have repeatedly highlighted the rise in sea temperature and subsequent changes in plankton abundance and the ocean currents.

 

In a Ocean Climate Status Summary 2003/04, published by the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) in August this year, scientists said that new temperature records for the North Atlantic had been set during 2003.

 

“Surface waters in the Faroe Shetland Channel continued the general warming trend observed over the last 20 years. Modified Atlantic Waters in the Faroe Shetland

Channel were warmer and saltier in 2003 than at any period during the last 50 years,” the report stated.

 

And graphs for the North Sea showed that in 2003 the temperature of the water was 1.5 degrees above the average of the last 30 years.

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[Ken Davison South Wales]

Hi Chris,

 

I guessed it would be a lot more complicated than stated but every little helps.

 

This year I will endevour to keep a better record of sandeels on Cefyn Sidan.

 

What would you put the decline down to?

 

Used to see thousands of 1" to 2" sandeels in large shoals throughout the length of the beach, with hundreds of terns diving into them. The number of terns has declined as well.

 

[ 26. February 2005, 09:32 AM: Message edited by: Ken Davison South Wales ]

[Jaffa]

I'd guess its changes in the plankton due to warming but as far as I know nothing has been proved either way yet. Our whole ecosystem seems to be changing fast though.

 

Just hate to see single interest groups always laying the blame on the easy target; rather than help it can cause more damage IMO. I really wonder if banning all industrial fishing tommorrow would make any difference to sandeel stocks but it seems reasonable to believe it would have other knock on effects. Its all interlinked surely?

 

The terns and other surface feeders like kittiwakes had some very bad seasons when i lived in Shetland. Curious thing was that the deeper diving birds like gullimots did alright. There was very little sandeel fishing going on up there at the time either.

 

Confused as ever,

Chris

[A Norfolk Boy]

So long as someone makes a noise. The Danish catch the most sandeels and they only manage to hoover up 30% of their quota.

[Norm B]

Ken Davison South Wales:

The RSPB is making waves about the over fishing of sandeels and other small shoal fish.

 

'Time running out' for seabirds

 

Hundreds of fulmars starved to death last year

Thousands of seabirds are at risk from starvation unless curbs on industrial fishing in the North Sea are introduced, a wildlife charity says.

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is monitoring the number of dead birds on the UK's coastline in order to assess the health of the population.

 

The survey follows a disastrous breeding season last year, in which thousands of birds starved to death.

 

Without action, time is running out for the birds, the charity warns.

 

Hundreds of volunteers will check 1,560 miles of coastline, starting in the north of England on Saturday, looking for the bodies of birds washed ashore.

 

The RSPB will then try to assess how the birds died.

 

Starving to death

 

In 2004, hundreds of fulmars - a gull-like seabird - were washed up on North Sea beaches after dying of starvation.

 

The breeding season saw hatchings fail and chicks starving to death.

 

A shortage of sand eels, an important part of many seabirds' diet, was blamed for the crisis.

 

But the RSPB said the growth of industrial fishing, where factory ships harvest millions of tonnes of small shoaling fish to become feed for fish farms and other livestock, will worsen an already difficult situation.

 

The charity welcomed government proposals, announced last month, aimed at regulating fishing.

 

But the organisation's North of England conservation manager, Nick Mason, said action was needed before it was too late.

 

"We welcome the government's commitment for new legislation to help safeguard our seas, but this needs to be implemented rapidly and the content needs to be robust enough to tackle some major issues.

 

"If the government does not fulfil its promise quickly, sea life will decline, fishermen will have little left to catch and conservationists and industry will battle over proposals for any form of development."

 

I stated on an earlier thread that I had not seen the shoals of sandeels on the beach last year. When I was to wading out for casting they used to be all around me, last year was a different story.

:cool: It was brought to the governments attention years ago that puffin chicks were dying of starvation due to the distance the parents were having to fly to catch enough sandeels to feed them. The government then banned fishing for sandeels during the puffin breeding season. You don't need more than half a brain to realise that if there is a shortage of sandeels, banning the fishing for them for 3 months of the year is not going to solve the problem. The RSPB is not perfect but I found them to be very useful in removing a gillnet when Southern SF's weren't interested, nor was the Langstone Harbour Master and nor were MAFF. I think with their millions of members and £££'s they will achieve more than anglers. Support them, don't knock them, they and Green Peace will be the saviour of our fish stocks, much more so than anglers. Members and money talks. Look what the £1,000,000 donation to the Labour Party from the LACS achieved.

[Jaffa]

Ken, I have a load of information on the sandeel fishery but need to rake through it before I post. I believe that the falling numbers have very little to do with fishing though. Will post the links that show that later in the week when I have time and a clear head.

 

Well worth your while to keep an eye on whats happening in your area and investigate that though: despite the usual ICES "treat it as one stock" its far from that with very many different stocks, each of which grow and mature at diffent ages.

 

As for the "making a noise" better than no noise point made by yourself, NB and Norm, I have to disagree a lot.

 

The RSPB does do some great work but when they come out with fiction like the initial post they have to be pulled up. Check up on the results in Shetland when the RSPB worked with the fishermen; they achieved a lot more than all the anger and shouting does. Still failed though because , in the case of sandeels, fishermen are not the problem Its far more serious IMO.

 

Did it help the environment when the greens got the nuclear debate brought to a halt before it even started, given that we are now feeling the start of global warming? I don't know if nuclear is the way to go but im sure hacked off that we never get to hear the real arguments. There are some very serious environmentalist that believe nuclear is the only alternative we have.

