October 2017 - Solent Seabird Colonies
Members of the Horndean & District U3A met for their regular monthly meeting on Friday 6th October 2017 at Merchistoun Hall. They listened to a talk by Wez Smith the local RSPB Site Manager for the Langstone & Chichester Harbours on "Reviving the Solent's Seabird Colonies".
Wez spoke about the different species of seabirds found in the Solent area and the work his team are carrying out to encourage breeding of the endangered species. He told us that about ten years ago he was an employee of the NHS when he had the opportunity of volunteering in Northumberland for two months which extended to two years and then went from island to island around the UK, eventually ending up in the Solent area which he loves.
One of his favourites, Brent Geese are about to return to the Solent in droves, from the Siberian Arctic through Russia & Europe, over 3,000 miles. They will be arriving tired and hungry. There are about 8 million seabirds around the shores of the UK because of the rich oceans and cold seas. We are an important area for the Guillemots and there are about 1.5 million around the coast of the UK.
Wez warned about the threat of plastic to our seabirds. About 90% of all of them contain plastic. There are ongoing investigations worldwide regarding plastic with its use continually increasing and its effect on our wildlife. Plastic items are always being washed up on our shores from across the Atlantic - as far away as Canada and the Caribbean etc.
In the 19th century there were hundreds of Puffins breeding in the Solent. It was likely thousands at an earlier stage but the modern records only mention hundreds. They were hunted for pure sport because it was considered that their flesh was not congenial to taste. Now their numbers have depleted probably due to the difficulty with their food supply.
Black headed gulls can be found along the Solent coast from Chesil Beach, Weymouth to Chichester harbour. They seek safe shingle banks to settle, make nests and rear their young. Also they need a plentiful supply of fish.
The Little Tern left our shores late summer for West Africa and will return 14th April specifically. Their newborn chicks are so tiny, the size of a pound coin. In 1986 there were 487 breeding pairs however in 2015 there were only 90 pairs. Because they choose shingle banks they are in danger of heavy seas which can wash away their breeding areas and nests. Wez and his staff have worked hard with a crane etc, to restore their habitat to encourage nesting. They managed to raise the height of the shingle bank by 2 metres. They used decoys to attract the birds and also erected electric fences to protect them against foxes and it has been very successful. There were 36 pairs of little tern breeding in the harbour this year.
The Common Tern is an endangered species but is the most common Tern in the Solent area, who fortunately are able to adjust to new habitats. Again Wez and staff have been working on encouraging them to come and breed here. They have built some wooden rafts topped with shingle and with decoys etc. Within ten minutes of setting it up, two terns arrived and eventually there were 47 pairs of common terns breeding on the raft this year. They are hoping to encourage other sites to use their techniques. During the summer his staff are out all hours in boats recording facts and figures on the seabirds.
Wez is obviously knowledgeable about his passion, sea birds and was happy to answer many questions from the Members.
Diane Stoner
Speaker Coordinator