Breeding success for spoonbills as once-extinct bird continues UK return

Spoonbills once driven to extinction in the UK have experienced another successful year of breeding as they continue to stage their return, experts said.

The rare wetland bird, named after the distinctive spoon-like shape of its bill, was a familiar sight in the 16th century, but the last nesting spoonbill was recorded in 1668 as draining of the East Anglian Fens and hunting drove them to extinction.

They did not breed successfully in the UK for 300 years, and it was not until 2010 the first regular colony of breeding spoonbills established itself at Holkham nature reserve in Norfolk, the RSPB said.

But the conservation charity said the heron-sized birds are on track for another successful year this year, with spoonbills breeding at multiple RSPB reserves across the UK.

The successes show the importance of dedicated conservation work to provide and restore shallow wetland habitat on which the birds depend, the RSPB said.

The white birds are waders which can typically be spotted along coastal sites in southern and eastern England, where they catch small fish, shrimps and aquatic invertebrates by sweeping their spoon-shaped bill from side to side in shallow water.

Successful breeding sites include Havergate Island in Suffolk and Fairburn Ings in West Yorkshire, where nine chicks – nicknamed “teaspoons” by reserve staff – have already fledged with more still being fed by parents on their nests.

For the first time this year since the 17th century, spoonbills have been recorded nesting in Cambridgeshire at RSPB Ouse Washes, the UK’s largest area of “washland” – areas adjacent to rivers which are flooded when water levels are high.

Jonathan Taylor, senior site manager at RSPB Ouse Washes, said: “The Ouse Washes are the perfect habitat for spoonbills and we are delighted to have these birds breeding for first time.

“Although they are breeding later here compared with other spoonbills in the UK, as is often the case with new colonies, it is fantastic that this iconic and highly adapted heron species has returned and is using our wetlands once again.”

Karen Swaffield, warden at RSPB Fairburn Ings, said: “It’s tremendously exciting to have spoonbills here and early indications are that they have had yet another successful breeding year.

“We nicknamed baby spoonbills ‘teaspoons’ in 2017 and the name has stuck.

“We’re thrilled that the spoonbills have been here for eight years in a row, and we really hope this means they are here to stay.

“If the last pair which are currently nest-building manage to fledge a chick, we will have had a record year, so we are all on tenterhooks to see what happens next.”

At Havergate Island, where work to encourage nesting began in the mid-2000s and breeding started in 2019, the site is now home to the only ground-nesting colony of the birds in the UK, with 17 pairs.

Aaron Howe, south Suffolk sites manager for the RSPB, said: “We have undertaken lots of work over the years to create a haven for spoonbills, such as making the nesting island secure with fencing and ensuring there is ample suitable feeding in the estuary.

“It’s fantastic to see them nest here and we’re expecting another successful year with more than 30 chicks ready to fledge.”