Waders

In an attempt to standardize elements of the station routine, the book describes the procedures used in passerine and wader ringing stations. It offers a comparative analysis of versatile evaluation techniques such as measurements, orientation experiments and monitoring. The authors
meticulously analyze different methods used to track birds, including catching passerines with mist-nets in land and wetland habitat, as well as the use of the Heligoland trap. The monograph, as a successful bid to establish a bird station routine that is favourable to both birds and ringers, will
benefit all professional and amateur ringers.

Available as Open Source PDF and hardcopy from:
www.degruyter.com/viewbooktoc/product/209750

Man-made habitats provide suitable nesting, resting
and feeding habitats for many birds at coastal sites. Despite
intensive study outside Europe, very few data are available
to date on the bird communities that exploit artificial
intertidal sites along the European coasts. Between July 2009
and December 2010, 32 ornithological surveys were performed
at six artificial intertidal sites in the lagoon of Venice
(Italy). Overall, 101 species (with 23,399 birds) were observed,
about a third of those occurring in the lagoon of Venice;
58 of these species were of conservation concern. Ten
species comprised about 80 % of the total; bird abundance
was the highest during the post-breeding migration and wintering
period. Multivariate analysis identified similarity
among sites, seasons and observed behaviours. Dredge islands
were mostly used by waders as foraging sites, when surrounding
tidal flats were still flooded. In winter the six dredged
islands supported about 2 % of the dunlins Calidris alpina
occurring in the whole lagoon of Venice and about 10 % of
the grey plovers Pluvialis squatarola. Since the study sites
comprised just the 6%of the total dredge island area available
in 2009–2010, the results indicate as large fractions of these
shorebird populations might exploit the dredge island habitats
for foraging. Among the newly created habitats, intertidal
ponds and inner tidal flats were the most heavily used by
birds, followed by dykes and mounds with ruderal vegetation.
Maintenance of the habitat mosaic is a need for a
conservation- based management of the dredge islands.

Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus) in the Middle Dnieper Area. - V.N. Grishchenko, M.N. Gavrilyuk, N.S. Atamas. - Berkut. 21 (1-2). 2012. - P. 82-92.
Own materials were collected by authors in 5 regions during 1981–2012. Literature data were analysed too. The Oystercatcher was a common but unnumerous bird species on the Middle Dnieper. After creation the tandem reservoir system in 1950–1970s, its number very decreased. Majority of breeding habitats were lost. During the last decades, Oystercatchers expanded upstream of rivers in the Dnieper basin. It started breeding on Dnieper and Pripyat in Belarus, went up along the Desna river up to Bryansk region of Russia, appeared on tributaries of Desna and Pripyat in Ukraine. Perhaps, this expansion is related to population decline on the Middle Dnieper. The actual number of the Oystercatcher in the study area is estimated in 50–70 pairs (Dnieper from the border of Belarus up to Poltava and Kirovograd regions, lower parts of Desna and Pripyat within the bounds of Kyiv region). First birds arrived since the second half of March till the first half of April. Mean first arrival dates in four regions of the study area fell on the last days of March. The autumn migration started during the late July and the first half of August. It passed little visibly. The last birds were observed as a rule during September but sometimes they were delayed up to mid October. Mean last departure dates fell on mid September. Changes in nest site selection were analysed. “Typical” breeding habitats became rather exclusion on the Middle Dnieper now. At present, the majority of nests are located on concrete dams, fallen trees among water, destroyed buildings. Full clutches had from 2 to 4 eggs, on average 3,2 ± 0,1 (n = 32). 43,8% clutches numbered 3 eggs, 37,5% – 4, 18,8% – 2. Egg size (mm): 50,4 – 58,0 × 31,9 – 40,5, on average 53,50 ± 0,26 × 38,27 ± 0,20 (n = 51). Egg laying started since the third ten-day of April, majority of eggs were laid in late April – first ten-day of May. Chicks hatched since the third ten-day of May. First fledged youngs were observed during late June and first half of July but bad flying fledglings can be occurred up to early August. Breeding success made up 61,1% (n = 18). Mean size of brood 2,3 ± 0,2 fledged youngs (1–4, n = 17). 23,6% of broods had 1 fledgling, 35,3% –2, 29,4% –3, 11,8% – 4. Mollusks and insects were the main food of Oystercatchers in the study area. Problems of protection of the species are discussed. [Russian].

