Press Releases - January/February 2008
Item 2

No. 2008/01/02
January 2008

Where have all the Mallards gone?

The latest results from the Wetland Bird Survey show that the number of Mallards wintering in the UK is at a record low.

The newly published Wetland Bird Survey report, Waterbirds in the UK 2005/06, shows that the decline in Mallard numbers, first highlighted in the mid 80s, is continuing. The number of Mallards spending the winter at the Ouse Washes on the Cambridgeshire/Norfolk border, the only site in Britain that still holds nationally important numbers, has almost halved since 2002. During the winter of 2001/2002, 4,457 Mallard were counted here. Over the 2005/2006 winter, the maximum count was 2,454.

Mallards can be found almost anywhere where there is water in the UK, from the pond in the park to the wild expanse of the Ouse Washes. Most of us at one time or another will have fed at least one Mallard during a trip to the park to feed the ducks. But all is not well with this familiar bird, as the number of birds recorded wintering in Britain have dropped by 33% since the mid 1980s. The reasons behind this fall are unclear, but, could include poor breeding success or milder winters, which may allow birds to remain on smaller waterbodies instead of being forced to congregate at larger sites.

On 2 February 2008, people across the globe will be focusing on the world’s wetlands as part of World Wetland Day. In the UK, around 3,000 volunteers will be counting waterbirds across the country as part of the Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS), reporting back on the fortunes of up to 173 different types of bird that use this habitat. Mark Collier, WeBS National Organiser at the BTO, said, “The decline in Mallard numbers highlights how important it is to monitor our wetland birds on an annual basis. Without these volunteers giving up their time and going out during the winter months to count these birds, it would be impossible to know just how important our wetlands are for them.”

WeBS is a partnership between the British Trust For Ornithology (BTO), the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC). The WeBS report is available electronically as a pdf by visiting www.bto.org/webs

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Notes for Editors

1. The Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) is the monitoring scheme for non-breeding waterbirds in the UK, which aims to provide the principal data for the conservation of their populations and wetland habitats. WeBS is a partnership between the British Trust for Ornithology, the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (the latter on behalf of Natural England, Scottish Natural Heritage, the Countryside Council for Wales and the Environment and Heritage Service for Northern Ireland). For more information about the WeBS survey see www.bto.org/webs
2. The Mallard is one of six species of dabbling ducks (surface feeding) that regularly winter in the UK. The others are Gadwall, Pintail, Shoveler, Teal, and Wigeon. It is a relatively large, heavily built duck. The female is mainly brown with an orange bill. The male has a bottle green head, a yellow bill, is mainly maroon-brown on the breast and grey on the body, except during late summer, when the plumage resembles that of a female.
3. The latest WeBS report is available as a pdf by visiting http://www.bto.org/webs/news/index.htm
4. World Wetlands Day. 2 February each year is World Wetlands Day. It marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Each year since 1997, government agencies, non-governmental organisations, and groups of citizens at all levels of the community have taken advantage of the opportunity to undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness of wetland values and benefits and the Ramsar Convention. For more information about World Wetlands Day visit www.ramsar.org
5. Images are freely available for use in association with this press release. Please contact to request an electronic version. Please quote reference number 2008/01/02
6. The BTO has an ISDN line available for radio interviews.

For further information please contact:

Paul Stancliffe (Press Officer) on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)
or mobile 07845 900559 (anytime)

Mark Collier (WeBS National Organiser) on 01842 750050 or email:
(during office hours)

Dr Andy Musgrove (WeBS National Co-ordinator) on 01842 750050 or email:
(during office hours)