Startsida / NOWAC-conference

NOWAC at Öster Malma 2011

Climate change and effects on duck populations in the Nordic Countries

This conference aims to address for the first time ever, the effects of climate change on duck populations in the Nordic countries. It will do so by focusing on examples of how effects associated with predicted climate change (including warmer and wetter winters and summers, more frequent winter storms, changes in salinity of coastal areas due to changed river run-off patterns, and sea level rise) may impact on population dynamics, phenology and other migration behaviours, as well as habitat availability and energetics of duck populations. The ultimate objective will be to attempt to draw together these studies to see how these effects impact ultimately on population size and change over time.

Are our monitoring structures fit for purpose in a changing world?

But just how many ducks do breed and winter in the Nordic countries, and what processes are affecting their numbers as of now? These sound trivial questions, but they are key to our understanding of the conservation status of our duck populations. Fundamentally, we need knowledge about how many individuals there are and how their numbers change from year to year. For this reason, the first phase of the conference will be to assess our ability to monitor overall numbers of ducks from year to year, how well are we able to track changes in vital rates (namely annual breeding success and survival) and how good our current methods at picking up changes in distribution, if milder winters mean that birds no longer have to migrate so far outside the breeding season? We are especially keen to establish the degree of contributions made through “citizen science” networks and the degree to which birdwatchers and hunters can enhance their contributions to monitoring now and in the future, especially to track changes that may result from climate change.

Can I contribute to the presentation programme?

We would therefore welcome contributions to the programme that examine any of these aspects of waterbird ecology, distributions and population dynamics, especially from the Nordic countries, but also encompassing parallel studies from other regions. We are keen to encourage contributions that provide innovative and novel information about our ability to track population size amongst common and widespread duck species, their distribution and vital rates in cost effective and statistically robust ways. We are especially keen to encourage contributions from young committed researchers with new things to say, especially with regard to the effects of future climate change.

Is this conference of interest to me?

This conference will also address applied aspects, in particular how international conventions, EU directives, national legislation and site-safeguard programmes resulting form these might need to be reshaped in order to appropriately monitor, manage and conserve duck populations in a globally warmed and changing World. For this reason, we urge everyone involved with Nordic duck populations to attend this meeting, but especially interested and committed wildfowlers, researchers, managers and agency representatives from all over the world with an interest in monitoring, research and effects of global change on migratory duck populations.