rspb sandeel workshop scottish seabird centre, north...
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RSPB Sandeel Workshop
Scottish Seabird Centre, North Berwick,
Scotland, 9th – 10th December 2014
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Report of RSPB Sandeel Workshop
Scottish Seabird Centre, North Berwick,
Scotland, 9th – 10th December 2014
Thalassa McMurdo Hamilton, Matthew Carroll, Euan Dunn and Phil Taylor
NOTE:
This is a functional summary of the discussion held as part of the
RSPB Sandeel Workshop. The summary has been made by RSPB
staff and does not have formal sign-off by the other workshop
participants. As such, it should not be taken as a formal record of the
statements of individuals or their organisations.
Cover image courtesy of Anne Bignall.
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Contents 1. Executive Summary ............................................................................................................ 3
2. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 5
3. Agenda ............................................................................................................................... 6
4. Findings and recommendations .......................................................................................... 7
4.1 Consolidation of knowledge .............................................................................................. 7
4.2 Knowledge gaps ..............................................................................................................10
4.3 Constraints ......................................................................................................................12
4.4 Recommendations for sandeel population protection and recovery .................................13
5. Next steps ..........................................................................................................................15
6. Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................16
7. Appendix ............................................................................................................................17
7.1 Discussion questions .......................................................................................................17
7.2 Contact information .....................................................................................................19
7.3 Speaker Biographies .......................................................................................................21
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1. Executive Summary
The RSPB held a sandeel workshop in December 2014 in the Scottish Seabird Centre, North
Berwick, with the purpose of bringing together experts from academia, NGOs and governments
to discuss how to protect and recover sandeel populations in UK waters, with a primary focus on
lesser sandeel Ammodytes marinus. This report describes the main conclusions, and
recommendations for potential actions arising from the workshop.
Objective:
To identify approaches to protect and recover important sandeel populations in UK waters.
Recommendations:
1. More seabird diet data is needed to improve understanding of sandeel abundance
and population structures and to target action
A structured approach to collecting and monitoring seabird diet data should be developed, in
order to understand how it varies through space and time.
2. Improve knowledge of the distribution and abundance of alternative seabird prey
species
By improving our knowledge of seabird diets, alternative prey species capable of supporting
seabird populations may be identified.
3. Make data available to support multi-species and multi-disciplinary research
Multi-species and multi-disciplinary collaborations have been useful and should continue. It
should be ensured that relevant datasets are accessible to the research community.
4. Improve understanding of multi-species fishery management/piscivorous fish
increases on sandeels
Sandeel stock assessments and related management advice must be made in the context
of the wider ecosystem and incorporate the best possible resolution of natural mortality and
predation.
5. Improve monitoring of impacts of offshore renewable energy developments, and
advocate for sound monitoring of MPAs
Robust and comparable pre- and post- construction monitoring of sandeels is needed,
particularly for developments built on sandbanks. Sandeel and sandeel habitat MPAs should
be monitored to assess whether the MPAs are delivering favourable conservation status and
also to improve our understanding of sandeels’ response to oceanographic changes at a
sea-basin scale.
6. Re-visit potential impact of sandeel fishery on Dogger Bank
There is a need to investigate if there is a requirement for further regulation of commercial
sandeel fisheries on the Dogger Bank for the potential benefit of dependent, regional
seabird populations.
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7. Better understanding of baselines
Conservation targets for fish and seabird populations may be based on different baseline
periods; more work should be done to investigate them, particularly in the context of policy
targets.
This report concludes with a number of actions identified by the workshop and follow-up work
with key stakeholders is planned.
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2. Introduction
The lesser sandeel Ammodytes marinus is a key food resource for the UK’s internationally
important seabird populations, as well as other dependent predators. The RSPB has become
increasingly concerned about the decline in sandeels and the associated chronic declines in
populations of dependent seabirds. We wish to play an informed role and we recognise that a
significant body of the necessary knowledge and insight on sandeels, and their function in the
ecosystem, resides in the external scientific community and government agencies. To better
understand the remedial action necessary, the RSPB therefore convened a Sandeel Workshop
of leading experts with the following objective and associated aims:
Overall objective:
To identify approaches to protect and recover important sandeel populations in UK waters.
