Critically Endangered Spoon-billed Sandpipers
Limited Breeding Habitat May Hinder Recovery of Shorebird Species
Jul 16, 2009
Limited to a very small breeding range on the Chukotsk and Kamchatka peninsulas, the spoon-billed sandpiper (Eurynorhynchus pygmeus) gained critically endangered status in 2008 as numbers dipped to less than 100 confirmed breeding pairs.
Unique Habitat Requirements Increase Threats to Spoon-billed Sandpipers
Breeding habitat for the spoon-billed sandpiper, restricted to a small area of coastal wetland in northeastern Russia, consists of lagoon spits with specific types vegetation and an estuary or mudflat close by. The migration route for these tiny shorebirds takes them along the coast of Korea, Japan and China to South and Southeast Asia where they winter. Habitat needs are highly specialized and the birds show strong site fidelity, returning to the same areas year after year.
Aging Population and Low Juvenile Recruitment Levels Reduce Breeding Success
Breeding success for spoon-billed sandpipers has declined since 2005. With fewer juvenile birds returning to the traditional breeding sites, aging of the population is being cited as the likely cause of this lack of success. Decreased juvenile survival after migration to wintering grounds may contribute to the problem.
Threats to the Spoon-billed Sandpiper
The loss of tidal flats and other coastal wetlands along the migration route is probably the biggest factor in the rapid decline of the spoon-billed sandpiper population. An important staging area in South Korea, in the Saemangeum and Geum estuary has already been reclaimed for industry and more wetlands are scheduled for reclamation as well.
On the breeding grounds, human disturbance is an important problem, with local residents and even well-intentioned researchers, suspected of causing nest desertion. Once on wintering grounds in parts of Southeast Asia, Myanmar in particular, spoon-billed sandpipers are often caught in nets set for other shorebirds, which are harvested for food.
Recent study of areas of Myanmar hard hit by a cyclone in 2008 has lead researchers to speculate that several coastal wetland sites on the Gulf of Martaban (Mottama) and Arakan (Rakhine), where 84 spoon-billed sandpipers were counted, may be a critical wintering habitat for this endangered species.
There is also concern that the impacts of climate change on coastal wetlands may further reduce appropriate habitat, both wintering and breeding, for this critically endangered shorebird.
Conservation of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper
At present, the focus of spoon-billed sandpiper conservation is on protecting nesting sites from disturbance, especially the taking of birds and eggs. As shorebird hunting is common in Asia, ending this practice may help save spoon-billed sandpipers on their wintering grounds.
The birds enjoy protected status at individual wildlife refuges in China, Russia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India and Viet Nam. Efforts are also being made to increase the number of protected areas and reclaim wetlands of importance, particularly in the South Korean staging area, in hopes of mitigating the potential impact of climate change on the spoon-billed sandpiper’s habitat.
It is not clear yet whether these efforts will be enough to save the species. Increased numbers of juveniles will need to return to breeding wetlands in order for breeding success to improve. As that occurs hope for the survival of the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper will increase.
 |
