Surfbirds News

Lake Chad has retreated by 95 per cent since 1963 because of water extraction, increased population, overgrazing and less rainfall. This is bad news for Britain’s migrating birds.

Millions of birds including cuckoos, spotted flycatchers, wheatears and turtle doves fly thousands of miles annually, between wintering sites in southern Africa and nesting areas in Britain and other parts of Europe.

Turtle Dove, Jersey, © Romano da Costa

These birds have all declined, in some cases by more than 50 per cent. Problems finding enough food before they return to Britain are amongst the difficulties they are facing.

The Sahel region, where Lake Chad lies, is a major refuelling site for migrating birds. They stop here to feed on insects and berries. A shrunken Lake Chad means much of the vegetation harbouring this food has gone. Less food means underfed birds means fewer will make it to the UK.

We have already noticed, both through survey and anecdote, substantial declines of spotted flycatchers, turtle doves and cuckoos.

There are other crises these birds are facing – turtle doves are shot in southern Europe and the best nesting holes may be taken by the time spotted flycatchers arrive - but the drying of Lake Chad, the Sahel and the neighbouring Sahara desert, is still a major problem.

There are things we can do to help. We can continue to press the UK government to work with other governments to reduce global greenhouse emissions and check the symptoms of climate change including reduced rainfall.

We can press the Cypriot and Maltese governments to ban the hunting of turtle doves, most urgently in the spring before they have had chance to breed.

And we can urge farmers here to take up opportunities to retain and plant hedgerows and trees to provide more food and nesting sites for migrant birds when they arrive.

Lake Chad might seem a long way off but as the migrating bird flies it is not, assuming these birds have enough energy to get here and assuming they have a decent chance of return.