The RSPB is celebrating its conservation successes, reminding everyone there is hope for wildlife despite the threats it faces.
5 min read
As RSPB Chief Executive, Beccy Speight, explains: “Since the start of this century, we’ve delivered some of the biggest wins for nature. From re-wiggling rivers to protecting islands from invasive, non-native species, the RSPB has shown what’s possible when we take bold conservation action. None of this would have happened without the passion and commitment of our members, volunteers and supporters. Nature still faces huge challenges, but we remain determined to find and champion solutions that give hope - for wildlife, wild places and people – for generations to come.”
From creating one of England’s biggest nature reserves to expanding one of the largest areas of ancient forests in Scotland, protecting threatened seabirds in Wales and bringing back Curlew from the brink in Northern Ireland, the past 26 years since the millennium has seen some massive conservation successes to celebrate.
Purchasing a “Pennines Paradise”
The successful purchase of Tarnhouse Farm at RSPB Geltsdale in Cumbria during 2024 will help with the transformation of this vital upland reserve into a thriving “Pennines Paradise” for nature and has created our biggest nature reserve in England, covering more than 50 square km. Planting 110,000 native trees and expanding scrub is restoring these scarce upland habitats, and the re-wiggling of Howgill Beck has restored the natural dynamics of the watercourse and its floodplain. By changing the grazing from sheep to cattle and ponies, the landscape is being brought back to life. Together, all these efforts are boosting wildlife populations and restoring natural habitats at scale. Surveys show an amazing 94 bird species now breed at Geltsdale, including Black Grouse, Hen Harrier, Merlin and Short-eared Owl. The expansion of our tenure at Geltsdale is thanks to the generosity of members, supporters and donors and will result in even greater wins for nature on this magnificent reserve for many years to come, demonstrating how our uplands can be restored for nature alongside nature-friendly farming.
Expanding Caledonian woodlands in Scotland
Located in the Scottish Highlands, RSPB Abernethy sits within the Cairngorms National Park. Efforts to restore the health of and expand the Caledonian woodland by natural regeneration through sustainable deer management and planting 12,000 broadleaf trees every year has doubled the forest to 7,900ha. Peatland restoration is also underway to help "re-wet" the landscape - whilst there is more to be done, this acts as a carbon sink to help tackle climate change. This large-scale habitat management has created ideal conditions for many of the astonishing 5,300 species that call Abernethy home. The recovery of rare Capercaillie has been successful over recent years with the number of lekking males continuing to increase, bucking the national trend. A range of other rare and special species can also be found here, including Golden Eagle, Crested Tit, Red Squirrel and Pine Hoverfly, which is testament to the successful conservation efforts across the nature reserve.
Saving seabirds on a Welsh island
Seabirds continue to thrive on Ramsey Island off the coast of Pembrokeshire following the historic rat eradication in 2000. Manx Shearwaters have particularly benefited as the small seabird nests in burrows, making their eggs and chicks vulnerable to predation. Since the island has been free of invasive non-native rats, numbers of Manx Shearwater have reached a remarkable 6,225 breeding pairs, up from the 900 recorded pre-eradication. Manx Shearwaters may only weigh the same as a loaf of bread, but they are champions of migration - travelling more than 10,000 miles from their breeding sites in the UK to South America for the winter. The success on Ramsey Island provided valuable information and techniques for further projects around the world, demonstrating how the RSPB is a world leader in conservation.
Creating a world-class waterbird haven in Eastern England
Frampton Marsh forms part of England's East Coast Wetlands, an area so important for waterbirds that it has been nominated for World Heritage Site status. The East Coast Wetlands form part of the East Atlantic Flyway, a route used by many millions of migratory waterbirds that stretches from the Arctic to Sub-Saharan Africa. The RSPB first purchased an area of saltmarsh at Frampton Marsh in 1984 to benefit breeding Redshank, an Amber-listed wader in serious decline with bright orange-red legs and bill. The area of saltmarsh used by Redshank for nesting, had declined over centuries due to land claimed for agriculture. Since the original purchase, we have acquired more land and created a complex of freshwater lagoons, wet grassland and scrapes. Frampton celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2024 and now has the largest population of breeding waders of any RSPB nature reserve on the UK mainland, with other breeding wader species including Avocet and Oystercatcher. It is also arguably the best place in Britain to see passage waders, including often rare species. Frampton is internationally important, supporting over 25,000 wintering waterbirds.
Saving threatened species across the UK
RSPB nature reserves play a vital role in saving threatened species in the UK. From Bittern to Field Cricket, Fen Raft Spider and Crane, we’re supporting the recovery of some remarkable species across our network of nature reserves, alongside our partners.
The recovery of booming Bitterns in the UK can be heralded as one of the greatest species’ comebacks. Previously threatened with extinction in the UK, and with just 11 booming males present in the UK in 1997, RSPB nature reserves now hold more than 50% of the UK breeding population with 138 booming males counted. Their recovery has been achieved through large-scale creation and restoration of inland reedbeds. Crucially, most of the UK population can now be found in reedbeds that are safe from coastal flooding, including RSPB Lakenheath in Suffolk and RSPB Ham Wall in Somerset.
As the UK’s tallest bird, the Common Crane is a sight to see standing at 1.2m. Whilst they were driven to extinction in the 16th century, the restoration and protection of the UK’s wetlands have changed the Crane’s fortunes – RSPB nature reserves support more than a third of the UK breeding population with 30 pairs recorded. At RSPB Lakenheath in Suffolk, the creation of “runways” encourages Cranes to nest. Mimicking airport runways, large areas of reedbed are cut so adults can safely land and take off without catching their wings.
Beccy Speight adds: “These wins for nature give hope for wildlife and the natural world on which we all depend. The RSPB is a world leader in conservation, and these successes are just a handful of our incredible achievements. Whilst nature remains hugely threatened by challenges such as climate change, intensification of agriculture, habitat loss, inappropriate development and inaction from government, we are proud of our role, alongside our members, volunteers and supporters, in helping to bring hope for nature for many years to come.”