The Case for Grouse Moor Management

This is an extract from a blog post by Adam Smith, Director Scotland for the GWCT.  The full post can be viewed on the GWCT website

Adam Smith

The case for grouse moor management as an essential part of sustaining Scotland’s uplands was re-stated at a “Gift of Grouse” reception on 30 November at the Scottish Parliament, highlighting the work of grouse moor estates in the Angus Glens and Perthshire.

Adam Smith, Director Scotland, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT), which has, since the mid-1980s, produced more than 120 peer- reviewed papers on moorland issues, reiterated the benefits of management for grouse saying:

“There is no question to GWCT Scotland that well conducted management for grouse shooting can be a force for good in our uplands. Its demise would pose significant challenges for the landscape, for nationally important biodiversity conservation, and many small but locally important rural economies.

“GWCT feels however that there is room for improvement; we believe where grouse densities are at levels which can sustain shooting and predation pressures, these moors can and should host diverse bird of prey populations. We also feel that grouse moors should play a greater role in protecting and enhancing peat storage, thus capturing carbon and water.”

Adam Smith said that while it was possible to achieve net beneficial change, this would require balances to be struck – in terms of sustainable bird of prey populations, re-wetting peat land to the detriment of grazing quality, and for gamekeepers to better judge the need for medicating wild animals. He said:

“Change is not always a net gain. If we accept that Scotland needs moorland, new processes in thinking in both management and public policy are needed. Critically there must be a shift in perception that moorland management is limiting and extractive to accepting that it contributes provisioning, regulating and cultural services. Grouse moors are an interlinked part of the suite of upland land uses, including forestry and livestock farming, which have a role in the sustainable future for the uplands.”

Request to submit literature to the Understanding Predation project

This post has been written by Dr Chris Wernham, on behalf of the Project's Research Group.  She explains the process that is being followed to collect data for the Natural Science review and asks for details of any 'grey literature' that the searches may have missed.

The scientific literature reviewing for this project is now underway. This will involve systematic searching of on-line scientific databases to access scientific papers and other reports that are indexed in such databases, as well as further review of information in previous reviews (e.g. Park et al. 2005, 2008; Gibbons et al. 2007; Smith et al. 2008, Nicholl & Norris 2010). 

Further details are available on the Project's section of the Moorland Forum's website and include:

• Information on the scientific search and literature selection methods; 
• A work-in-progress bibliography of literature being considered by the review (please note this is a large file with some duplicates); and 
• A spreadsheet showing how literature will be filtered for use.

We are very aware that a wealth of relevant factual information may be available in what is known as ‘grey literature’, including reports and other publications (e.g. book chapters) that may not be included in on-line databases or be cited by peer-reviewed scientific papers. You can help to make this review as comprehensive as possible by making sure that we are aware of this type of material.

We are very keen for you to contact us now and tell us about the most important sources of literature relevant to this project that you consider we must review as part of the work (whether we are aware of them already or not). Please would you do this by the end of July at the latest.

As a reminder, we are looking for literature on the following topics (see the draft review structure for more information on the areas of research that will be covered by the review):

• Impacts of predation by avian or mammalian predators on wild birds in Scotland, with a particular focus on breeding waders and wild gamebirds;
• Impacts of other factors on populations of wild birds (again focussed on breeding waders and wild gamebirds) and their major predators (for examples of the factors we will be considering, see the project questionnaire); and
• Evidence for the success (or otherwise) of conservation-management techniques that could be used to mitigate against adverse effects of predation on breeding wader and wild gamebird populations (for examples of techniques we will be considering, see the project questionnaire).

Please use the contact form if you have suggestions for literature to include in the review.  Dr Mark Wilson from BTO Scotland (tel: 01786 466560) will contact you and ask for as much information as possible (authors, title, organisation, year) and, ideally, an electronic or hard copy if this is feasible. 

References

Gibbons D. W., Amar, A., Anderson, G. Q. A., Bolton, M., Bradbury, R. B., Eaton, M. A., Evans, A. D., Grant, M. C., Gregory, R. D., Hilton, G. M., Hirons, G. J. M., Hughes, J., Johnstone, I., Newbery, P., Peach, W. J., Ratcliffe, N., Smith, K. W., Summers, R. W., Walton, P. and Wilson, J. D. (2007) The predation of wild birds in the UK: a review of its conservation impact and management. RSPB Research Report no 23. RSPB, Sandy.

Nicoll, M. & Norris, K. (2010) Detecting an impact of predation on bird populations depends on the methods used to assess the predators. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 1, 300-310.

Park, K.J., Calladine, J.R., Graham, K.E., Stephenson, C.M. & Wernham, C.V. (2005) The impacts of predatory birds on waders, songbirds, gamebirds and fisheries interests. A report to Scotland’s Moorland Forum. BTO Scotland & Centre for Conservation Science, Stirling.

Park, K.J., Graham, K.E., Calladine, J. & Wernham, C.V. (2008) Impacts of birds of prey on gamebirds in the UK: a review. Ibis, 150, 9-26.

Smith, R.K., Pullin, A.S., Stewart, G.B. & Sutherland, W.J. (2008) Is predator control an effective strategy for enhancing bird populations? CEE protocol 08-001 (SR38). Environmental Evidence: www.environmentalevidence.org/SR38.html.

BTO Report: Conservation Management of Moorland

I would like to draw your attention to a report published by the BTO: 

Calladine, J., Critchley, C.N.R., Baker, D., Towers, J. & Thiel, A. 2014. Conservation management of moorland: a case study of the effectiveness of a combined suite of management prescriptions which aim to enhance breeding bird populations'. Bird Study Volume 61, Issue 1, 2014.

To explain why this work is relevant to Understanding Predation, I quote from the conclusion in the extract from this report:

"There has been wide advocacy of, and considerable resources (e.g. through agri-environment schemes) devoted to, moorland habitat management for birds and yet declines continue. However, there are practical difficulties of establishing management that is effective in increasing moorland bird abundance. It appears likely that in areas where those birds are vulnerable to predation, and its control is not effective, expectations of increasing bird populations in response to habitat management alone may be unrealistic."

Currently, I do not have access to the full paper, but there is a link to a summary of the findings published by BTO on the project's references webpage.