The fuelling performance of long-distance migrants at staging areas indicates local conditions and determines the viability of migration routes. Here we present a first case study where long-term fuelling performance was documented along two migration routes with differential population trends. Ruffs (Philomachus pugnax) are shorebirds of inland freshwater wetlands that migrate from the sub-Saharan wintering grounds, via Europe, to the northern Eurasian breeding grounds. Assessments from 2001 to 2008 of fuelling during northward migration at the major western and eastern staging site revealed that daily mass gain rates steeply declined across years in the grasslands for dairy production in Friesland, The Netherlands, and remained constant in the Pripyat floodplains in Belarus, 1500 km further east. Migrants in Friesland decreased from 2001 to 2010 by 66%, amounting to a loss of 21,000 individuals when counts were adjusted for length of stay as determined by resightings. In the same period numbers in Pripyat increased by 12,000. Ruffs individually ringed in Friesland were resighted in subsequent springs at increasingly eastern sites including Pripyat. Our results corroborate published evidence for an eastward redistribution of Arctic breeding ruffs and suggest that the decreasing fuelling rates in the westernmost staging area contribute to this redistribution. The shift implies that responses occur within a single generation. The hypothesis that the choice of route during northward migration may be driven by food availability can now be tested by creating greater areas of wet grasslands in Friesland. When local staging conditions improve we predict that ruffs will make the reverse shift.

Recent decades have seen great advances in ecological modelling and computing power, enabling ecologists to build increasingly detailed models to more accurately represent ecological systems. To better inform environmental decision-making, it is important that the predictions of these models are expressed in simple ways that are straightforward for stakeholders to comprehend and use. One way to achieve this is to predict threshold values for environmental perturbations (e.g. climate change, habitat modification, food loss, sea level rise) associated with negative impacts on individuals, populations, communities or ecosystems. These thresholds can be used by stakeholders to inform management and policy. In this paper we demonstrate how this approach can use individual-based models of birds, their prey and habitats, to provide the evidence-base for coastal bird conservation and shellfishery management. In particular, we show how such models can be used to identify threshold values for perturbations of food abundance that can impact negatively on bird populations. We highlight how environmental thresholds could be used more widely to inform management of species and habitats under environmental change.

This paper presents an overview of patterns in the primary moult of waders using the Eurasian–African migration
system and updates earlier summaries with results obtained from the Underhill–Zucchini moult models (1988,
1990). Recent applications of these models allow researchers to examine moult timing down to the progress
of an individual feather in a tract and to determine the effects of environmental factors on moult. Waders
present a wide variety of inter- and intra-specific strategies for their primary moult, an energy-costly activity
they must fit in with breeding and migration, the other main energy-demanding events in their life cycle. Here
I present the moult strategies of waders in the context of their age, size, sex and annual variation in breeding
success, seasonal food abundance, the latitude where they moult, the distance they migrate, the habitats they
use, and the rainfall patterns and temperatures at their moulting grounds. I also discuss how moult is adjusted
to these factors. This overview emphasises the flexibility of many waders’ moult strategies as an adaptation
to the unpredictable food supply provided by ephemeral inland wetlands and compares these strategies with
those of populations that use predictable coastal habitats. Discovering the mechanisms that allow waders to
adjust their genetically controlled and hormonally regulated moult to proximate factors is suggested as one of
the challenges in further studies of moult.

Records of Grey Phalarope (Phalaropus fulicarius) in the territory of Ukraine. - V.N. Grishchenko. - Berkut. 22 (2). 2013. - P. 107-112.
The Grey Phalarope is a rare vagrant species in Ukraine. There is information about 19 records in 16 points since the second half of XIX cent. Two published reports were not confirmed. All the points of records can be united in 2–3 groups: West Ukraine, central and south-west regions, east regions. There is the large area between the first group and two other ones, where these birds were never observed. Such situation of record localities is connected obviously with location of flyways between breeding and wintering grounds of the species. Majority of phalaropes was found on inland waters, mainly on lakes and ponds. They were occurred more often during the autumn migration, mostly in September. During the spring migration, the birds were found mostly in June. Some phalaropes can summer. As a rule, only separate birds were observed; small groups were very rare. Flocks were never encountered. Females were found more often than males, adult birds – more often than youngs. [Ukrainian].

