Read on Twitter
Can leisure and birds coexist on beaches?
Dog walking on beaches is one of the human activities that has the greatest impact on the breeding of coastal birds. Open thread
/
:
http://ow.ly/NGQ150BpSvF ; http://ow.ly/1jm150BpSFY
@WaderStudy @nature_org @_BTO @britishbirds
Dog walking on beaches is one of the human activities that has the greatest impact on the breeding of coastal birds. Open thread
/:http://ow.ly/NGQ150BpSvF ; http://ow.ly/1jm150BpSFY
@WaderStudy @nature_org @_BTO @britishbirds
Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) is one of the most characteristic species of coastal dune ecosystems. Plovers nests usually in flat places with little vegetation cover, between the dunes and the shore.
These nesting areas are altered by beach cleaning with heavy machinery, that periodically removes the tidal debris where birds usually nest.
Fenced enclosures have been installed on some beaches to protect nesting areas, so that recreational uses can more easily be separated from breeding habitats.
But not all animals interpret signage that restrict access within fenced enclosures in the same way.
Some people prefer to walk inside of fenced enclosures, causing disturbance to birds that are incubating or caring for their chicks.
But dog walking on the beach, although generally prohibited, is the recreational activity that has been shown to have the greatest impact on incubating birds.
Most birds flush from their nests when dogs approach them along the shore or through the dunes, leaving their nests unattended. Dogs chase birds and kill chicks that are unable to fly away.
When the frequency of disturbance is high, the stress to which the birds are subjected is important, and can trigger the desertion of the nests and the breeding areas.
In the central hours of sunny days, the sand usually heats up above 40 degrees Celsius. That's why you burn your feet when the sand is dry! Disturbance cause unattended eggs to overheat and the embryo dies.
It is necessary to enforce the regulations that prohibit dog access to the beaches. However, to reduce the stress level for the birds, dogs should always be leashed and only use the shore of the beach.
But it is also important to promote research on the impact of human disturbance on wildlife and then use its results to improve management and education beach users. More information: http://ow.ly/NGQ150BpSvF ; http://ow.ly/1jm150BpSFY
