Survey discovers hotspot for threatened species

Redshanks are often alert and noisy and known as the 'sentinel of the marshes'

A survey on the Humber Estuary has revealed the area is a hotspot for a threatened bird species.

The RSPB collected data across both East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire between April and June 2024 and revealed 420 pairs of breeding redshanks.

Any area with one-per-cent of the population of species is considered to be "highly important" for conservation and results showed the Outer Humber supports two-per-cent.

The species is not at the critically endangered stage just yet, but is on the amber list of conservation concern.

There are 81 breeding pairs of redshanks across Tetney Marshes in Lincolnshire

The surveyed areas include those that are part of the East Coast Wetlands that stretch from the Humber to the Thames.

Among these areas includes RSPB Tetney Marshes, with about 81 breeding pairs in this location alone.

The total UK population of redshanks is about 22,000 pairs and they nest and raise their young between April and July in England's saltmarsh and wetland habitats.

Due to factors including the loss of lowland wet grasslands, climate change and industrial farming practices, the RSPB said redshanks have declined by 49 per-cent from 1995 to 2020 in the UK.

The decline of the population is also an "early warning sign" of the "deterioration of saltmarsh" due to environmental concerns, the RSPB added.

The survey was funded by Natural England and the Life on the Edge project and is part of a wider scheme to address the conservation needs of saltmarsh birds.