Seabird foraging has conservation significance
Researchers from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), Birdlife International and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) have suggested that the feeding patterns of foraging seabirds around the British coastline can be useful in identifying possible marine protection areas. Their findings have been published in the journal Biological Conservation.
The research team compiled data on the foraging behaviour of 25 species. The researchers listed data sets in a quality-based hierarchical order:
- Direct studies - detailed data on locations, journey distance etc, gathered via technology such as radio-tracking and GPS devices (made up 21% of reviewed data),
- Indirect studies - data that does not directly measure foraging ranges, but is information that allows estimates of species' foraging patterns (12%),
- Survey method studies - when carried out during the breeding season, surveys can offer an insight into birds' foraging ranges (46%),
- Speculative studies - considered to be the least robust of the four groups, these encompass a range of methods such as ring recoveries and author speculation (21%).
Commenting on the team's findings, co-author Dr Chris Thaxter, research ecologist for the BTO said: "There is an increasing need to protect areas of sea for marine species because the environment is facing pressures - such as oil, shipping, gas and renewable energy.
He added: "It is important not to let these events impact on the species that are using these areas."
The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 mandated for Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) to be established in English and Welsh territorial waters. Four regional consultation groups are tasked with assessing what marine areas should be designated MCZs. Scotland has different legislation, but the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2010 also includes powers for ecologically important areas of sea to be designated MCZs.
Dr Thaxter also added that nations could benefit from using the review's methodology: “We actually reviewed studies outside the UK - this approach can be applied elsewhere," he said. "Overall, this would lead to the wider protection of seabirds."
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