The James Hutton Institute
This page is no longer updated. The Macaulay Land Use Research Institute joined forces with SCRI on 1 April 2011 to create The James Hutton Institute.
THE STATE OF SCOTLAND'S FARMED ENVIRONMENT 2005
4. HABITATS AND SPECIES
Birds
Naturally occurring birds and their habitats are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Nature Conservation ( Scotland ) Act 2004 and the EC Birds Directive (79/409/EEC and amendments). SPAs are also protected by the Conservation (Natural Habitaits Etc.) Regulations 1994 (as amended), which transpose the EC Habitats Directive into UK law.
Between 1994 and 2004, 20 out of 53 terrestrial and freshwater breeding birds surveyed in Scotland showed a statistically significant increase in numbers, six showed a significant decrease and 27 no significant change. Of the BAP species included in the survey, only the Song Thrush showed a significant increase in numbers (22%) (Raven et al., 2005).
The UK is also bound by international laws and conventions to protect and conserve waders, and the wetlands on which they depend. Some of these sites are additionally protected by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. The Wetland Bird Survey shows that six wader species wintering in Scotland (out of 11 surveyed) increased by at least 10% and two fell by at least 10% between 1974-1978 and 1999-2003. The black-tailed godwit showed the biggest rise in population (542%); the dunlin population decreased by 18% in that period (Musgrove et al., 2001).
Farmland habitats and species >>