Many of England’s important species are in decline or have precariously fragile populations, as highlighted in the fourth national census of the UK’s seabirds in December 2023. Against this backdrop, pressures such as Avian Influenza are exacerbating other impacts, including climate change and marine renewables development, meaning we need to urgently drive seabird recovery whilst supporting sustainable development needs.
To tackle the problem, Defra commissioned Natural England to analyse information on threats to produce implementable recommendations to promote recovery within English seabird colonies and waters. We assessed sensitivity, exposure and vulnerability of species to anthropogenic pressures and the efficiency of policy and legislation currently in place to protect seabirds from the pressures. These assessments allowed us to identify the detrimental pressures to seabirds and the resulting recommendations were translated into actions which will form the template for seabird recovery in England.
We produced 19 recommendations including 74 actions, grouped into issues around feeding, breeding, survival and knowledge. Recovery actions are required within protected sites and across wider seas, often requiring changes to ensure human activities are genuinely sustainable. This work has been published by Defra. We are moving to action planning, so that we can begin to turn evidence into recovery activities for our precious seabirds.