Media release 18 AUGUST 2003

RECORD YEAR FOR BREEDING BIRDS AT OUSE WASHES
CAMBRIDGESHIRE NATURE RESERVE CELEBRATES SUMMER WITHOUT FLOODS

The RSPB's Ouse Washes nature reserve has had one of its best ever years for breeding wading birds.

Results of this year's surveys, released by the RSPB, reveal the highest ever recorded number of breeding redshanks at 333 pairs, up 23 per cent on last year. Snipe were up to 323 territorial birds, an increase of 33 per cent over last year, making this the highest total since 1990. The Ouse Washes is the most important site for nesting snipe in lowland UK. Lapwings also increased by 29 per cent to 285 pairs, the highest figure since 1984.

However one of the UK's rarest breeding birds, the black-tailed godwit, had a poor year, with just one pair at the RSPB reserve and three other pairs at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust end of the Ouse Washes. Three of the pairs nested successfully and raised at least seven young to the flying stage.

An increase in spring and summer flooding since the mid seventies has been the main cause for the godwit population on the Ouse Washes dropping from 65 pairs in 1972 to just four pairs this year. Happily, black-tailed godwits were more successful at the RSPB's Nene Washes nature reserve near Peterborough this year, where 32 pairs nested.

The RSPB's Ouse Washes senior warden, Cliff Carson, said: "This was a successful season for breeding waders because, for the second year running, the spring floods drained away early in March and April and did not return. This gave ground nesting birds a chance to find nest sites and raise young. The number of snipe returning is particularly pleasing as elsewhere in England and Wales their population has declined steeply. They need shallow, damp ditches, for the young to feed in while they are growing. A lot of work is needed to maintain these conditions consistently so it has been very rewarding to see our efforts bear fruit."

The Environment Agency is leading efforts to reduce the impact of summer flooding at the Ouse Washes on breeding wading birds.

ends

For further information contact:
Cliff Carson or Robert Coleman, RSPB Ouse Washes Reserve, 01354 680212
Chris Durdin, RSPB regional office, 01603 660066
Chris Durdin, out of hours, 01603 300552

Photographs of species mentioned in this release, including lapwing, snipe and redshank, are available from Lynette Dear or Chris Durdin at the RSPB's regional office on 01603 660066.

Additional notes:

  • 1. The Ouse Washes are a 19 mile (30 km) stretch of seasonally flooded wet grassland between Denver and Earith, intersected by ditches which are noted for their aquatic flora and invertebrates. The Ouse Washes cover some 2,400 hectares, mostly in Cambridgeshire, partly in Norfolk. The RSPB manages 1227 hectares including 184 hectares owned by The Wildlife Trust, Cambridgeshire. Figures in the second paragraph of the release are for this area. Constructed during the 17th century, the primary function of the Ouse Washes is a winter flood storage reservoir for the waters of the River Ouse. It is the largest regularly flooded washland in Great Britain.
  • 2. The Washes have one of the largest populations of breeding waders in lowland England, especially snipe, redshank, lapwing and the scarce black-tailed godwit. These are ground-nesting birds that nest from April, the critical months being May and June.
  • 3. At Manea, there is exciting new pilot project to create damp grazing pasture on former arable fields alongside the Ouse Washes, close to the RSPB nature reserve base at Welches Dam. These fields, 106 acres (43 hectares) being managed by the RSPB under a tenancy agreement from Cambridgeshire County Council, have been remodelled to resemble the meadowlands of the Dutch polders. It is hoped the project, which also involves English Nature and the Environment Agency, will demonstrate how similar damp grasslands could be created around the Ouse Washes to provide alternative flood-free nest sites in years when The Washes are subject to spring flooding.
  • 4. Once widespread on wet meadows, the population of black-tailed godwits tumbled due to widespread land drainage and is now virtually restricted to the Ouse and Nene Washes. Just over 30 pairs breed in the Fens - some three quarters of the UK population.
  • 5. Essential to the successful management of the wetland is the traditional grazing of cattle, sheep and horses during the summer. Cattle numbers on the RSPB reserve typically peak at over 2,000. They are 'shepherded' by a team of four RSPB stockmen. Using quad bikes converted to run on liquid propane gas, the stockmen cover up to 25 miles per day ensuring their animals are safe, healthy and are regularly moved to fresh pastures.


    The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
    East Anglia Regional Office
    Stalham House
    65 Thorpe Road
    Norwich
    NR1 1UD
    Tel: 01603 660066
    Fax: 01603 660088
    or UK Headquarters Tel: 01767 681577
    Registered charity no 207076