 

Was it a good thing that Greenpeace prevented Shell from dumping the Brent Spar in deep water and instead had it towed to a Norwegian Fjord where it was cut up? This was based on extremely dodgy "science" from greenpeace (as I remember they got the amount of "toxic" chemicals wrong by a factor of 10 !!!) and was very likely not the best environmental solution. Artifical reef anyone?

 

What help did Greenpeace do for the environment when they attempt, and sometimes succeed, to destroy the livlihoods of Northern people hunting whales, seals etc if those species are not endangered? Fine moral (in urban Europeon and US terms) victories that remove the people that care for that environment from it...

 

Hoover, Factory ship, slaughter, vacuum, netsmen, spin spin spin sells

 

Sorry for the rant Ken. Come up with the evidence, and theres plenty, later.

 

Chris

[Jaffa]

quote:

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[Cool] It was brought to the governments attention years ago that puffin chicks were dying of starvation due to the distance the parents were having to fly to catch enough sandeels to feed them. The government then banned fishing for sandeels during the puffin breeding season. You don't need more than half a brain to realise that if there is a shortage of sandeels, banning the fishing for them for 3 months of the year is not going to solve the problem. The RSPB is not perfect but I found them to be very useful in removing a gillnet when Southern SF's weren't interested, nor was the Langstone Harbour Master and nor were MAFF. I think with their millions of members and £££'s they will achieve more than anglers. Support them, don't knock them, they and Green Peace will be the saviour of our fish stocks, much more so than anglers. Members and money talks. Look what the £1,000,000 donation to the Labour Party from the LACS achieved. [big Grin]

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I must only have half a brain then Norm . Stopping the fishing near colonies during the breeding season makes perfect sense; its critical that the parents can find eels within range, regardless of the overall health of the sandeel stock. Its entirely possible to have no "shortage" of sandeels overall but unless they are available in the right sizes, at the correct depth, at the right time then its a disaster for the birds.

 

The failure to recognise what the real problem was way back in 1990, (instead blame fishermen, stop fishery, everything will be alright) has cost us 15 years in recognising whats really happening.

 

Read up on the Shetland sandeel fishery, often described as a "model" then decide if all you hear from the national RSPB spin is anything like the truth. Interesting to contrast the thoughts of the "on the ground" RSPB workers up there with the stuff fed to the media too; you might well be surprised.

 

Cheers, Chris

[Jaffa]

e.g.

 

Local Shetland RSPB views

 

 

 

quote:

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by Pete Bevington

 

SHETLAND’S world famous seabird colonies are being wiped out because of a lack of food in the sea, local ornithologists confirmed this week.

 

Aberdeen University and the RSPB have described this year’s breeding season as “the worst ever” and now fear that same species will disappear from the islands altogether.

 

Many arctic terns and kittiwakes, who have been suffering poor seasons for several years, are simply choosing not to lay eggs because they are so hungry. What is causing even greater concern this year is that hardy birds like guillemots which can fly far and dive deep for food are also starving.

 

“For guillemots to be struggling things must be really bad,” said Shetland RSPB officer Pete Ellis. “They can fly for tens of kilometres and dive 100 metres. They should be able to get fish in almost any circumstances, but this year they can’t.”

 

The birds are starving because their staple diet, the thin, silvery sandeel, appears to have vanished from local waters, and no one knows why.

 

Over a decade ago the shortage of sandeels prompted the government to impose restrictions on the sandeel fishery, but this appears to have made little difference in the long term.

 

“In the absence of any other ideas as to why this is happening, we think it might be climate change,” Mr Ellis said. “We don’t think it’s the fishery because that is pretty highly controlled and even the fishermen are catching very few sandeels.”

 

Martin Heubeck, Aberdeen University’s Shetland-based ornithologist, said this was the worst breeding season since he first started working in Shetland 25 years ago. The past three years had been very poor, but this year was disastrous, he said.

 

“In the 25 years that we have been monitoring seabirds here this is probably the poorest season yet.

 

“For example, in the past quite a high proportion of kittiwakes laid eggs but the chicks died. This year many birds didn’t even bother to breed. Only half of the kittiwakes that started to build nests went on to lay, and hardly any of them hatched chicks. The situation just gets progressively poorer each year.”

 

The future looks particularly bad for kittiwakes, who have not managed to hatch a single chick on any monitored site in Shetland for the past three years, indicating that we could see the species dying out in the isles altogether in the next few years.

 

Shetland has the worst breeding success for kittiwakes anywhere in Britain, however even healthy colonies which are successfully hatching chicks are experiencing major population declines due to food shortages in the sea.

 

As for guillemots, Mr Heubeck said he was staggered by their behaviour this year. “The day before the first egg was laid there wasn’t a single bird on the cliffs at Sumburgh,” he said. “That’s completely unprecedented. Breeding success has probably been somewhere between a quarter and a third of an average year.”

 

He said that as early as last December there had been signs that this would be a bad year, when five times the number of dead shags started to wash up on Shetland’s beaches. “That started little alarm bells going off. Then when the guillemots didn’t appear until April the alarm bells got louder.”

 

Shags have since had a poorer than average breeding season, but have fared better than surface feeding birds because they are thought to be capable of digging the few available sandeels out of the seabed, where the adults live.

 

Mr Heubeck said the food problem is almost certainly due to changes in sea temperatures, ocean currents and availability of plankton. “But there is no real understanding of what the problem is and there is no co-ordinated programme of research into it.”

 

He added: “Seabirds are very long-lived. They can take five or six years of fairly low breeding success with little effect on the population. But in Shetland we have seen a rapid population decline, and we can only see that continuing.

 

“Shetland used to be buzzing with birds. Now there are places where the entire colony has gone. It makes you feel a bit sad, but there’s very little you can do about it.”

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