Southsea fake geese deployed to attract migrating birds

It is hoped geese flying over the field 'will see the decoys and land in an area'

Fake geese have been installed in a Hampshire field to entice migratory birds over the winter.

The decoys are in an enclosed section of Castle Field on Southsea seafront and will remain until March.

It is hoped they will attract brent geese whose usual grounds have been taken away for sea defence work.

Audio devices that emit geese calls are being installed to encourage the birds to make the site their temporary home.

Rupert Teasdale, Southsea Coastal Scheme's project manager, said: "By placing decoys in Castle Field, we are actively encouraging brent geese to use the area.

"The idea is that the geese flying over the field will see the decoys and land in an area where they will be protected throughout the winter."

October sees the arrival of the brent geese from Siberia in southern England

The move was welcomed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, according to the Local Democracy Reporting service.

A spokeswoman for the trust said: "Providing areas to support the local population is vital - in conservation terms this species is of high international importance and is regarded as vulnerable because of the relatively small size of the world population, which has a highly variable breeding success.

"[We are] in support of a mitigation site... for the returning brent geese; it's vital these internationally important birds have suitable green space to roost."

She said that since the area was an "important recreation area for local people" it needed to be monitored and managed to make sure the geese were not deterred from using it.

The field was fenced off earlier in the month and will be every winter for the next five years, the duration of the works.

The £131m project is to strengthen the sea defences along a 4.5km (2.8 mile) stretch of coastline.