Attributing seabirds at sea to appropriate breeding colonies and populations (CR/2015/18)

Butler, Adam; Carroll, Matthew; Searle, Kate ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4624-9023; Bolton, Mark; Waggitt, James; Evans, Peter; Rehfisch, Mark; Goddard, Bethany; Brewer, Mark; Burthe, Sarah ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8871-3432; Daunt, Francis ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4638-3388. 2017 Attributing seabirds at sea to appropriate breeding colonies and populations (CR/2015/18). Marine Scotland Science, 103pp. (Scottish Marine and Freshwater Science, Volume 11, Number 8)

Before downloading, please read NORA policies.

Preview

Text N539282CR.pdf - Published Version Available under License Open Government Licence v3. Download (2MB) | Preview

Abstract/Summary

The Scottish Government has set a target of 100% of Scottish demand for electricity to be met by renewable sources by 2020. Offshore renewables have the potential to make a significant contribution to achieving this target. However, the Scottish Government has a duty to ensure that offshore renewable developments (ORDs) are achieved in a sustainable manner, by protecting habitats and species from adverse impacts. ORDs may negatively affect seabirds, in particular due to collisions with turbine blades, displacement to less favourable habitats and barrier effects to movement. In assessing the potential effects of ORDs on the environment the potential for impacts on protected populations for seabirds is assessed. To inform environmental assessments ORD developers conduct at sea surveys of seabirds. Most seabirds at sea data are collected during surveys from ships or planes, but the breeding colony a seabird has come from cannot be identified from these data. It is important to understand which breeding colonies birds at sea come from, to ensure that the impacts upon the appropriate colony can be assessed as part of the licensing process. The process by which the origin colonies of seabirds at sea is identified is called apportioning. In a project led by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology a new tool was developed that built upon an existing tool that attributes seabirds at sea to specific breeding colonies. By comparing several new approaches to analysing seabirds at sea data new improved methods were developed. The resulting apportioning tool allows users to produce a more accurate estimate of the relative proportions of seabirds present in a specific location that can be attributed to different breeding colonies.

Item Type:	Report (Project Report)
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.7489/2006-1
Groups/Sections (CEH only):	Biodiversity (Science Area 2017-24)
ISSN:	2043-7722
Funders/Sponsors:	The Scottish Government, Natural Environment Research Council, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.:	Open Access report - full text available via Official URL link.
Additional Keywords:	seabirds, offshore wind, renewable electricity, planning, consenting, regulations, environmental impact assessment, breeding colonies, attribution, apportioning, GPS, kittiwake, guillemot, razorbill, spatial data, computer model, statistics, WAKE method
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment Marine Sciences
Date made live:	22 Apr 2025 08:51 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/539282

Actions (login required)

View Item

Document Downloads

More statistics for this item...