Wildlife

Wild Gannet Colony Monitoring Welfare

Gannet colonies are among the most impressive seabird spectacles and require welfare-sensitive monitoring approaches.

Key Facts

UK gannet colonies hold around 60% of the world's Northern gannet population
Gannets show high site fidelity and lifelong pair bonds making individual welfare assessment possible
Avian flu outbreaks have devastated gannet colonies in recent years with massive mortality
Ring and GPS tracking enables welfare-relevant data collection on foraging range and success

Welfare Considerations

Gannet mortality from avian influenza caused acute welfare suffering at unprecedented scale in 2022-2023. Monitoring approaches must be minimally disruptive to avoid adding stress to disease-challenged populations. Individual deaths in mass mortality events represent significant welfare harm.

What You Can Do

Report unusual seabird mortality to RSPB and APHA
Support seabird monitoring programmes through citizen science
Advocate for emergency response protocols for mass seabird mortality events