Long-term decline and geographical variation in the numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Shetland

Will Miles; Mick  Mellor; Sheila  Gear; Paul V.  Harvey; Glen  Tyler

doi:10.1080/00063657.2022.2141192

Long-term decline and geographical variation in the numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Shetland

Will Miles^*, Mick Mellor, Sheila Gear, Paul V. Harvey, Glen Tyler

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Capsule

Numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima counted in Shetland during surveys from 1977 to 2019 decreased from approximately 14,500 to an estimated 3600 individuals, a 75% population decline.

Aims

To report results of extensive surveys of Eiders across Shetland during the annual complete moult period, review historical surveys, and evaluate long-term population changes and the possible underlying causes for change.

Methods

Extensive areas of coastal Shetland were surveyed for Eiders during the annual moult period from July to September, every one to five years from 1977 to 2019. Spatial sampling was variable between surveys from 1977 to 1993 but more systematic and standardised during all surveys from 1996 to 2019. Overall population change, changes in numbers of birds within areas categorised as either exposed or sheltered coast, and change in the proportion of adult males to females/juveniles were assessed.

Results

Surveys from 1977 to 1993 indicated a 55% decrease, from approximately 14,500–6500 individuals, and surveys from 1996 to 2019 showed a 45% decrease, from an estimated 6700–3600 individuals, indicating an overall population decrease of approximately 75% from 1977 to 2019. From 1996 to 2019, Eider numbers decreased in areas of exposed coast by approximately 90% but increased by at least 70% in the more sparsely populated sheltered areas, and the overall proportion of adult males to females/juveniles reduced by one-third.

Conclusion

From 1977 to 2019, a substantial decline of approximately 75% occurred in the Shetland Eider population at the time of moult. Shetland Eiders are not S. m. mollissima but morphologically and genetically akin to S. m. faeroeensis, the Faroese subspecies, the rarest subspecies worldwide, so this decline is of high conservation concern. Causes of the decline largely remain unknown, but ecological datasets on Shetland Eiders are few and detailed studies, including remote tracking of individuals’ movements throughout the year, would be worthwhile.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	477-488
Number of pages	12
Journal	Bird Study
Volume	68
Issue number	4
Early online date	21 Nov 2022
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/00063657.2022.2141192
Publication status	Published - 22 Nov 2022

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Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.
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Cite this

@article{9661b3e2ba5d45869ecea0b97f88a78f,

title = "Long-term decline and geographical variation in the numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Shetland",

abstract = "Capsule Numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima counted in Shetland during surveys from 1977 to 2019 decreased from approximately 14,500 to an estimated 3600 individuals, a 75% population decline. Aims To report results of extensive surveys of Eiders across Shetland during the annual complete moult period, review historical surveys, and evaluate long-term population changes and the possible underlying causes for change. Methods Extensive areas of coastal Shetland were surveyed for Eiders during the annual moult period from July to September, every one to five years from 1977 to 2019. Spatial sampling was variable between surveys from 1977 to 1993 but more systematic and standardised during all surveys from 1996 to 2019. Overall population change, changes in numbers of birds within areas categorised as either exposed or sheltered coast, and change in the proportion of adult males to females/juveniles were assessed. Results Surveys from 1977 to 1993 indicated a 55% decrease, from approximately 14,500–6500 individuals, and surveys from 1996 to 2019 showed a 45% decrease, from an estimated 6700–3600 individuals, indicating an overall population decrease of approximately 75% from 1977 to 2019. From 1996 to 2019, Eider numbers decreased in areas of exposed coast by approximately 90% but increased by at least 70% in the more sparsely populated sheltered areas, and the overall proportion of adult males to females/juveniles reduced by one-third. Conclusion From 1977 to 2019, a substantial decline of approximately 75% occurred in the Shetland Eider population at the time of moult. Shetland Eiders are not S. m. mollissima but morphologically and genetically akin to S. m. faeroeensis, the Faroese subspecies, the rarest subspecies worldwide, so this decline is of high conservation concern. Causes of the decline largely remain unknown, but ecological datasets on Shetland Eiders are few and detailed studies, including remote tracking of individuals{\textquoteright} movements throughout the year, would be worthwhile.",

author = "Will Miles and Mick Mellor and Sheila Gear and Harvey, {Paul V.} and Glen Tyler",

note = "Funding: The 1977 survey was funded and led by the Nature Conservancy Council. Surveys from 1980 to 2019 were funded by the Sullom Voe Association and led by the Shetland Oil Terminal Environmental Advisory Group (SOTEAG).",

year = "2022",

month = nov,

day = "22",

doi = "10.1080/00063657.2022.2141192",

language = "English",

volume = "68",

pages = "477--488",

journal = "Bird Study",

issn = "0006-3657",

publisher = "Taylor and Francis",

number = "4",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Long-term decline and geographical variation in the numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Shetland

AU - Miles, Will

AU - Mellor, Mick

AU - Gear, Sheila

AU - Harvey, Paul V.

