A project aimed at boosting the population of ringed plover birds has been deemed a success.

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) reported an increase in chick numbers following efforts by volunteers to protect coastal nests at Snettisham, Norfolk, from visitors and dogs.

The ringed plover, recognisable by its black eye mask and distinctive orange and black-tipped bill, is red-listed by the RSPB due to a breeding population decline of over 50%.

Three years ago, 40 pairs of ringed plovers fledged just 19 chicks, but this number has risen to 71 pairs this year, thanks to funding from the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and the Wild Ken Hill nature reserve.

Wynona Legg, RSPB ringed plover project officer, explained that these wading birds breed on sand, shingle, and mudflats, nesting on the ground.

“Their eggs are incredibly camouflaged and incredibly beautiful, and they’re very, very, clever little birds,” she said.

“For a species that struggles to thrive alongside us on busy beaches, it’s just an enormous amount of hope that it gives us to go forward.”

Volunteers like beach ranger Neil Senior help protect the chicks, which are well-camouflaged against their surroundings.

“People visit this wonderful area and they don’t always know what’s here,” he said.

“And when you show them, they say ‘oh wow, this is amazing’.”

Snettisham Beach Sailing Club is located within the plovers’ nesting area, which is both an RSPB reserve and a RAMSAR wetland site of international importance.

The club’s commodore, Adrian Tebbutt, emphasised that it’s possible to coexist with wildlife.

“Our members have really taken it on board and have taken to the fact that the ringed plovers are ours and we want to look after them,” he said.

The ringed plover’s rapid population decline has been attributed to increased tourism, habitat loss, and climate change, but conservation efforts are helping to reverse the trend.

RSPB Snettisham site manager Jim Scott said: “It’s absolutely fantastic to see this increase and it makes you feel like you’re actually doing something worthwhile, helping this bird species to maintain its existence in this part of the coastline, and hopefully well into the future.”

 

 

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