Aims
1. Consolidate existing knowledge
2. Identify knowledge gaps
3. Identify actions that could be taken to protect and recover sandeel populations
4. Identify limitations to the feasibility of such actions
5. Establish common ground between the RSPB and other parties with an interest in
sandeel conservation
In this report, we draw together the conclusions from the presentations and discussions, and
also present recommendations raised by this productive and useful workshop. We also provide
contact information to help participants stay in touch and find further information.
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3. Agenda (Discussion topics and questions are available in the Appendix)
Day 1 (Chair: Euan Dunn, RSPB)
Session 1: Importance of sandeels in the marine ecosystem
Sarah Wanless, CEH: Interactions between seabirds and sandeels
Mike Tetley, Whale and Dolphin Conservation: Interactions between marine mammals and
sandeels
Discussion led by Morten Frederiksen, Aarhus University
Session 2: Status of sandeel populations and drivers of population trends
Peter Wright, Marine Scotland: Status of sandeel populations in the North Sea and impacts of
climate change
Mikael van Deurs, DTU National Institute of Aquatic Resources: Impacts of physical and
biological oceanographic changes on sandeels
Discussion led by Bob Furness, University of Glasgow
Bob Furness: Sandeel stocks, their fisheries, and impacts on seabirds, with particular reference
to Flamborough/Filey
Day 2 (Chair: Euan Dunn)
Session 3: Protection and recovery of sandeel populations
Simon Greenstreet, Marine Scotland: Impacts of fisheries on sandeels
Ian Mitchell, JNCC: Seabird breeding success or failure as a possible indicator of fisheries
impacts
Phil Taylor, RSPB: Conservation policy opportunities for sandeels
Discussion led by Kara Brydson, RSPB
Session 4: Protection and recovery of sandeel population: possible actions and next
steps
Discussion led by Paul Walton, RSPB
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4. Findings and recommendations
Below are the key findings from the two days, linked together under the main aims of the
workshop.
4.1 Consolidation of knowledge
Research into seabird diet on the Isle of May has improved understanding of sandeel
abundance and population structure in the region. Sandeel availability has a positive effect
on seabird breeding success and survival. However, the proportion of sandeels in the diet of
the UK’s east coast seabirds is declining, with the most severe declines observed in young
primarily provisioned with 1+ group, e.g. guillemot chicks. The proportion of sandeels in
kittiwake diets has shown substantial year-to-year variation, but the decline over time is not
statistically significant.
Length-at-date of 0-group sandeels is declining, due to their later hatch dates and poorer
growth rates. Seabird breeding is not keeping pace with this, resulting in later-hatched,
smaller and lower-energy 0-group sandeels being fed to chicks in recent years.
Sandeels can form a very important part of the diet for marine mammal species in UK
waters, such as harbour porpoise and common seal. In the Moray Firth (Scotland), sandeels
are the main prey for minke whales, and minke whale presence roughly correlates with
presence of sandeel burial habitats. Minke whales often associate with species like seabirds
and mackerel which act as ‘beaters’ to herd and aggregate their sandeel prey.
North Sea sandeel stock assessments are now conducted for separate areas,
corresponding to distinct population units. This has rectified problems inherent in previous
whole-sea assessments, but data are still lacking for several areas where there is no active
fishery. 0-group estimates in stock assessments are back-calculated, so may still be
unreliable.
The sandeel recruitment collapse observed in parts of the North Sea appears to be
associated with warming seas and changes in zooplankton abundance and distribution.
Zooplankton distributions are determined by oceanographic conditions such as sea
temperature and the timing of stratification, with higher temperatures associated with
northward shifts in Calanus finmarchicus. Sandeel recruitment is therefore likely to be
reduced by warming seas, acting in part via zooplankton availability.
