'Huge losses' of Scottish seabirds due to avian flu

Sandwich terns were one of the worst hit species

Guillemots, kittiwakes and terns in Scotland have suffered "huge losses" this summer due to avian flu, according to Scotland's nature agency.

There were among 9,610 reports of dead and sick wild birds reported to NatureScot between 3 April and 1 October, mostly along the east coast.

Experts say there are signs some birds are building immunity to the virus.

But at Aberdeenshire's Forvie National Nature Reserve alone more than 40% of this year's tern chicks died.

NatureScot said that a degree of natural mortality is normal among tern chicks, but the scale and sudden nature of avian flu-related deaths this past summer has been unusual.

And when combined with the number of adult deaths reported, the losses are extremely concerning for the recovery of the long-lived birds.

The avian flu outbreak in wild birds in the UK began in 2021. Its risk to human health is low.

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Following a quiet start to spring this year, a sudden increase in mortalities began in June and reached a peak in mid-July when around 2,300 sick and dead birds were reported to NatureScot in a two-week period.

The agency said guillemots, kittiwakes, and terns have experienced huge losses at their breeding colonies this summer.

The east coast of Scotland has been the worst hit area

The highest number of reported mortalities were among guillemots, a seabird of the auk family - 3,519 deaths were reported over the summer.

Eileen Stuart, NatureScot's deputy director of nature and climate change, said: "With very few great skua and gannet deaths this summer, we are hopeful that some wild birds are building immunity to HPAI [highly pathogenic avian influenza].

"But other species, such as kittiwakes and terns that were impacted last year, have still been greatly affected this year."

'Wake-up call'

The agency said many seabirds are already experiencing multiple pressures and population declines and they are trying to understand why some species have been hit harder than others.

It also said populations are likely to take years to recover, with an estimated 20,000 seabirds perishing from avian flu in summer 2022 in addition to the deaths this summer.

Claire Smith, the senior policy officer for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Scotland, said it was devastating to see thousands of dead birds again this year.

"This needs to be a wake-up call to step up the speed and scale of practical conservation actions to help our globally important seabird populations recover," she said.