U.K. RUDDY DUCK CONTROL PROGRAMME Appropriate Assessment of proposal to carry out occasional work on water bodies within the Teesmouth and Cleveland Coast Special Protection Area (SPA) until 31 August 2010. 1. Introduction 1.1 Following the publication of the UK Ruddy Duck Control Trial Final Report in July 2002 and a period of consultation, the Department for Enviroment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) announced in March 2003 that eradication of the Ruddy Duck from the UK was the Government s preferred outcome. In September 2005 funding was confirmed from the EU Life-Nature programme and Defra for a five-year eradication programme which will run from September 2005 until August 2010. 1.2 Control of the Ruddy Duck is being carried out by the Central Science Laboratory (CSL, an executive agency of Defra), under licence from Defra for the purpose of conserving fauna. The control trial showed that Ruddy Ducks can be controlled both in the breeding season and post-breeding/winter period, but that control was most effective on lakes holding large flocks in the autumn and winter. Between 50 and 100 Ruddy Ducks have been recorded regularly on the pools on the north side of the River Tees, representing up to 3% of the UK population. Significant numbers of Ruddy Ducks are present in most months of the year, so both breeding season and winter control will be needed. The following waters within or adjacent to the SPA are included in this draft proposal and their approximate grid references are given below:- Square Pool NZ 488 232 Triangle Pool NZ 490 233 Little Pool NZ 491 232 Haverton Main Pool NZ 493 232 Allotment Pool NZ 491 228 Top Tank NZ 500 233 Middle Tank NZ 501 233 Bottom Tank -NZ 504 233 Main Pool NZ 501 231 Paddy s Pool NZ 501 228 East Saltholme Pool NZ 508 229 West Saltholme Pool NZ 507 227 Back Saltholme Pool NZ 504 224 Reclamation Pond NZ 520 231 Dormans Pool NZ 515 230 Cowpen Marsh NZ 508 253 Coatham Marsh NZ 590 247 1.3 An initial assessment of the activities involved in Ruddy Duck control has concluded that they may have a likely significant effect on the site. This proposal therefore provides more details on the species which the SPA aims to protect, and the measures which will be taken to avoid an adverse effect on the SPA.
2. Teesmouth and Cleveland Coast SPA - total area 1,247 ha 2.1 This area was designated a Special Protection Area under Article 4.1 of the EU Birds Directive (79/409/EEC) because it regularly supports the following :- During the breeding season - at least 1.5% of the GB population of Little Tern (Sterna albifrons) On passage at least 5.2% of the GB population of Sandwich Tern (Sterna sandvicensis). It also qualifies under Article 4.2 by supporting the following:- On passage at least 5.2% of the European/North African population of Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula); at least 1.2% of the wintering North-eastern Canada/Greenland/Iceland/North West European population of Knot (Calidris canutus); and at least 1.1% of the wintering East Atlantic population of Redshank (Tringa totanus). Assemblage - over winter the area regularly supports over 21,000 individual waterfowl including Sanderling (Calidris alba), Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna), Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), Redshank (Tringa totanus) and Knot (Calidris canutus). Discussions with local Natural England and RSPB staff have raised the following points:- 1. The Little Terns and Sandwich Terns tend not to use the same pools as the Ruddy Ducks, and are generally present close to the shore rather than over the inland ponds favoured by the Ruddy Ducks. However, small numbers of Sandwich Terns bred in summer 2006 on an island at Back Saltholme Pool. 2. Ringed Plover can be found on land adjoining the favoured Ruddy Duck pools, but their numbers do not exceed 100 individuals. 3. At high tide numbers of Redshank use the land adjoining the pools favoured by Ruddy Ducks, but not in nationally significant numbers. 4. Several thousand roosting Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) and Golden Plover (Pluvialis apricaria) and other waterfowl can occur around Saltholme Pools. 3. Disturbance to other wildfowl 3.1 Research on the issue of disturbance to other species whilst carrying out winter control of Ruddy Ducks was carried out by the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust under contract to the Department of the Environment (Hughes, 1996). This work concluded that control of Ruddy Ducks by bank shooting could be conducted without significant disturbance to other species or habitats. Other research in relation to Wigeon (Townsend and O Connor, 1993) and Goldeneye (Cundale, 1980 cited in Ward, 1990) suggests that frequency of disturbance rather than intensity has a greater
effect on waterfowl numbers. However it is recognised that the use of boats by CSL during control operations probably causes greater disturbance than bank shooting, although there are few data on the subject. Observations during the regional control trials suggest most species leave control sites soon after disturbance begins. It has been suggested (Ward, 1990) that the level of additional energy expenditure attributable to disturbance is minimised if birds leave the site, rather than making repeated responses to intermittent activity. During the 1999-2002 control trials CSL assessed disturbance caused by two control events at Blagdon Reservoir, a SSSI for its wintering wildfowl. The results showed some evidence of slightly reduced numbers of waterfowl immediately following control events (i.e. on the same day) but that numbers had returned to normal levels within two to seven days. Similar results were obtained for bank shooting conducted during the initial Ruddy Duck control measures research (Hughes, 1996). 