WaderTales blogs in 2017

19 WaderTales blogs were published in 2017, celebrating waders and wader research. Many of the articles are based on newly published papers, with the aim of making wader science available to a broader audience. Click on a link in bold to read an individual blog. 

Wader/Shorebird science and conservation

• Which wader, when and why? summarises the annual migration patterns of over 40 species of wader that visit Britain and Ireland.
• The not-so-Grey Plover focuses on the moult of the Grey Plover but the principles are relevant to determining the ages of birds of other species.
• Why are we losing our large waders? takes a look at a review of the common threats faced by the 13 Numeniini species (godwits, curlews and Upland Sandpiper).
• Interpreting changing wader counts looks at the links between local and national wader counts, with consequences for site-based species protection.
• Wader declines in the shrinking Yellow Sea discusses the link between reliance on the Yellow Sea and population declines, across wader species.
• 25 years of wader declines focuses on the loss of breeding waders (Lapwing, Redshank, Oystercatcher & Curlew) from Scottish farmland.
• International Shorebird Rescue is a repackaged version of an online Twitter presentation for the BOU Twitter Conference #BOU17TC

Black-tailed Godwits

• Dutch Black-tailed Godwit numbers down by nearly 75% describes how counts and colour-ring sightings in Spain & Portugal are used to monitor Dutch populations.
• Black-tailed Godwit pairs – the importance of synchrony reveals what happens if one member of the pair is late getting back to its territory.
• Waiting for the wind – spring flocks of Black-tailed Godwit in Scotland reveals how dependent migrating godwit flocks are on weather patterns.
• Should Black-tailed Godwits cross the Sahara? investigates the trade-offs for limosa Black-tailed Godwits that winter in Iberia, instead of crossing the Sahara.
• Special Black-tailed Godwits asks birdwatchers to look out for 25 ‘head-started’ limosa Black-tailed Godwits that have been hand-reared in East Anglia (UK).

Iceland-based research

• Do Iceland’s farmers care about wader conservation? At a time of agricultural expansion, are farmers prepared to leave space for breeding waders?
• A great summer for Iceland’s waders? summarises the wader studies that took place in the summer of 2017.
• Farming for waders in Iceland investigates densities of breeding waders along the gradient of agricultural intensification associated with farming activities.

Breeding Lapwings

• Can habitat management rescue Lapwing populations? Might the right mix of pools and verges with long grass provide a big enough uplift in nest success rates?
• Mastering Lapwing conservation focuses on two MSc projects that investigated actual and perceived risks of predation in Lapwings.

Upland Curlews

• Curlews can’t wait for a treatment plan focuses on the primary drivers of the species’ breeding decline in Great Britain.
• Sheep numbers and Welsh Curlew looks at habitat associations within a large site  in the Welsh uplands; getting the grazing regime right seems to be very important.

There are nearly 30 other WaderTales blogs. Here’s the full list. The intention is to add one or two new blogs each month. You can sign up to receive an e-mail notification when a new one is published.

---

Graham (@grahamfappleton) has studied waders for over 40 years and is currently involved in wader research in the UK and in Iceland.  He was Director of Communications at The British Trust for Ornithology until 2013 and is now a freelance writer and broadcaster.