Alarming declines in UK seabird species sees five more added to the Red List

More of the UK’s seabird species have shown alarming recent declines, leading to five new species being added to the Red List, which details the birds most in need of conservation help. Ten of the UK’s breeding seabird species are now Red-listed. 

The Arctic Tern, Leach's Petrel, Common Gull, Great Black-backed Gull and Great Skua are now on the Red List because of severe population declines. 

Evidence has been reviewed for 28 seabird species, placing each on either the Green, Amber or Red List, and updating the latest Birds of Conservation Concern report from 2021.  

The newly added seabird species join the Kittiwake, Herring Gull, Roseate Tern, Arctic Skua and Puffin that were already on the Red List and require urgent conservation action.  

Roughly every six years, conservation organisations including the RSPB join forces to assess all native bird species in the UK and place them on either the Green, Amber or Red List. Those on the Green List are of least conservation concern and those on the Red List are of greatest conservation concern.  

Our seabirds face a growing list of threats. Pressures include changes in food availability due to climate change and overfishing, as well as threats from entanglement in fishing gear and the development of offshore renewable energy. Invasive predators, such as rodents, can also have a devastating impact on seabirds and their breeding success.  

Some seabird species have been hit hard by bird flu (Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza) too. The impact of this deadly disease has led to the Great Skua’s inclusion on the Red List, and widespread losses in many other seabirds. 

These threats and subsequent declines are particularly worrying, as the UK is internationally important for breeding seabirds. Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands support the majority of the global populations of breeding Manx Shearwaters (96%), Gannets (70%) and Great Skuas (64-67%).  

We are very grateful to our many members and supporters who help by providing funding to monitor seabirds, to actively protect them and to campaign for legislation and policies that will help them.  

If you can, please donate to our latest appeal or become a member of the RSPB to ensure this vital work can continue. We can’t imagine a world without Puffins or other seabirds. 

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In the latest review of our seabirds, the Shag has moved from the Red to the Amber List, and the Black Guillemot joins the Cormorant on the Green List. But with 10 of the UK’s breeding seabirds now on the Red List, our focus must be to tackle the declines.   

There is cause for hope as there are clear actions that can be taken to address the many pressures facing our seabirds. Earlier this year, we celebrated the decisions by the UK and Scottish Governments to close Sandeel fisheries following decades of campaigning. This offers a lifeline to birds such as Puffins, which depend on Sandeels to feed their chicks. Although the European Union is challenging this curb on Sandeel fishing, we believe such action is essential to support our struggling seabirds.   

Work to remove invasive predators from seabird islands across the UK is also demonstrating promising results. Our work with partners on Lundy, for example, has seen Puffins return from the brink of local extinction, and other seabirds thrive once more.  

Much more action is needed to reverse declines in our seabird populations. Katie-Jo Luxton, Global Conservation Director for the RSPB, explains:  

“This latest health check on our seabird populations reveals devastating declines in the overall status of the UK’s breeding seabirds. As an island nation it is perhaps not surprising that we are globally important for seabird populations, but what has really shocked us is the sheer number of our seabird species now on the Red List.  

“We need urgent action from our governments to address this dire situation to tackle the drivers of these declines and enable recovery. We are calling for robust and resourced seabird conservation strategies that can deliver rapid protection of seabird breeding islands from invasive predators, improvements in the Marine Protected Areas network for seabirds, better spatial planning of marine developments to avoid important areas, better fisheries management to ensure there are sufficient prey species and new measures on boats that tackle the bycatch of seabirds in fishing gear.” 

There are now 73 species on the UK Red List, with 10 of these being breeding seabirds. The number of Red-listed species has more than doubled since the first Red List was published in 1996, when 36 bird species were added and just one species of seabird.  

Read the BoCC seabird addendum leaflet.

Birds of Conservation Concern is produced in partnership with the British Trust for Ornithology, Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Natural England, Natural Resources Wales, Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (NI), NatureScot and the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust.