A new man-made island has been created at RSPB Saltholme nature reserve in Stockton, Teesside, to aid seabirds affected by bird flu.

The hope is that the island will become a safe nesting area for species like common terns, roseate terns, and black-headed gulls, which are all on the British Trust for Ornithology’s conservation watch list.

Chris Francis, site manager, mentioned that staff missed the “chaos and noise” of these colonies, which were impacted by avian flu in 2023.

“The new islands will help these birds recover their numbers again and, by spreading them out across different breeding sites, reduce the risk of losing birds to avian influenza and other threats in the future,” Mr Francis said.

“The sights, sounds, and smells of a seabird colony are one of the nature highlights of the UK and our colonies are some of the most important in the world.”

The virus led to high mortality rates, and many birds abandoned their nests. In 2023, only 34 pairs of common terns nested at the reserve, but this year the number increased to 79 pairs.

Conservationists aim to lower the risk of disease spread among these colony-nesting birds. In addition to creating the new island, another existing island was cleared of overgrowth, and both islands were topped with gravel, creating a safer space for breeding.

The roseate tern, particularly at risk in the UK and on the BTO’s red list, usually breeds on Northumberland’s Coquet Island. Some of these terns migrate to Saltholme each year, and to attract more, the reserve plans to add a sound system to play bird calls.

“It is vital that we do everything that we can to support our seabirds’ recovery,” Mr Francis said.

“If our new sound system does the trick, a new roseate tern colony here at Saltholme next year would be the icing on the cake.”

 

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