Long-distance migrant waders breeding in the Arctic often have globally structured populations, largely because they were isolated in glacial or interstadial refugia or are restricted to fragmented coastal wetlands in winter. Conversely, inland species using continentally distributed wetlands appear to be less structured (more panmictic), presumably because they are less likely to have been isolated by multiple refugia or by current events. We analyzed genetic variation in a widely distributed inland species, the ruff (Philomachus pugnax), sampled from seven Eurasian breeding localities, and from migration routes and wintering areas in Europe and Africa. One mitochondrial marker (n = 118) and eight nuclear microsatellites (n = 170) showed (a) high genetic variation, (b) large genetic distances among mitochondrial (private) haplotypes within breeding populations, (c) the absence of a signature of isolation-by-distance, and (d) a distribution of private microsatellite alleles indicating dispersal between Scandinavia and Siberia, but not between western and East Siberia. These results were consistent with a large refugial population during the Last Glacial Maximum, and postglacial long range expansions spreading ancestral polymorphisms, and not with a stepping-stone model of gene flow. The divergence between breeding populations in Europe and Siberia was dated to about 12,000 years ago. Though genetic population structure is presently statistically nonexistent, support for evolving population structure came from analyses of geographic variation in two relevant phenotypic traits, wing length and timing of migration. Analysis of 6,077 individuals sampled on migration in 2002-08 revealed that in each year shorter-winged birds migrated through significantly later than longer-winged birds. The late-passing birds were associated with more westerly breeding localities. In conclusion, the lack of genetic structuring in ruffs (and other inland species we examined) contrasts with strong structuring in many coastal species which is in accordance with the hypothesis. This suggests that the ability to use more widely available inland habitat influences the evolution of genetic structure and the maintenance of genetic variation in waders.

The population of Sanderlings Calidris alba along the East Atlantic flyway has grown considerably during the last decades. Perhaps reflecting this augmented population size, increasing numbers of Sanderling have been reported to stage in the Wadden Sea during spring and autumn migration. Estimates of the numbers of Sanderlings in the Wadden Sea have previously been based on a limited number of counts that were not corrected for the turnover of individuals. In this study, we accounted for turnover using estimates of the probability that
individually colour-ringed Sanderlings are still present two days after a sighting. In combination with daily counts during high tide, we estimated the total number of Sanderlings that used the island Griend and surrounding mudflats, in the western Dutch Wadden Sea, during southward passage in 2013 and 2014. We also estimated minimal staging durations of Sanderlings at Griend. Non-moulting birds were significantly heavier upon capture, which suggests that they were refuelling for long non-stop migratory flights. Winter sightings confirmed that the non-moulting Sanderlings winter in sub-Saharan Africa and that the moulting Sanderlings spent the winter in Europe or northern Africa. With an average minimal stay in the western Dutch Wadden Sea of 9 days in 2013 and 12 in 2014, non-moulting Sanderlings stayed for a much shorter time
than moulting Sanderlings, which stayed for 32 days in 2013 and 36 days in 2014. Non-moulting individuals were less likely to be resighted between years. Estimates of minimal staging duration are likely underestimates of the true staging duration, and we propose that moulting Sanderlings probably complete
their wing moult in the Wadden Sea. We estimated that the total number of Sanderlings using the western Dutch Wadden Sea before migration to European or African wintering areas were 27,546 (95% CI 22,739–41,449) in 2013 and 22,574 (95% CI 16,436–46,114) in 2014. This would amount to 11–14% of a total flyway population of 200,000 individuals, representing an amazing degree of concentration for what is regarded as a rather widely and thinly spread shorebird species.

The Wadden Sea, shared by Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, is one of the world’s largest intertidal wetlands. Waterbirds are an important element of the Wadden Sea ecosystem. By their migratory behaviour they connect the Wadden Sea with other sites, ranging from the arctic to the western seaboards of Europe and Africa, forming the East-Atlantic Flyway. The Joint Monitoring of Migratory Birds (JMMB) project of the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Program (TMAP) follows the changes in population size within the Wadden Sea. In this paper we describe and analyse population trends over the years 1991e2009 for 22 waterbird species using the Wadden Sea in internationally important numbers and depending on intertidal mudflats. Population declines predominated in this 18-year period. More populations decreased in Schleswig-Holstein and Niedersachsen than in The Netherlands and Denmark. This is the case particularly for species feeding on polychaetes. In contrast,
waterbirds feeding on bivalves are in decline in all regions except Denmark. On the finer spatial scale of tidal basins, these patterns in trends are still apparent, although much variation in trend directions exists within the Dutch Wadden Sea, especially in bivalve specialists. For those species for which we could compare the trend in the Wadden Sea with the trend of their entire flyway population, we found that the
former were more negative. This finding and the contrasting trends between regions and tidal basins within the Wadden Sea suggest that causes of the population changes are to be sought within the Wadden Sea itself. These causes, which may act in combination, could be related to factors operating within the Wadden Sea only or with factors operating on a larger scale but having an intensified or differentiated effect within the Wadden Sea. Interestingly, the Wadden Sea regions where negative
trends of benthivorous waterbirds predominate are characterized by a large tidal amplitude, whereas areas where bird numbers have generally increased are characterized by a small tidal amplitude. An inventory of possible causes indicated climate change, eutrophication, shellfish fisheries, invasive species and increasing numbers of avian predators as the most important candidates to be investigated further to explain the observed trends.

