Wildlife Conservation

Wild Shorebird Coastal Habitat Loss

Shorebirds face mounting pressure from coastal habitat loss, sea level rise, and human disturbance at critical staging and breeding sites.

Key Facts

Many shorebird species have declined by 70 percent or more since 1970
Shorebirds depend on specific coastal habitats for breeding and fueling during migration
Sea level rise threatens low-lying beach and tidal flat habitats
Human disturbance at staging sites forces flocks to flush repeatedly, wasting critical energy reserves

Welfare Considerations

Shorebirds repeatedly flushed from staging areas waste essential energy reserves needed for long migrations. The cumulative energy cost of disturbance can prevent successful migration completion, causing death from starvation and exhaustion mid-journey. Coastal habitat loss reduces available feeding and resting area, forcing birds into suboptimal habitats with lower food density and higher predation risk.

What You Can Do

Maintain distance from shorebird flocks at coastal sites
Keep dogs on leads near shorebird feeding and roosting areas
Support coastal habitat protection and restoration programs
Participate in shorebird monitoring and citizen science surveys