There may also be direct physiological and behavioural impacts of rising temperatures on
sandeels. Higher temperatures can influence egg hatching period, larval growth rates, egg
production rates, time spent foraging in the water column (which may also interact with food
availability), metabolic costs of overwintering, and maturation rate. Hence, in the longer
term, climate change poses a threat to sandeel populations.
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Calanus copepods represent the best source of energy for sandeels – they can predate a
range of other copepods and other planktonic species. However, without Calanus
finmarchicus in particular, sandeels are unable to grow as rapidly, to large sizes or to form
high densities.
Sandeels are in the middle of the food web, with multiple mechanisms affecting populations,
including top-down predation and bottom-up planktonic influences. Consequently, observed
changes in sandeel populations should also be viewed in light of recovering stocks of
piscivorous fish resulting from improved fisheries management over recent decades.
Because of low adult mobility, the sandeel population in the North Sea operates as several
discrete populations with somewhat limited connectivity. Consequently, sandeel population
status and trends are not uniform throughout the North Sea. Eastern and southern North
Sea populations are relatively abundant and fast growing, are early to mature and nutrient
rich, whilst those in the western North Sea (especially off the east coast of Scotland) grow
relatively slowly and mature at a comparatively small size. Critically, the key drivers of
populations appear to vary spatially.
The Shetland sandeel population is populated by larvae produced around, and drifting from,
north-west Orkney. There are only relatively small areas of sediment suitable for sandeels
around Shetland, so the population is unlikely to be self-sustaining in the longer-term without
recruitment from Orkney waters.
Sandeels spend less time in the water column foraging when waters are warmer and prey is
scarce, more when waters are colder and prey is plentiful. Time spent foraging is thought to
be directly related to body condition and maturation rates.
Due to strong environmental influences on sandeel populations, a key role of conservation
action is to ensure that negative human influences do not prevent populations benefiting
when favourable environmental conditions occur. Consequently, Scottish sandeel Marine
Protected Areas cover important net larval source areas such as Turbot Bank and North
West Orkney, whilst the fishery closure box covers an area off east Scotland/NE England
where sandeels grow relatively slowly. Having removed fishing mortality in the latter area,
just one good recruitment year could help to recover Spawning Stock Biomass.
Piscivorous fish are likely to be more efficient predators of sandeels than seabirds are (and,
indeed, more efficient than the sandeel fishery), and can maintain higher feeding rates at
lower prey densities than seabirds can. Therefore, seabirds may be in direct food
competition with recovering populations of piscivorous fish, but the fish are likely to be the
dominant competitor in this instance.
Our understanding of ‘baseline’ populations for fish and seabirds are often based upon
different data sources and different time periods. Conservation targets for fisheries and
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seabirds may therefore be incompatible with one another, and if achieving one target
inevitably means missing another, we should aim to understand why this occurs.
Three MPAs for sandeels were designated in Scottish waters in 2014. Additionally, the Firth
of Forth Banks Complex, an important sandeel ground, was designated as an MPA for
sands and gravels. Research undertaken on the Forth Banks by Marine Scotland Science
has been central to improving our understanding of sandeel trends and oceanographic
drivers.
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4.2 Knowledge gaps
Seabird diet data can provide valuable information on sandeel abundance and demography,
particularly in areas where commercial fishing or other monitoring is absent. It has aided our
understanding of changes in sandeel populations on the Scottish East Coast. However, in
some areas and during some parts of the year, particularly winter, seabird diet data are
lacking. This is limiting our understanding of changing sandeel populations, and the
associated impacts on seabird populations.
There is an urgent need for more seabird diet data to understand temporal and spatial
dietary differences and changes. It is important to establish what seabirds are feeding on as
sandeel availability declines, and what effects these alternative prey species have on
seabird survival and productivity. To do this, it may be necessary to consider novel methods
of wide-scale seabird diet monitoring, to carry out more work on multi-species functional
response and longitudinal measurement studies. Related to this, in some regions we do not
know which species of sandeel are prey for seabirds.