Summary – Numbers, Space and habitat  use of Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus in Leer county (Lower Saxony, Germany),
spring 2011
During spring migration 2011 three synchronous counts for staging Whimbrels Numenius phaeopus in marshy river valleys of Ems estuary were made. We found a maximum number of 1,349 individuals between the end of April and the beginning of
May. 85 % of all Whimbrels used pasture grassland for feeding. The maximum flock size was 138 ind., the average flock size was 39 ind. Our results show a very high importance of wet marshland in the county of Leer. According to literature the study area holds the highest number of staging Whimbrels in Germany. Spring migration counts will be continued in 2012, additionally  synchronous counts at the night roost will be started [in German with engl summary].

Aggressive behavioural interactions between animals are widespread in nature, with ecological and evolutionary consequences of such interactions reported for both individuals giving and receiving aggression. Yet despite the importance of aggressive interactions in determining social dominance and conferring fitness benefits to successful individuals, we lack a general understanding of the conditions that influence the variation in agonistic behaviours among individuals and species. We conducted a global meta-analysis of published time-activity budgets, using a data set comprising 555 values from 88 studies, to determine variation in the time that waterbirds engaged in aggressive interactions. The mean ± SD percentage of time devoted to aggression was 2.0 ± 3.6%, with a range of 0.0-35.0%. We used our data set to test four predictions regarding avian aggression, based on the findings of earlier site-based studies. We predicted that the time spent on aggression would be influenced by four factors: (1) age class, (2) sex, (3) seasonal timing and (4) functional feeding group. A comparison of linear mixed-effects models using an information theoretic approach indicated that the proportion of time waterbirds spent engaged in aggressive interactions was best explained by the age class and sex of the focal waterbird species. More time was spent on aggression by males than females, and by adults than juveniles. We found no evidence that the time spent on aggressive behaviours varied across latitudes or body mass, with seasonal timing, sexual dimorphism, migration or breeding strategies, or between different functional feeding groups. Our findings highlight the high levels of variation in the time devoted to aggression across species, feeding groups, latitudes and seasons. Furthermore, our study demonstrates the utility of the numerous published time-activity budget studies that are available as a valuable source of data that can be used to answer broad-scale questions regarding animal behaviour.

Wild birds are considered a potential reservoir or a carrier of viral diseases and may therefore play a role in the epidemiology of economically important or zoonotic diseases. In 2001 and 2002, a survey with special emphasis on virus isolation in migrating waders and some other birds were conducted. In one of the most important inland resting sites for migratory waterfowl, tracheal and cloacal swabs were collected from 465 waders representing 19 different species, and 165 other birds that were not captured on purpose. A total of 42 avian viruses were isolated, 34 of these were identified as paramyxoviruses (PMVs). The majority of isolates came from waders and wild ducks, and were characterized as PMV-1. In contrast, PMV-4 was found in wild ducks only, PMV-6 was mainly detected in wader species. Four avian influenza viruses (AIVs), belonging to H4 and H3 haemagglutinin subtype, were isolated from wild duck species. Furthermore, four reo-like viruses were isolated from one particular wader species for the first time. The majority of virus positive birds were <1 year old and did not show any clinical symptoms. There was no evidence for the presence of West Nile virus in these birds. These results confirm that the restricted resting sites in Western Europe must be considered as important locations for the intra- and interspecies transmission of avian viruses.

By following the fate of both floated and non-floated eggs from individual clutches of four Arctic wader (shorebird) species, we show that the use of the flotation method for determining incubation stage of eggs (which involves both the submersion and handling of eggs) does not negatively affect hatchability.