AU - Tyler, Glen

N1 - Funding: The 1977 survey was funded and led by the Nature Conservancy Council. Surveys from 1980 to 2019 were funded by the Sullom Voe Association and led by the Shetland Oil Terminal Environmental Advisory Group (SOTEAG).

PY - 2022/11/22

Y1 - 2022/11/22

N2 - Capsule Numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima counted in Shetland during surveys from 1977 to 2019 decreased from approximately 14,500 to an estimated 3600 individuals, a 75% population decline. Aims To report results of extensive surveys of Eiders across Shetland during the annual complete moult period, review historical surveys, and evaluate long-term population changes and the possible underlying causes for change. Methods Extensive areas of coastal Shetland were surveyed for Eiders during the annual moult period from July to September, every one to five years from 1977 to 2019. Spatial sampling was variable between surveys from 1977 to 1993 but more systematic and standardised during all surveys from 1996 to 2019. Overall population change, changes in numbers of birds within areas categorised as either exposed or sheltered coast, and change in the proportion of adult males to females/juveniles were assessed. Results Surveys from 1977 to 1993 indicated a 55% decrease, from approximately 14,500–6500 individuals, and surveys from 1996 to 2019 showed a 45% decrease, from an estimated 6700–3600 individuals, indicating an overall population decrease of approximately 75% from 1977 to 2019. From 1996 to 2019, Eider numbers decreased in areas of exposed coast by approximately 90% but increased by at least 70% in the more sparsely populated sheltered areas, and the overall proportion of adult males to females/juveniles reduced by one-third. Conclusion From 1977 to 2019, a substantial decline of approximately 75% occurred in the Shetland Eider population at the time of moult. Shetland Eiders are not S. m. mollissima but morphologically and genetically akin to S. m. faeroeensis, the Faroese subspecies, the rarest subspecies worldwide, so this decline is of high conservation concern. Causes of the decline largely remain unknown, but ecological datasets on Shetland Eiders are few and detailed studies, including remote tracking of individuals’ movements throughout the year, would be worthwhile.

AB - Capsule Numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima counted in Shetland during surveys from 1977 to 2019 decreased from approximately 14,500 to an estimated 3600 individuals, a 75% population decline. Aims To report results of extensive surveys of Eiders across Shetland during the annual complete moult period, review historical surveys, and evaluate long-term population changes and the possible underlying causes for change. Methods Extensive areas of coastal Shetland were surveyed for Eiders during the annual moult period from July to September, every one to five years from 1977 to 2019. Spatial sampling was variable between surveys from 1977 to 1993 but more systematic and standardised during all surveys from 1996 to 2019. Overall population change, changes in numbers of birds within areas categorised as either exposed or sheltered coast, and change in the proportion of adult males to females/juveniles were assessed. Results Surveys from 1977 to 1993 indicated a 55% decrease, from approximately 14,500–6500 individuals, and surveys from 1996 to 2019 showed a 45% decrease, from an estimated 6700–3600 individuals, indicating an overall population decrease of approximately 75% from 1977 to 2019. From 1996 to 2019, Eider numbers decreased in areas of exposed coast by approximately 90% but increased by at least 70% in the more sparsely populated sheltered areas, and the overall proportion of adult males to females/juveniles reduced by one-third. Conclusion From 1977 to 2019, a substantial decline of approximately 75% occurred in the Shetland Eider population at the time of moult. Shetland Eiders are not S. m. mollissima but morphologically and genetically akin to S. m. faeroeensis, the Faroese subspecies, the rarest subspecies worldwide, so this decline is of high conservation concern. Causes of the decline largely remain unknown, but ecological datasets on Shetland Eiders are few and detailed studies, including remote tracking of individuals’ movements throughout the year, would be worthwhile.

U2 - 10.1080/00063657.2022.2141192

DO - 10.1080/00063657.2022.2141192

M3 - Article

SN - 0006-3657

VL - 68

SP - 477

EP - 488

JO - Bird Study

JF - Bird Study

IS - 4

ER -

Long-term decline and geographical variation in the numbers of moulting Common Eiders Somateria mollissima in Shetland

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