Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

About: Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is a nonprofit organization based out in Sandy, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Biodiversity. The organization has 670 authors who have published 1425 publications receiving 88006 citations. The organization is also known as: RSPB & Plumage League.

Changes in breeding wader populations on lowland wet grasslands in England and Wales: causes and potential solutions

Abstract: Populations of waders breeding on lowland wet grassland in England and Wales have declined markedly in recent decades; the loss of once widespread species such as Lapwing Vanellus vanellus, Snipe Gallinago gallinago and Redshank Tringa totanus from many areas is of particular conservation concern These declines are due to loss of grassland to other land uses, and to significant changes in grassland management Drainage, reseeding and changes in grazing regimes have all been particularly detrimental to lowland wet grassland in terms of a breeding habitat for waders Careful management of key sites, many of them managed as nature reserves, has shown that wader declines can be halted or even reversed Aspects of this management can be applied to larger areas through agri-environment schemes, such as the Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESA) scheme, Tir Gofal (in Wales) and Countryside Stewardship (in England) but these need be carefully targeted to ensure that the benefits for waders are maximized In particular, it has been shown that higher tier management options within the ESA scheme (those that enhance the landscape) are more cost-effective than lower tier options (those that maintain the landscape) The extent and suitability of lowland wet grassland will face further pressure in years to come as a result of climate change, the impacts of which need to be assessed and mitigated against

Response to Comment on "International Conservation Policy Delivers Benefits for Birds in Europe"

Abstract: Rodriguez-Munoz et al . raise concerns about our study on the effectiveness of the European Union's Birds Directive, based on the provenance of the trend data used and on the predictions that were tested. Here, we show that our results are robust to different assumptions of uncertainty surrounding trend estimates and that criticisms of the methods stem largely from misunderstandings of the original paper.

The emergence and spread of finch trichomonosis in the British Isles.

Abstract: Finch trichomonosis, caused by the protozoal parasite Trichomonas gallinae, was first recognized as an emerging infectious disease of British passerines in 2005. The first year of seasonal epidemic mortality occurred in 2006 with significant declines of greenfinch Carduelis chloris and chaffinch Fringilla coelebs populations. Here, we demonstrate that large-scale mortality, principally of greenfinch, continued in subsequent years, 2007-2009, with a shifting geographical distribution across the British Isles over time. Consequent to the emergence of finch trichomonosis, the breeding greenfinch population in Great Britain has declined from ca 4.3 million to ca 2.8 million birds and the maximum mean number of greenfinches (a proxy for flock size) visiting gardens has declined by 50 per cent. The annual rate of decline of the breeding greenfinch population within England has exceeded 7 per cent since the initial epidemic. Although initially chaffinch populations were regionally diminished by the disease, this has not continued. Retrospective analyses of disease surveillance data showed a rapid, widespread emergence of finch trichomonosis across Great Britain in 2005 and we hypothesize that the disease emerged by T. gallinae jumping from columbiforms to passeriforms. Further investigation is required to determine the continuing impact of finch trichomonosis and to develop our understanding of how protozoal diseases jump host species.

Effectiveness of action in India to reduce exposure of gyps vultures to the toxic veterinary drug diclofenac

Abstract: Contamination of their carrion food supply with the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac has caused rapid population declines across the Indian subcontinent of three species of Gyps vultures endemic to South Asia The governments of India, Pakistan and Nepal took action in 2006 to prevent the veterinary use of diclofenac on domesticated livestock, the route by which contamination occurs We analyse data from three surveys of the prevalence and concentration of diclofenac residues in carcasses of domesticated ungulates in India, carried out before and after the implementation of a ban on veterinary use There was little change in the prevalence and concentration of diclofenac between a survey before the ban and one conducted soon after its implementation, with the percentage of carcasses containing diclofenac in these surveys estimated at 108 and 107%, respectively However, both the prevalence and concentration of diclofenac had fallen markedly 7-31 months after the implementation of the ban, with the true prevalence in this third survey estimated at 65% Modelling of the impact of this reduction in diclofenac on the expected rate of decline of the oriental white-backed vulture (Gyps bengalensis) in India indicates that the decline rate has decreased to 40% of the rate before the ban, but is still likely to be rapid (about 18% year(-1)) Hence, further efforts to remove diclofenac from vulture food are still needed if the future recovery or successful reintroduction of vultures is to be feasible