Great Northern Diver Welfare: Wintering on UK Coastal Waters

Great northern divers winter in UK coastal waters from Icelandic breeding grounds, facing welfare threats from oil spills, fishing gear entanglement, and disturbance at inshore feeding areas.

Key Facts

Great northern divers are solitary winter visitors to UK coastal waters, primarily around Scotland and southwest England
They dive to considerable depths for fish, requiring clear, productive coastal waters with fish populations
Oil spill vulnerability is high due to the amount of time spent on the water surface and diving through surface oil
Entanglement in lobster pot lines and nets causes drowning and is a documented cause of diver mortality

Welfare Considerations

Great northern diver welfare on UK wintering grounds is threatened by oil contamination, fishing gear interaction, and disturbance. Oiling destroys waterproofing and causes fatal hypothermia in cold UK coastal waters. Entanglement in fishing gear causes drowning or injury that impairs diving ability, leading to starvation. Disturbance from recreational boat traffic near inshore feeding areas forces repeated diving responses that deplete energy reserves during winter. These are solitary, wide-ranging birds that rely on undisturbed, clean inshore water throughout the winter. Stronger marine pollution controls and modified fishing gear near known diver feeding areas are the primary welfare interventions.

What You Can Do

Report any oiled diver or diver showing signs of entanglement to wildlife rescue organisations
Support Scottish Marine Protected Areas that protect key great northern diver wintering sites
Advocate for lobster pot line modification to reduce diver entanglement risk in inshore fisheries
Maintain distance from diving birds when boating in coastal areas to avoid disturbance to feeding birds