Saving wetlands for wildlife & people
Saving wetlands for wildlife & people
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Species/Populations Greenland/Iceland Pink-footed Goose Iceland Greylag Goose History Census began in 1960 in the UK. Coordinated at international scale since 1998 (Ireland) and 2001 (other countries). Until winter 2005, coordinated counts were undertaken at the majority of sites in October and November. With the increasingly late arrival of Greylag Geese to the UK, a third coordinated count was introduced in 2005 to determine whether December was a better month to count this species. After three winters, an appraisal of the count data indicated that November and December were the best months in which to count Greylag Geese Although Pink-footed Geese have also been arriving later, their migration has not advanced sufficiently for December to be a suitable month in which to count this species. Although numbers of Pinkfeet peak increasingly in November, October still provides the peak count in around half of all years. Aims To estimate population size and identify important wintering sites. Coverage International (UK, Ireland, Iceland, Norway, Faroe Islands). Around 120-150 sites are covered each year. Those in the UK are mainly in Scotland, northern England and Norfolk. Frequency Annual. Coordinated counts are carried out each year on pre-determined dates in October, November and December. A preliminary count in September is also made at some sites. Methods Primarily counts of roosting birds. These are ideally conducted at dawn as birds leave the roost, but dusk roost counts are made at some sites. Exceptionally, daytime counts of feeding birds are made in areas where roost sites are poorly known or inaccessible, or too few counters exist in order to provide coordinated coverage of roost sites. Results Please view the latest assessments of Greenland/Iceland Pink-footed Goose and Iceland Greylag Goose, or download the annual IGC reports. Getting involved The coordinated count dates for the next survey period (winter 2009) are 17/18 October, 14/15 November and 12/13 December 2009. Counters at sites supporting roosting Pink-footed Geese should count on the October and November coordinated dates, whilst counters at sites with Greylag Geese should focus on November and December. Counts from all three months are welcome from sites holding both species. However, if this is not possible, please liaise with your Local Organiser or the national organiser, Carl Mitchell, regarding the best alternative approach. If you feel you can help to address any of these gaps in coverage in any way, for example by counting the site yourself, suggesting an alternative contact who may be able to help, or bringing us up to date on the numbers of geese present in recent winters, please contact the Species Monitoring Unit. Resources Count forms CUDI Data requests Field ageing guide Partner Organisations BirdWatch Ireland Faroese Ornithological Society Icelandic Institute of Natural History Joint Nature Conservation Committee National Parks and Wildlife Service (Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Eire) Norwegian Institute for Nature Research This survey also receives the support of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement
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Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust
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