Summary The Numeniini is a tribe of 13 wader species (Scolopacidae, Charadriiformes) of which seven are Near Threatened or globally threatened, including two Critically Endangered. To help inform conservation management and policy responses, we present the results of an expert assessment of the threats that members of this taxonomic group face across migratory flyways. Most threats are increasing in intensity, particularly in non-breeding areas, where habitat loss resulting from residential and commercial development, aquaculture, mining, transport, disturbance, problematic invasive species, pollution and climate change were regarded as having the greatest detrimental impact. Fewer threats (mining, disturbance, problematic native species and climate change) were identified as widely affecting breeding areas. Numeniini populations face the greatest number of non-breeding threats in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, especially those associated with coastal reclamation; related threa...

Introduction. Information on historical changes in the fauna of geographical regions and biota habitats is important for understanding the processes that take place in ecosystems. The results of such an analysis in combination with modern research can indicate not only the global trends in changes of animal associations and the status of particular populations of species, but also reveal the reasons that caused the situation. Materials and Discussion. The first lists of bird species in the 18th – early 19th centuries showed the nesting of 12 species of waders. However, during the 19th century 37 species of waders were found, 12 of which were nesting. 13 wader species were permanent migratory and 8 – rare migratory species. In the first half of the 20th century, there were 27 species of waders on the territory of Prykarpattia, and 25 in Volyn, among
which there is a larger list of migratory and vagrant species in the foothills of the Carpathians. In the second half of the 20th century, 39 species of waders were described within the western regions of Ukraine, of which 17 were nesting, and four of them were recorded during the last decade.
Conclusions. There are 42 species of waders (39 of them are recent) registered in the western part of Ukraine. Among them 17 species are nesting, 15 – migratory and seven – vagrant species. During the 20th–21st centuries, 23 species of waders, including only 7 nesting species, have not changed their status of stay. However, it has changed for 17 species: two species have disappeared; four – have become vagrant;
the Ruff Calidris pugnax and the Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis have changed their status from nesting to migratory. The Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus, the Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus and the Wood Sandpiper T. glareola that were common, somewhere numerous bird, – have become few in numbers; and the Great Snipe Gallinago media and the Black-tailed Gotwit Limosa limosa – have become rare. The Jack
Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus has become migratory. The nesting of sandpipers, with a southern area of distribution, in the western regions of Ukraine proves the fact of the global warming. However, the drop of the water level, drying out of wet meadows and swamps and, as a consequence, plant succession, have terminated the nesting of such
species as the Ruff and the Marsh Sandpiper; the Black-tailed, the Great Snipe and the Wood Sandpiper become rare; the Northern Lapwing and the Green Sandpiper have become much less numerous.

Only a few years ago, the Odiel marshes (Huelva, Spain) were colonized by Artemia parthenogenetica, a small, native crustacean of hypersaline waters. However, from 2016 this species has been replaced by Artemia franciscana, an invasive species from America. This change has had profound implications for the ecosystem.

Peculiarities of migration, biometrics and stopover ecology of Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos L.) in the Cholgyni ornithological reserve (West Ukraine) are discussed. Main autumn passage of the species occurs from second decade of July to second decade of August. Average number of migrants per one count didn’t exceed 2–3 individuals. Mean passage date on autumn migration was 30 July. First quartile – 19 July, second – 15 August. Frequency distributions of all biometrical measurements except of weight were unimodal. Average stopover length equals 3,9 days. Potential flight range of juvenile birds reaches 3 901 km, adult – 4 602 km. Therefore, fat reserves deposited in the reserve are not enough to reach main wintering grounds in Central Africa. On the studied territory Common Sandpipers migrate as S-strategists, depositing fat reserves during long time period. This is also confirmed by high fat amounts in that species and high potential flight range in comparison to other species of waders.

The purpose of this project was to assess the mussel (Mytilus edulis) food requirements of oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus) in the Exe Estuary, which has been designated a Special Protection Area for overwintering waterbirds, including oystercatcher. The overwintering oystercatcher population of the Exe Estuary has been well-studied, and the birds are known to feed predominantly upon mussels in intertidal areas. There have been recent declines in the population size of oystercatcher in the Exe Estuary, mirroring wider declines throughout Europe, the reasons for which are unknown.