Sandeel population status and trends, and the apparent drivers of these trends, are not
uniform across the North Sea. In particular we struggle to understand the differences in
drivers because of the gaps in monitoring data, noted above. This is particularly the case in
many important seabird foraging areas.
There are several knowledge gaps in our understanding of sandeel population ecology:
o Whilst sandeel distributions are known at a coarse scale, existing sediment data are
not sufficiently high-resolution to provide more detailed knowledge.
o It is unclear which stage of sandeel life-history most strongly influences year class
strength. This inhibits our ability to understand how environmental factors impact
sandeel population trends.
o Individual sandeel biology and behavioural responses can be examined
experimentally. However, it is unclear how these scale up and interact to produce the
population-level changes observed.
o Due to the complex range of bottom-up and top-down drivers of sandeel populations,
it is unclear how pressures interact in any given area.
More sustainable fishing practices and better stock management are emerging in the North
Sea and elsewhere in UK waters, leading to gradual (albeit still modest in most cases)
recovery of key sandeel piscivores. We do not know the scale of impact this has on sandeel
populations – top-down predation of sandeels by piscivorous fish might become a major
driver of sandeel declines.
On the Dogger Bank, it has been argued that the industrial fishery for sandeels may be
competing with and impacting negatively on (especially) the kittiwake populations breeding
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on the North Yorkshire coast; this requires further investigation, with potential implications
for sandeel quota management.
Despite the growth of offshore renewable energy development, research on the impacts of
construction on sandeel abundance and habitat is scarce and inconclusive. Studies at the
Horns Rev windfarm found significant changes in sandeel abundance both inside and
outside development areas, making it difficult to know what impacts were caused by the
windfarm construction. As more developments are consented on areas which serve as
sandeel habitat, robust post-construction research is required to understand impacts on
sandeels and other forage fish, and to inform future planning decisions.
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4.3 Constraints
Due to the spatial and temporal variation in sandeel population trends, and in the drivers
of these trends, no known ‘silver bullet’ exists to reverse the decline in sandeel
abundance.
Gaps in knowledge of sandeel population ecology in several key areas are unlikely to be
resolved. Detailed monitoring of sandeels requires different gear-types and is resource-
demanding, it is therefore limited by budgetary constraints.
There is an absence of fisheries in some areas where monitoring would be of scientific
interest (e.g. SA4 and SA7), with the result that there is no scientific information
gathered from this source to inform conservation in these areas.
In instances where large-scale environmental change is responsible for changes to
sandeel populations, our ability to directly influence sandeel populations may be
somewhat limited. The focus of direct conservation actions may therefore be limited
primarily to managing human activities in the marine environment.
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4.4 Recommendations for sandeel population protection and recovery
1. More seabird diet data is needed to improve understanding of sandeel abundance
and population structures and to target action
A structured approach to collecting and monitoring seabird diet data should be developed, in
order to understand how it varies through space and time. This should include areas where
outliers in observed trends exist, such as areas where increased seabird abundances have
been recorded. Such information should provide improved understanding of ongoing
changes to sandeel populations, and the associated impacts on dependent predator
populations. Where sandeels are important dietary components, local anthropogenic
impacts should be evaluated to ensure that no unnecessary anthropogenic pressures are
being placed upon the sandeel population. Given difficulties in diet data collection and the
disturbance it creates, novel methods of diet data collection should be investigated.
2. Improve knowledge of the distribution and abundance of alternative seabird prey
species
Many seabird populations are reliant on sandeels as prey. However, they may be able to
switch to alternative prey when sandeels are not available. By improving our knowledge of
seabird diets and linking this with seabird population trends, alternative prey species
capable of supporting seabird populations may be identified. Where other prey species are
important, careful examination should be made of the predators’ population biology, to
understand impacts of prey-switching in response to declining sandeel populations.
