Birds of Conservation Concern in the Isle of Man 2021

9. Acknowledgements

Contents (Quick links) 1. Methodology 2. Key findings 3. The Red List Y Rolley Jiarg  4. The Amber List Y Rolley Amber  5. The Green List Y Rolley Glass  6. The Black List Y Rolley Doo 7. Not assessed 8. Full results 9. Endorsements 10. Acknowledgements

Birds of Conservation Concern in the Isle of Man (BoCCIoM) 2021
Ushagyn ta Feme Coadey ayns Ellan Vannin 2021

Birds of Conservation Concern in the Isle of Man (BoCCIoM) 2021 Ushagyn ta Feme Coadey ayns Ellan Vannin 2021 is the first comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of all regularly occurring species of wild bird in the self-governing British Crown Dependency of the Isle of Man.

The assessment uses the tried and tested methods of the Birds of Conservation Concern format.

A traffic light system of Red (greatest concern), Amber (moderate concern) and Green (least concern) is used to indicate the conservation status of each species as determined by BoCCIoM 2021.

Identifying the species of greatest concern enables national prioritisation of Manx conservation policy, strategy and funding. As the definitive, up-to-date account of the populations and ranges of birds in the Isle of Man, BoCCIoM 2021 is an essential resource for international conservationists wishing to consider the significance of Manx birds and their habitats.

BoCCIoM 2021 is endorsed by the Manx Ornithological Society, Manx Wildlife Trust, Manx National Heritage and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

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1. A robust, proven methodology

BoCCIoM 2021 closely follows the proven methodology of BoCC UK and BoCC Ireland—ensuring results are broadly comparable, while adjusting for the Island’s smaller territorial size.

The criteria used for assessment include: recent and historical changes in population and range; localisation of breeding and wintering ranges; breeding and wintering rarity; population importance in an international context; and the current conservation status of species in a European and global context.

A species is Red- or Amber-listed if one or more of the assessed criteria for that species reaches the defined threshold. Manx BirdLife is grateful to the many seasonal and volunteer surveyors who, over many years, have undertaken the fieldwork and reporting required to amass the extensive datasets used in this first ever BoCCIoM assessment.

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2. Key findings

Of 332 species on the official Manx List of Birds, all 166 regularly occurring species were fully assessed for BoCCIoM 2021, comprising:

• breeding species with at least one confirmed or probable breeding record from 2006 onwards (i.e. since the start of the second Manx Bird Atlas survey);
• overwintering species and passage migrants whose occurrence is considered to have been at least annual in recent years.

Of these 166 fully assessed species:

• 48 (29%) were placed on the Red List Y Rolley Jiarg;
• 68 (41%) were placed on the Amber List Y Rolley Amber;
• 50 were placed on the Green List Y Rolley Glass;
• 14 make it onto the Black List Y Rolley Doo.

Ground-nesting species such as Curlew, Lapwing and Skylark are in jeopardy, threatened by loss of habitat, disturbance and predation. Seabirds such as Razorbill, Black Guillemot, Shag and Puffin are declining in the face of challenging ‘local’ and global changes to their marine environment. Even familiar birds such as Linnet, Meadow Pipit and Kestrel are declining—following on the heels of Yellowhammer and Corn Bunting which, although once abundant on the Island, are now extinct as native Manx birds.

You may download a PDF copy of the summary booklet for free.

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3. The Red List Y Rolley Jiarg

Species that are considered to be of the greatest conservation concern:

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4. The Amber List Y Rolley Amber

Species that are considered to be of moderate conservation concern:

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5. The Green List Y Rolley Glass

Species that are considered to be of least conservation concern:

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6. The Black List Y Rolley Doo

Species that formally regularly nested in the Isle of Man but are now considered extirpated as native Manx breeders:

 

The following additional species have nested occasionally in the Isle of Man without establishing a long-term pattern of breeding, and for which there are no definite or probable breeding records in the period from 2006 onwards: Red-breasted Merganser Mergus serrator, Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis, Golden Plover Pluvialis apricaria, Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos, Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis, Tawny Owl Strix aluco and Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus.

The history of Tawny Owl Strix aluco on the Island is uncertain. It is a vagrant and has been recorded breeding on one occasion (Sharpe & Morris 2020). Popular confusion with the calls of Long-eared Owl hinders attempts to determine if the species persists.

Williamson (1940) believed Storm Petrel Hydrobates pelagicus (aka ‘Mother Carey’s Chicken’) to be a “lost [Manx] breeding species”, but to this day breeding has never been proved. Off the Calf of Man, Chicken Rock is named after storm-driven wrecks of this species, alluding to its former abundance in the Irish Sea. Though undoubtedly present throughout summer while on feeding sorties from nearby colonies (and probably augmented by the presence of non-breeding individuals), Storm Petrels today are rarely-observed in Manx waters.

Williamson (1941) also makes the case that a Gannetry existed on the Calf of Man. Whatever its size, it had ceased to exist by the 19th Century, probably earlier. Though Gannets Morus bassanus visit throughout the year, there is just one modern record of the species alighting on the Island’s cliffs (Hill et al. 2019).

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7. Not assessed

Of 332 species on the official Manx List of Birds, 166 species were not short-listed for assessment for BoCCIoM 2021, being those:

• formerly breeding species that no longer breed;
• formerly wintering species or passage migrants which no longer regularly occur;
• non-native species;
• rare or vagrant species.

The species not fully assessed for BoCCIoM 2021 are:

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9. BoCCIoM 2021 is endorsed by:

10. Acknowledgements

Manx BirdLife would like to thank the Scheinberg Family without whose support BoCCIoM 2021 would not have been possible.

The authors are indebted to Gillian Gilbert, Principal Conservation Scientist for RSPB Northern Ireland. We also thank David Bellamy, Pat Cullen, Adam Denard, Anne-Marie McDevitt, Allen S. Moore, Alice Morris, Louise Samson, Aron Sapsford and Richard Selman for their past and recent inputs to the BoCCIoM project and assistance with this paper.

We should also like to thank the many fieldworkers and support teams who have helped to compile the datasets used in this assessment.

Translation into Manx Gaelic has been kindly provided by https://www.culturevannin.im.

Finally, we thank the Manx Ornithological Society, Manx Wildlife Trust, Manx National Heritage and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds for their endorsement of the project and its results.

Neil G. Morris
Christopher M. Sharpe MBE
https://manxbirdlife.im
July 2021