Cumulative population-level effects of habitat loss on seabirds ‘Kader Ecologie en Cumulatie 4.0’

• Main Authors: Soudijn, F.H., van Donk, S., Leopold, M.F., van der Wal, J.T., Hin, V.
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: Wageningen Marine Research 2022
• Subjects: Life Science; Fulmar; Atlantic puffin; Common Eider; common guillemot; Northern Fulmar; Razorbill
• Online Access: https://research.wur.nl/en/publications/cumulative-population-level-effects-of-habitat-loss-on-seabirds-k-2; https://doi.org/10.18174/565601

In the programme ‘Programma Noordzee 2022-2027’, offshore wind farm (OWF) search areas will be designated as development areas for generating wind energy. An assessment was made of the effect of habitat loss due to offshore wind development in these search areas on the following seabird species: diver spec.2, northern fulmar, great cormorant, common eider, common scoter, common guillemot, razorbill and Atlantic puffin. For great cormorant, common eider and common scoter, the effects of habitat loss were assessed based on estimated numbers of casualties. For the other species, population models were used to assess the effect of habitat loss on the population level. For northern gannet and sandwich tern, both the effects of habitat loss and the effects of collision mortality were tested together in the population models. Here, the method and calculation of the numbers of casualties due to habitat loss are described. The estimation of the numbers of casualties due to collision mortality are described in Potiek et al. (2021a). The population effects of offshore wind farms on seabirds were considered for six different scenarios: - No offshore wind farms - Basic: All offshore wind farms planned up to 2030 - ‘Rekenvariant I’ (Basic+10.7 GW) - ‘Rekenvariant II’ (Basic+12.7 GW) - ‘Rekenvariant III’ (Basic+16.7 GW) - International wind farms + Rekenvariant II. 6 of 112 | Wageningen Marine Research report C007/22 Summary In the programme ‘Programma Noordzee 2022-2027’, offshore wind farm (OWF) search areas will be designated as development areas for generating wind energy. An assessment was made of the effect of habitat loss due to offshore wind development in these search areas on the following seabird species: diver spec.2, northern fulmar, great cormorant, common eider, common scoter, common guillemot, razorbill and Atlantic puffin. For great cormorant, common eider and common scoter, the effects of habitat loss were assessed based on estimated numbers of casualties. For the other species, population models were used to ...