Anthropogenic impacts on alternative prey species should also be evaluated; results may
emphasise the need to advocate for protection of other important forage fish species.
3. Make data available to support multi-species and multi-disciplinary research
Significant progress has been made in our understanding of the marine environment
through multi-disciplinary research. Further collaboration should be promoted and, following
the workshop, should include contributions from the marine mammal research community to
take account of interactions with the wider ecosystem. It should be ensured that relevant
datasets such as distribution and diet analyses for seabirds and marine mammals, and
fisheries data for forage species are accessible to the research community.
4. Improve understanding of multi-species fishery management/piscivorous fish
increases on sandeels
Due to the potential for increasing natural mortality of sandeels from predation by
piscivorous fish, and the potential consequences for seabird populations, sandeel stock
assessments and related management advice (notably escapement levels) must be made in
the context of the wider ecosystem and incorporate the best possible resolution of natural
mortality and predation.
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5. Improve monitoring of impacts of offshore renewable energy developments, and
advocate for sound monitoring of MPAs
Robust and comparable pre- and post- construction monitoring of renewable energy
developments is needed, particularly of those developments built on sandbanks. This should
be strategic and long-term in order to investigate the potential impact on sandeels, other fish
and subsequently on marine mammals and birds. Focusing seabird diet studies (from point
1 and 2) at colonies adjacent to developments may support this understanding. There
should be improved access to data and reports on these impacts.
Monitoring is also needed to ensure that the three MPAs designated for sandeels and the
Firth of Forth Banks MPA for sandeel habitat are maintained in favourable conservation
status. Such monitoring could also be used to improve our understanding of sandeels’
response to oceanographic changes at a sea-basin scale. Given this network includes
North-West Orkney, an important spawning ground, monitoring could also be used to
understand the drivers of recruitment year-classes.
6. Re-visit potential impact of sandeel fishery on Dogger Bank
There is a need to investigate if there is a requirement for further regulation of commercial
sandeel fisheries on the Dogger Bank. Restricting mortality of 1+ group could allow a good
year class to recruit and increase SSB, to the potential benefit of the breeding performance
of kittiwakes and other seabirds on the adjacent North Yorkshire coast.
7. Better understanding of baselines
Conservation targets for fish and seabird populations may be based on different baseline
periods and therefore may not be compatible. They should accurately reflect historical
trends and more work should be done to investigate them, particularly in the context of
policy targets such as those of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.
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5. Next steps
The RSPB recognises that protection and recovery of sandeels is not something that can be
achieved by one organisation alone. This workshop highlighted the importance of understanding
the sandeel’s role in the ecosystem; a species driven by both bottom-up and top-down
processes. We will need to involve researchers from both of these perspectives, to understand
how the species can best be protected and recovered.
In this light, we hope that this workshop has been a step towards improving links and synergies
across all those with a shared interest, including the marine mammal conservation community.
Substantial overlap exists between these communities in maintaining the prey base, and there
are also important interactions between foraging seabirds and mammals. Furthermore, there
was broad consensus at the workshop that, given the profound changes occurring in the ocean
ecosystem, protection of a wider spectrum of forage fish than lesser sandeel is an important
consideration in protecting marine biodiversity.
The workshop has identified further actions, and follow-up work with key stakeholders is
planned. In the immediate future, the RSPB intends to take forward recommendations 1, 2, 5
and 6 and will seek to play a part in progressing these, in partnership with others as appropriate.
For more information on the report, or if you wish to offer any feedback, please contact one of
the authors, whose contact details can be found in section 7.2.
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6. Acknowledgements This workshop would not have been possible without the generous hospitality and support of the
Scottish Seabird Centre in North Berwick. We would like, therefore, to thank CEO Tom Brock
and all the SSC staff who assisted with the workshop. Thanks also to Tracey Miller (RSPB) for
helping with logistical organisation.
