Project Actions
Description of Project Activities
Activities relating to the above themes are wide-ranging and multifaceted. They will encompass all actions and supports necessary to achieve increased productivity in Irish Breeding Wader populations. There will be definitions concerning the specific roles of the project team members, therefore increasing efficiency, with skilled administration and technical staff supporting the actions of project officers in the field.
Project activities will include;
- Species-specific surveying and refinement of WAZ’s
- Species-specific management plans
- Diagnosis and action planning
- Land management agreements and associated Wader Action Plans
- Appropriate Assessments and Screening
- Predation risk management training and deployment
- Headstarting and avicultural activities
- Marking and live-tracking of the policy environment
- School and 3rd level initiatives
- Innovation
- Policy advice
- Training and sectoral capacity building
- Development of modern Predation Risk Management SOPs
Expected Results and Practical Recommendations
The project aims to combine the design, development, and trail of an innovative suite of measures, with known actions that benefit Breeding Waders. This combination will seek to;
- Halt the decline in the Irish Breeding Wader population
- Improve awareness of Breeding Waders and associated downward pressures
- Drive population recovery on a National level
- Increase capacity in the Predation Risk Management sector
- Drive policy and increase awareness of the needs of Breeding Waders among policy makers
- Implement positive Breeding Wader actions on non-commercially farmed land
The project will train and recruit up to 650 farmers, who farm land in Breeding Wader hotspots, known as Wader Action Zones. Participant farmers will be trained in the operation of the programme to raise awareness of the project objectives and ensure a clear understanding of the required actions. Similarly, engagement with the wider farming community and the general public will be undertaken to raise awareness of the learning’s of the project.
Monitoring results will demonstrate and quantify the effectiveness of the project in achieving its objectives.
Our project will pilot various innovative measures which could be adopted into main-stream agri-environmental programmes aimed at improving outcomes for ground-nesting bird species.
We foresee that the learning’s from the project will help develop approaches towards addressing the needs of Breeding Waders in the next CAP.
This project is strategically designed to ensure that learnings and results from the project will be disseminated broadly. Project management will actively seek to participate in relevant EU CAP Network thematic groups and fora to share the project’s best practice and identify knowledge exchange opportunities from other projects.
The table below shows our Species Specific Population Targets and milestones
| Species | Current Population (Breeding Pairs) | 3 Year Aim (Breeding Pairs) | 5 Year Aim (Breeding Pairs) |
| Lapwing | 800 | 800 | 900 |
| Redshank | 180 | 200 | 220 |
| Curlew | 120 | 115 | 125 |
| Dunlin | 30 | 30 | 35 |
| Golden Plover | 150 | 150 | 165 |
| Snipe | 3,500 | Identify population size |
5% by year 5 |
| Oystercatcher | 750-1000 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |
| Ringed Plover | 1000 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |
| Common Sandpiper | 1500 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |
The project will train and recruit up to 650 farmers, who farm land in Breeding Wader hotspots, known as Wader Action Zones. Participant farmers will be trained in the operation of the programme to raise awareness of the project objectives and ensure a clear understanding of the required actions. Similarly, engagement with the wider farming community and the general public will be undertaken to raise awareness of the learning’s of the project.
Monitoring results will demonstrate and quantify the effectiveness of the project in achieving its objectives.
Our project will pilot various innovative measures which could be adopted into main-stream agri-environmental programmes aimed at improving outcomes for ground-nesting bird species.
We foresee that the learning’s from the project will help develop approaches towards addressing the needs of Breeding Waders in the next CAP.
This project is strategically designed to ensure that learnings and results from the project will be disseminated broadly. Project management will actively seek to participate in relevant EU CAP Network thematic groups and fora to share the project’s best practice and identify knowledge exchange opportunities from other projects.
The table below shows our Species Specific Population Targets and milestones
| Species | Current Population (Breeding Pairs) | 3 Year Aim (Breeding Pairs) | 5 Year Aim (Breeding Pairs) |
| Lapwing | 800 | 800 | 900 |
| Redshank | 180 | 200 | 220 |
| Curlew | 120 | 115 | 125 |
| Dunlin | 30 | 30 | 35 |
| Golden Plover | 150 | 150 | 165 |
| Snipe | 3,500 | Identify population size |
5% by year 5 |
| Oystercatcher | 750-1000 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |
| Ringed Plover | 1000 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |
| Common Sandpiper | 1500 | Survey for baseline data | Develop Species Specific Management |