The study comprised:
• The collection of new data on the area of mussel beds, the density and size distribution of mussels on these beds, and the numbers and behaviour of oystercatcher on these beds;
• The collation of existing data on the food supply of oystercatchers in the Exe Estuary;
• The development of models to predict the food requirements of oystercatcher;
• Running simulations of the models to predict whether there is / could be any effect on oystercatcher survival of the current / potential future ways of managing the mussel fishery on the Exe Estuary.

The current mussel fishery on the Exe provides a feeding resource for oystercatcher on intertidal lays that are exposed on spring tides. Two potential management options that could be effective at improving the feeding conditions of oystercatcher would be to increase the number and area of intertidal mussel lays, and / or to place mussel discards at a relatively high shore level close to the oystercatcher roost.

This project documented a number of changes that have occurred to the Exe Estuary mussel and oystercatcher populations including:
• The number and size of mussel beds have decreased since traditional methods of maintaining mussel beds in the estuary have ceased.
• The density of mussels within the size range consumed by the birds has generally decreased, but the density of the larger mussels within this size range, which are more profitable to oystercatcher, has generally increased.
• Oystercatcher lose a higher proportion of mussels to attacks by carrion crows and herring gulls than they have in the past.
• The number of oystercatcher wintering in the estuary has declined, but the number of birds feeding on the mussel beds has been relatively stable.

The models developed in the project predict that the present day mussel population is sufficient to support the number of oystercatcher that were observed to feed on mussels.

The presence of mussel lays provides extra food for oystercatcher when these lays are exposed on spring tides. The present area, or increases in the area of mussel lays could increase the survival rate of oystercatcher if the number of birds feeding on mussels was over 2000. Below this threshold, starvation was predicted to affect 0 % of the population and so additional food resources cannot further reduce the starvation. The effect over 2000 birds is relatively small because the lays are only exposed for a short time, and so oystercatcher will obtain the majority of their food from mussel beds that are higher on the shore, and hence exposed for longer. Simulations were not run in which lays were positioned higher on the shore because this would not be commercially viable from a fishery perspective; the growth rate of mussels declines as they are positioned further up the shore because they are inundated with water for less time and so have less time to feed.

Factors that would affect the beneficial effect of discards include the size of the discards, the size of the discard bed and the date from which discards are replenished. Our simulations predicted that larger discards spread at lower density over a larger bed increased oystercatcher survival by the greatest amount. This happened because interference competition excluded some birds from smaller patches, and oystercatcher can maintain high intake rate down to low mussel densities. It is unlikely that the size of discards could be increased, but the simulations suggest that the greatest benefit to oystercatchers could be achieved by spreading discards over a larger area. Our simulations predicted that making discards available from January increased oystercatcher survival by the same amount as making them available from September. This was because the feeding conditions of birds deteriorate through winter as, for example, the ash-free dry mass of prey declines, interference competition intensifies and day length shortens. The intake rate of birds feeding on discards was not measured during the study, but we recommend that this is done to between understand the potential benefit of discards. We recommend that the best place for the discard bed would be along the top of the shore on an area of gravel (and hence of relatively low food value to the birds), to the south of Cockwood. This is south of an area where discards have been laid and exploited by oystercatcher in the past, but would experience lower levels of disturbance from human activity.

Kolguev Island in the Barents Sea, N Russia, has no rodents; as a consequence it has a relatively small
predator population, which is most beneficial to the breeding success of birds. As a consequence it is an area of
outstanding importance for waders, not only in the Western Palearctic but also across the entire Arctic region.
Until recently, knowledge of the breeding birds of Kolguev was limited to the results of a small number of
ornithological expeditions that took place mostly in the early 1900s. During the three summers 2006–2008, a
Russian–German team undertook a series of expeditions to investigate the bird populations of the entire island. Here
we present the results of these expeditions in respect the breeding status, abundance, distribution and population
trends of waders, and report on some aspects of their breeding biology. We found 15 breeding wader species of
which Dunlin Calidris alpina, Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago and Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
showed a decline between 1994–1995 and 2006–2008 while numbers of Grey Plovers Pluvialis squatarola
appeared to be stable. In contrast Eurasian Golden Plovers P. apricaria which were rare in 1994 are now breeding
regularly. Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus, Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus and Eurasian Dotterel
Eudromias morinellus were confirmed as breeding species, but these might have been overlooked in earlier years.
For several species we discuss trends on Kolguev in the context of trends in the Wadden Sea and elsewhere.