We thank all the speakers for giving such informative and useful presentations, and for
contributing to lively and productive discussion; we were delighted with the enthusiastic
response we received from all those we asked. Many thanks also to the excellent moderators:
Morten Frederiksen, Bob Furness, Kara Brydson and Paul Walton.
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7. Appendix
7.1 Discussion questions
The following questions were used by the respective session moderators as a framework for the
four discussion sessions:
1. Importance of sandeels in the marine ecosystem
What changes to sandeel populations (abundance, body size, accessibility, etc.) are the
biggest problems for apex predators?
o Do impacts on apex predators tell us anything about the changes sandeel
populations are undergoing? (e.g., differences between surface-feeders vs.
divers)
How do different sandeel species vary in importance to predators?
o Are there differences amongst regions and years?
Are there other species that could, now, or in the future, take the place of sandeels in
marine ecosystems?
What sandeel knowledge gaps are particularly pertinent to apex predator conservation?
2. Status of sandeel populations and drivers of population trends
Which aspects of sandeel life histories are changing and how are these affecting
sandeels at the population level?
What are the most important drivers of population changes? Are these consistently
important across all regions and years?
o Are top-down or bottom-up processes most important?
o What might cause anomalous good or bad years (e.g., high availability in 2014)
o Why do northern populations appear to be more badly affected than southern
populations?
Are different sandeel species responding differently to drivers of change?
What do current trends tell us about future scenarios and trends?
o What are the prospects for further changes (e.g., plankton community shifts)
providing improved conditions (e.g., improved food resources)?
3. Protection and recovery of sandeel populations
Do directed sandeel fisheries and other fisheries impact important sandeel populations?
o Which life history stages are affected by the fisheries?
o Could improved management of existing fisheries lead to an improved
conservation status for sandeel populations?
Is there an impact of renewable energy developments at sea on sandeel populations? If
so, how?
Could protected areas help with sandeel conservation? If so, how?
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o Is there any existing evidence (e.g., from no-take zones) of benefits of marine
protection for sandeels?
Other than site-based protection, are there any other options for conserving sandeel
populations? What cannot be done?
4. Protection and recovery of sandeel population: possible actions and next steps
Open discussion
Conservation actions for sandeel populations
Knowledge gaps
Upcoming initiatives and opportunities
Next steps
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7.2 Contact information
Report authors are asterisked. A space has been inserted before the ‘@’ symbol for safety.
Name Affiliation Email
Tom Blasdale JNCC tom.blasdale @jncc.gov.uk
Mark Bolton RSPB Mark.Bolton @rspb.org.uk
Phil Boulcott Marine Scotland Science
philip.boulcott @scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Kara Brydson RSPB Kara.Brydson @rspb.org.uk
Richard Caldow Nature England Richard.Caldow @naturalengland.org.uk
Matthew Carroll* RSPB Matthew.Carroll @rspb.org.uk
Francis Daunt Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
frada @ceh.ac.uk
Sarah Dolman Whale and Dolphin Conservation
sarah.dolman @whales.org
David Donnan Scottish Natural Heritage
David.Donnan @snh.gov.uk
Euan Dunn* RSPB Euan.Dunn @rspb.org.uk
Morten Frederiksen Aarhus University mfr @dmu.dk
Bob Furness MacArthur Green bob.furness @glasgow.ac.uk
Simon Greenstreet Marine Scotland Science
simon.greenstreet @scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Mike Harris Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
mph @ceh.ac.uk
Michael Heath University of Strathclyde m.heath @strath.ac.uk
Alan McDonald University of Strathclyde alan.macdonald @strath.ac.uk