4. Measures to minimise disturbance caused by winter control (September to March) 4.1 Given the information above, the greatest risk to the favourable condition of the SPA will come from disturbance to the large numbers of wintering waterfowl which roost around the waters favoured by wintering Ruddy Ducks such as Saltholme Pools and Reclamation Pond. In order to avoid any long-term impact on these populations CSL will put limits on the number of waters being shot in any period (and thus the area subject to disturbance), the length of any disturbance, and also its frequency. Thus whenever shooting of Ruddy Ducks is taking place there will also be large suitable refuge areas of similar habitat which are left undisturbed, and the limits on frequency and duration will ensure that disturbance is temporally limited thus preventing excess stress such as limited feeding and resting opportunities. 4.2 In order to maximise the availability of undisturbed water to other waterbirds during control work, shooting will take place on no more than one water within the SPA in any one day. (For the purposes of this proposal Back Saltholme Pool, West Saltholme Pool and East Saltholme Pool are deemed to form one water body). This will still leave adequate refuge for other waterbirds that may lift during shooting. The only other exception will be if there is a need to despatch a wounded bird which leaves one site and lands on another. No more than two waters will be shot in any 15 day period. 4.3 To allow each water adequate time to recover from the disturbance resulting from Ruddy Duck control, no individual water will be subject to shooting more than once every 14 days. Shooting will take place for a maximum of five hours per day. Shooting will typically start soon after first light and will end by 2.30pm at the latest. This will allow time for birds to return in the afternoon to roost. 4.4 CSL will cease all control activities at the beginning of the Alert stage which precedes a wildfowling ban. Should such conditions arise, local Natural England officers will contact CSL staff to advise that control activities must cease until weather conditions improve. 5. Operational information for winter control 5.1 There will be a maximum of ten marksmen carrying out shooting. Other staff may be involved in boat driving. However, it should be noted that these are maximum
numbers and it is envisaged that smaller numbers of staff will usually be involved. 5.2 The use of boats is deemed essential to the success of winter control of Ruddy Ducks. A maximum of eight boats will be used. These consist of 12ft aluminium boats powered by 9.9 hp engines, 14ft aluminium boats powered by 20 hp engines and a 16ft RHIB with a 25hp petrol engine. These boats will be used as mobile shooting platforms and also to move birds towards staff positioned on the bank. 5.3 Winter shooting will be carried out mainly using 12-bore shotguns. These will be used in conjunction with non-toxic shot contained in biodegradable fibre wads. Every effort will be made to recover spent cartridges. However, the use of soundmoderated rifles will be considered where this is a safe and effective method of control. 6. Measures to minimise the disturbance caused by breeding season control (April to August) 6.1 There are a large number of potential breeding sites for Ruddy Ducks on the north bank of the Tees Estuary, but breeding season control of Ruddy Ducks is a less intensive operation than winter control because fewer boats are involved and Ruddy Duck numbers on any one water tend to be much lower (maximum ten adults in most cases), so relatively few shots are fired. 6.2 In order to minimise disturbance CSL proposes that no individual water shall be visited more than once every 14 days, and visits will last for a maximum of five hours, as measured from the time of the first shot to the time of the last shot. 6.3 Control will not take place within 500m of breeding Little Tern (Sterna albifrons) or Sandwich Tern (Sterna sandvicensis). 7. Operational information for breeding season control 7.1 There will be a maximum of five marksmen carrying out shooting on any one water. Although there is likely to be more shooting of Ruddy Ducks from the bank than occurs during winter control, other staff may be involved in boat driving. It should be noted that these are maximum numbers and it is envisaged that smaller numbers of staff will usually be involved. 7.2 A maximum of four boats will be used on any one water. These consist of 12ft aluminium boats powered by 9.9 hp engines or 14ft aluminium boats powered by 20 hp engines. 7.3 Breeding season shooting will be carried out using a combination of soundmoderated rifles (where safe and practicable to do so) and 12-bore shotguns (where the use of sound-moderated rifles is inappropriate). The latter will be used in conjunction with non-toxic shot contained in biodegradable fibre wads. Every effort will be made to recover spent cartridges.
8. Conclusion 8.1 This combination of measures will ensure that there is no effect on the conservation status of the species for which the SPA has been designated, nor will the integrity of the site be adversely affected. Iain Henderson Central Science Laboratory York. YO41 1LZ 9 November 2006 References Hughes, B. (1996). The Feasibility of Control Measures for North American Ruddy Ducks Oxyura jamaicensis in the United Kingdom. Report to the Department of the Environment, Contract Number CRO 123 Townshend, D J and O Connor, D A (1993). Some effects of disturbance to waterfowl from bait-digging and wildfowling at Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve, north-east England. Wader Study Group Bulletin 68, pp 47-52. Ward, D (1990). Recreation on Inland Water Bodies: does it affect birds? Conservation Review 4: pp 62-68. RSPB