Marsh Birds from Southern Europe 'Will Colonise UK'
Copyright 2001 The Independent (London)
September 3, 2001
By Brian Unwin
WILDLIFE SPECTACLES once seen only in southern Europe are in prospect for the UK with several exotic marsh birds, members of the heron family, poised to colonise Britain.
The increased acreage, through conservation projects, of special wetland habitats could soon be filled by cattle egrets, great white egrets, night herons and purple herons, which are all now appearing much more frequently in Britain.
The forecast comes from one of Britain's leading ornithologists, Dr Malcolm Ogilvie. He is the secretary of the Rare Breeding Birds Panel, a body funded by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), and the Government's Joint Nature Conservation Committee. The JNCC collects and archives information on the rarest nesting bird species in the country. The northerly advance across Europe in the nesting range of all four heron species is thought to be partly due to greater protection and habitat conservation, although climate change is also believed to be a prominent factor.
All are generally linked with warmer places than Britain; cattle egrets, for instance, occur in tropical regions worldwide. Yet there have been British cattle egret reports in every month this year, and great white egrets have shown up regularly since mid-February.
Dr Ogilvie said
"Wetland bird species declined due to the drainage of marshes and persecution through hunting and collecting, but during the 20th century that situation changed significantly. As a result of habitat conservation and the bird protection laws that were introduced, some (species) that were either extinct in this country or close to it made successful recoveries, but that was just the start.
"Since the mid-nineties, the little egret, which was virtually unknown in Britain 50 years ago, has becoming an established breeding species, and spoonbills have nested for the first time in more than 300 years," he said.
"This resulted from birds wandering here from Europe. Now that more is also being seen of the likes of great white and cattle egrets, and night and purple herons, it is logical to anticipate they could follow suit."
After spreading across southern England over the past five years, little egrets nested for the first time in the North this summer, with a pair rearing one chick at Frodsham in Cheshire. There have also been unprecedented numbers of them seen in Norfolk, with 58 found together at the RSPB reserve at Titchwell in the past week. More than ever has been seen of the species in north-east England, where sightings included one that regularly visits town parks on North Tyneside.
Cattle egrets are also being seen more regularly. Recently at least one of them ventured into London, visiting the Wetland Centre at Barnes. In the past week the species has also appeared at Dungeness in Kent, Stanwell Moor in Surrey, and Walberswick in Suffolk.
The sightings of great white egrets used to occur rarely, usually between April and June. This year birds have been seen every month since February, including one spotted regularly on Teesside's marshes since June. Another long-stayer, first seen in Cheshire in July, continues to be reported in the Dee estuary
A further reason for optimism that such species may colonise Britain is an expected further increase in wetland nature reserves and a greater expanse of reed-bed habitat, which provides an ideal habitat for such species. The RSPB, which runs 168 reserves, already cares for some 10 per cent of the nearly 16,000 acres of reed beds in the UK and plans to create 1,200 more acres by 2010.
RSPB spokesman Mike Everett said: "But it's not just about increasing reed-bed habitat. We now know much more about what these species of birds need and we are managing the existing reedbeds to meet their requirements. Bitterns, among our rarest marsh birds, are already benefiting. There were as few as 12 males making their famous springtime "booming" call nationally in 1997 but since then numbers have increased to 29 this year."
EXOTIC SPECIES SPREAD THEIR WINGS
Purple heron (Ardea purpurea): Ceased to be classed as a British rarity in 1982, and birds nesting on the continent continue to stray here regularly. The Dutch population has increased during the last century, which has long aroused hopes of its breeding range expanding to the UK.
Night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax): After more than 150 UK sightings in the last decade, the British Birds Rarities Committee recently declared this species no longer rare. With the nearest breeding colonies in the Netherlands, a move across the North Sea is possible.
Cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis): Ten years ago this species had appeared only 53 times in Britain. Since then the figure has more than doubled and the species has been seen every month this year. Europe's breeding population range has now reached northern France. Will southern England be next?
Great white egret (Ardea alba): Eastern Europe held the nearest breeding colonies 30 years ago but the birds began to edge north-west and a population became established in the Netherlands. After just 50 sightings in the UK up to 1990, the total is now fast approaching 200.