Thalassa McMurdo Hamilton* RSPB Thalassa.McMurdoHamilton @rspb.org.uk
Ian Mitchell JNCC Ian.Mitchell @jncc.gov.uk
Ellie Owen RSPB Ellie.Owen @rspb.org.uk
Beth Scott University of Aberdeen b.e.scott @abdn.ac.uk
Sophie Smout University of St Andrews scs10 @st-andrews.ac.uk
Alec Taylor RSPB Alec.Taylor @rspb.org.uk
Phil Taylor* RSPB Phil.Taylor @rspb.org.uk
Mike Tetley Whale and Dolphin Conservation
m.j.tetley @univ.bangor.ac.uk
Mikael van Deurs Technical University of Denmark
mvd @aqua.dtu.dk
Duncan Vaughan Natural England Duncan.Vaughan @naturalengland.org.uk
Paul Walton RSPB Paul.Walton @rspb.org.uk
Sarah Wanless Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
swanl @ceh.ac.uk
Allan Whyte RSPB Allan.Whyte @rspb.org.uk
Peter Wright Marine Scotland Science
peter.wright @scotland.gsi.gov.uk
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Back row L-R: Tom Blasdale, Simon Greenstreet, Allan Whyte, Paul Walton, Richard Caldow,
Ian Mitchell, Morten Frederiksen, Bob Furness, Matthew Carroll, Phil Boulcott, Sarah Wanless,
Michael Heath, Alan McDonald. Middle row L-R: Kara Brydson, Sophie Smout, Mike Harris,
Peter Wright, Thalassa McMurdo Hamilton, Beth Scott, Ellie Owen, Maggie Sheddan, Francis
Daunt, Mark Bolton, Sarah Dolman. Front row L-R: Duncan Vaughan, Mike Tetley, Phil Taylor,
David Donnan, Euan Dunn.
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7.3 Speaker Biographies
Mikael van Deurs
Mikael is a researcher at the Technical University of Denmark and Post doc at Lund University
in Sweden. His field of research is sandeel ecology and management.
Bob Furness
Bob's research has focused on seabird ecology, especially seabird-fishery interactions, and
ecology of skuas. He retired from the University of Glasgow in 2011 and took up a position as
Principal Ornithologist at MacArthur Green (Scottish Green Energy Award Judges Prize winners
in 2014). He is a member of SNH Board, Chair of SNH's Scientific Advisory Committee, member
of BTO Council, and of the MPA sub-group of JNCC. Bob was an invited External Expert at the
ICES Benchmark Working Group on sandeels in 2010 and at the ICES Benchmark Working
Group on sprat stocks in 2013, and a member of Marine Stewardship Council certification
panels for four major fisheries in North America: Alaskan walleye pollock, US/Canadian Pacific
halibut, US black cod, and British Columbia sablefish.
Simon Greenstreet
Marine Strategy Framework Directive science advisor at Marine Scotland Science. Simon has a
BA (hons) in Biology from the University of York and a PhD in estuarine wading bird ecology
from the University of Aberdeen. He has 29 years’ post-doctoral experience in marine ecological
research specialising in theoretical community ecology and marine predator-prey relationships.
His main interests are investigating the impact of fishing on marine ecosystems and
understanding the mechanisms by which fishing alters marine ecological processes. He has
published widely on the long-term changes in the demersal fish community caused by changes
in levels of fishing activity and on the effects of industrial fishing on fish, seal and seabird
predator-prey interactions. Recently he has been instrumental in developing Ecological Quality
Objectives for the North Sea fish community and in determining indicators and targets to
support implementation of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive in respect of D1
Biodiversity and D4 Food webs, again with particular focus on fish communities. He chairs the
UK technical expert group on Fish and Cephalopod MSFD indicators and targets for the Healthy
and Biologically Diverse Sea Evidence Group, one of the UK Marine Assessment and Reporting
Groups evidence groups supporting UK implementation of the MSGD. S.G. is a member of the
equivalent OSPAR technical expert group for fish communities, the Intersessional
Correspondence Group for Biological Assessment and Monitoring, and is responsible for the
development of two OSPAR common indicators to support implementation of the MSFD in
respect of Descriptor 1, maintaining biodiversity with regard to fish communities in European
waters.
