The southern dunlin is listed as Critically Endangered in Sweden today. The reason for the reduction in numbers is primarily because of landscape drainage which has had severely negative effects on waders and other species.
The projects’ main aim is to save the critically endangered southern dunlin from extinction by strengthening and stabilising the wild population and increasing the public’s knowledge of the southern dunlin, waders and coastal meadows.
The project has four main tasks:
Alarming numbers show that biodiversity is reducing in Sweden. The number of red listed species has increased by 11% over the past five years. As a result, Sweden no longer meets the global target for biodiversity and more must be done to save our nature. One group of species that stands out is Swedish birds, where the numbers of several wading bird species have reduced drastically. The situation for the southern dunlin (Calidris alpina schinzii, found in only a few small, isolated colonies, is especially acute. This modest and beautiful wader species is a flagship speciesstandard bearer for Swedish coastal meadowland environments. By saving Sweden’s last remaining colonies other coastal meadowland species and biodiversity itself, will benefit.
We are initially working with a conservation technique called "headstarting".
In headstarting, eggs are collected from the nests of wild birds, after which the chicks are hatched and then raised in enclosures. When the chicks have grown up, they are released in suitable locations.
The measures need to be adapted to local conditions. This involves, among other things, achieving favourable grazing and establishing or restoring shallow bodies of water by plugging ditches.
För att minska predationstrycket arbetar projektet även med både direkt och indirekt predatorkontroll.
In the annual report for 2023, you can read about what we achieved during the year - from the successful headstarting, where around ten birds were helped to survive the most critical part of their lives, to the autumn's wetland restoration in Segerstad. There you can also find the alarming figures from the spring inventories, which show how dire the situation is with the population and how important it is that we help the southern dunlin now, before it's too late.
Annual report 2023 (in Swedish)
Annual report 2023 (in English)