Ireland's wintering waterbirds

Ireland’s location along the major flyways of arctic-nesting species, along with a mild climate, which provides generally ice-free feeding opportunities, means that it contributes significantly towards the survival of arctic and boreal nesting waterbirds.  Ireland has an abundance of wetlands, both coastal and inland, many of which are relatively free of disturbance, and are rich in animal and plant foods.  As a consequence, more than one million waterbirds visit Ireland each winter. The importance of wetlands in Ireland for migratory waterbirds was recognised through surveys carried out between 1971 and 1975 and later between 1984 and 1987. 

Ireland's wetlands and their waterbirds are currently monitored as part of the Irish Wetland Bird Survey (I-WeBS). Additional work in recent years has been undertaken to complement this ongoing survey.

Please click on the relevant links below for further details about these monitoring schemes: 

The Irish Wetland Bird Survey (I-WeBS) was initiated in the Republic of Ireland during the winter of 1994/ 95 and is ongoing. It aims to monitor Ireland’s wintering waterbird populations and the sites upon which they rely. I-WeBS focuses on covering the larger more important coastal estuaries and bays, and inland lakes, rivers and callows. However, it does not include some habitats which are used by large numbers of some wintering species. A number of additional surveys are conducted, which usually coincide with international surveys for these species. I-WeBS is a joint project of the National Parks and Wildlife Service and BirdWatch Ireland. 

Low-tide waterbird monitoring programme: Additional work focussed on an assessment of how wintering waterbirds are distributed, and at some of the factors affecting their distribution at coastal sites began in winter 2009/10. This project is funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Assessment of long-term trends: We have recently completed a review of how trends in numbers have changed in the longer term, extending back to the 1970s. This work was funded by a 2010 Heritage Council Grant.