Towards better understanding black-legged kittiwake and fish prey interactions. An assessment of scientific evidence to inform future research needs in the North Sea 2023

Abstract

The black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) is a species of conservation concern that has suffered significant population declines in the UK. Given on-going pressures acting on a number of fish prey species in the North Sea, improving understanding of kittiwake-fish interactions is key to predict how UK kittiwake populations may respond, and be resilient, to spatio-temporal changes in fish availability.

This report presents an assessment of kittiwake breeding season diet and foraging range studies in the UK, current and possible future availability of three main fish prey species (sandeels, herring and sprat), as well as relevant recent research in the field. The review of scientific evidence was then used to identify key data and knowledge gaps and draw recommendations for future research that would significantly increase our understanding of kittiwake-fish prey interactions, and the sustainability of these in the future.

Please note, this report was revised in September 2023 to address a minor error (Figure 1 replaced with a corrected version).

These resources may not be fully accessible for all users. If you need copies in a different or more accessible format, please contact Communications@jncc.gov.uk.

Resources 3

JNCC Report 733: Towards better understanding black-legged kittiwake and fish prey interactions - An assessment of scientific evidence to inform future research needs in the North Sea (revised) PDF
2.5 MB jncc-report-733-revised.pdf
JNCC Report 733: Annex 1 (Table S1 – MERP diet study references) XLSX
17.2 KB jncc-report-733-annex-1-table-s1.xlsx
JNCC Report 733: Annex 2 (Table S2: Summary of relevant projects) XLSX
18.6 KB jncc-report-733-annex-2-table-s2.xlsx

Detail
Usage
Meta
Extent

Resource type Publication

Topic category Environment

Reference date 2023·03·01

Citation
Ruffino, L., Arjona Y., Clear, N. & Martin, E. 2023. Towards better understanding black-legged kittiwake and fish prey interactions. An assessment of evidence to inform future research needs in the North Sea. Report to Ørsted. JNCC Report 733, JNCC, Peterborough, ISSN 0963-8091.

Lineage
This assessment is intended to provide Ørsted with the scientific evidence needed for identifying future research that would address ecological questions relevant to Hornsea Project Three and their kittiwake compensatory measure plans, whist ensuring the research is complimentary to other existing projects and adds value.

Responsible organisation
Communications, JNCC publisher
communications@jncc.gov.uk

Limitations on public access No limitations

Use constraints Available under the Open Government Licence 3.0

Metadata date 2023·09·08

Metadata point of contact
Communications, JNCC
communications@jncc.gov.uk