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Ian Mitchell
Ian has been working on seabirds at JNCC (Aberdeen) for the past 16 years. He previously led
Seabird 2000 – the last census of breeding seabirds in Britain and Ireland, and helped to steer
the Seabird Monitoring Programme for several years. In recent years he has been helping to
advise Defra on the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive in relation to
Biodiversity. He is the UK’s lead on marine birds within OSPAR and chairs the OSPAR/ICES
Joint Working Group on Marine Birds – JWGBird. The work presented here forms part of the
development of international seabird and waterbird indicators and targets that will be
implemented by EU Member States in the NE Atlantic Region.
Phil Taylor
Phil is RSPB Scotland’s Seabird Recovery Officer and works on a broad range of issues
including operational projects, such as the Shiants eradication; policy, such as MPAs and SPAs;
and science, such as this workshop. Phil worked for four years at BirdLife, identifying over 5,000
priority sites for albatross, petrels, penguins and shearwaters and supported work to implement
albatross friendly fishing practices in the world’s tuna fisheries. He has also worked for WWF
and FFI projects in Indonesia, for Scottish Environment LINK working on MPA policy in Scotland
and also sits on the working group for the Marine Climate Change Impacts Partnership.
Mike Tetley
Assistant Coordinator of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC) Critical Habitat/MPA
Programme. UK projects concern the Scottish MPA process as well as Harbour Porpoise SACs.
Member of the IUCN Joint WCPA-SSC Marine Mammals Protected Areas Task Force
(MMPATF) and is the Project Coordinator for the Important Marine Mammal Areas (IMMA)
Programme of development. Represents WDC and the MMPATF at IUCN, UNEP and CBD
meetings on strategic conservation planning. Graduated with a PhD from Bangor University in
Ocean Science, the focus of which was the behavioural ecology and habitat modelling of North
Atlantic Minke whales comparing animals from UK, Ireland, Iceland and Canada.
Sarah Wanless
Sarah Wanless has spent her whole career working on seabirds starting with a PhD at the
University of Aberdeen on the biology of northern gannets followed by contracts with the Nature
Conservancy Council to census inland breeding gulls and monitor seabirds in Orkney. In the
early 1980s she became involved with the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology’s (now the Centre for
Ecology & Hydrology) auk studies on the Isle of May helping expand the work to include
European shags and black-legged kittiwakes. This long-term multi-species study continues up
to the present and the collection of data on seabird diet and research into the interactions
between seabirds and sandeels have been major topics of Sarah’s work over the last 30 years.
Peter Wright
Dr Peter Wright leads the Ecology and Conservation group at Marine Scotland Science and is
responsible for a wide remit of research and monitoring in support of marine management in
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Scottish waters. His research interests are in fish population structuring, reproductive biology,
recruitment, and predator-prey interactions. Peter began work on sandeel in 1990 as a post-
doc. investigating the decline of this species around Shetland. After joining the MSS Marine
Laboratory in 1993 he worked on the impact of the Braer oil spill on sandeels and co-ordinated
an EC study on sandeel population structure in the North Sea. In the 1990s he helped establish
programmes on sandeels and their predators with Denmark (DTU-Aqua), England (CEFAS) and
Norway (IMR) and between 2004 and 2009 he chaired sandeel fishery working groups for
STECF and ICES. This work culminated in a decision to move to the first ever sub-stock
management of an ICES fish stock in 2010. Peter’s research was also instrumental in defining
the north east sandeel fishery closed area established in 2000 and the recently announced
MPAs for sandeel. His work on the nature of population structuring in cod, haddock and whiting
is also influencing the way we view and manage these species. Through a combination of
experimental and field approaches, Peter’s work has improved age estimation and helped
understand how spawning time can affect offspring survival and what has led to changes in
maturation schedules. His external responsibilities include being a UK representative on the
ICES Science Committee and a member of the Journal of Fish Biology editorial board. Details of
his papers can be found at:
http://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=u993qUcAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao.