What does it take to bring back a bird on the edge of extinction? For curlew, one of the UK’s most threatened breeding birds, the answer is anything but simple. Their story captures the tangled challenges of modern conservation, balancing farming, land use and our own connection to nature.
Curlew under threat
The UK should be a stronghold for the species, hosting up to 25% of the global wintering curlew population. Despite their cultural heritage, breeding curlew numbers are dropping fast due to habitat loss, agricultural change and intensification, excessive predator pressure, and climate change.
Having declined by an average of 50% across the UK in 30 years, our remaining populations have been shown to be aging out. Curlew can live up to 20 years and are incredibly site loyal, returning to nest in the same spot every year. With very little fledging success, these long-lived birds have very few younger birds surviving to adulthood and bolstering the future of their populations. The likely extinction of the species is a result rather too close to home, particularly in areas such as Wales, which could lose its breeding curlews as soon as 2033.
Solutions rooted in collaboration
Scientists across the country are fighting to find solutions for this threatened species. A recent article in the RSPB magazine by Mary Colwell highlighted some of these key beacons of hope beautifully. In the article, she highlights our responsibility as stewards of the countryside, and our crucial role in saving curlew populations. It was wonderful to see that the Curlew Connections Project in Wales was recognised by Mary as a perfect example, drawing on the precious relationship between humans and curlew.
The team at Curlew Connections includes three Curlew and People Officers, who work on the ground with farmers, communities, and volunteers. The project is using cutting-edge thermal optic drones to find nests more quickly and efficiently in one of the project areas. Once found, nests are surrounded by electric fencing, which offers protection from mammals and livestock, improving chick survival.
Funded by the Welsh Government with the Heritage Lottery, the project is a partnership between Clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape, Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, and the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Wales. It’s a fantastic example of collaborative, community-led conservation, reconnecting people with curlew and conservation efforts.
Children added their own feathers to the curlew painting at the Royal Welsh Agricultural Show. Each feather contained their message of what curlew conservation means for them.
Julieanne Quinlan emphasises that local engagement is essential for a long-term sustainable project: “Curlew is a bird with deep roots in Welsh culture, something that is reflected in its 25 Welsh names. Whether in the Amazon or Wales, without involving local people, conservation further disconnects from the land and its heritage and does not address the root of the problem.
“We have a stellar team on the ground and a wonderfully engaged network of farms, volunteers and members of the community. Giving farmers support is key. Farmers are the custodians of these birds; they just need a helping hand, and this is what the project offers.”
More for the future of curlew
In her RSPB article, Mary explains that historically the projects focused on helping curlew have been limited but are now picking up steam. Across the GWCT many other researchers are also on the front line, innovating new ways to save the curlew, with implications for use on wider conservation efforts too.
Through tools such as AI cameras on drones and on the ground, real-time action fed straight through to the researchers’ mobile phones, we are able to better protect curlew nests and accurately survey breeding populations.
New technology, much of which is being pioneered by the GWCT, is making a real difference for the future of curlew and could be turning point if we want to save them from extinction.