The Wildlife and Pollution contract covers a long-term
monitoring programme, the Predatory Bird Monitoring Scheme (PBMS),
that examines the levels of certain pollutants in selected wildlife
species in Britain. The programme was started in the early 1960s,
when there were serious concerns over the effects of organochlorine
insecticides and organomercury fungicides on various species of
birds and mammals. This early work demonstrated the effects of the
organochlorines and eventually contributed to the ban on their use
in the UK and abroad. The programme has subsequently assessed the
success of these bans by measuring whether there has been a decline
in the concentrations of organochlorine pesticides in the livers
and eggs of predatory and freshwater fish-eating birds.
Investigations have also been made into the levels of industrial
polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), following their identification as
pollutants in 1966. Mercury levels, derived from both agricultural
and industrial sources, have also been tracked, although mercury
concentrations were not measured in birds collected in 2001. In
recent years, investigations have been made into the effects of the
newest generation of rodenticides on barn owls
Tyto alba.
Northern gannet
Morus bassanus eggs are also collected
approximately biennially from two colonies and, when available,
from other sites; eggs were last collected in 2002
This programme is now the longest-running of its kind anywhere
in the world and the findings stimulate considerable interest
internationally, as well as in Britain. Annual reports give an
interim summary of results. This current report presents the
results of analyses carried out on material collected in 2003.
Every three years these annual results are gathered together into a
more substantial report in which they are integrated with previous
findings. The last report of this type covered the period up to and
including 2000 (Shore et al., 2005a) and is updated here.
The present report summarises the long-term trends in all
contaminants (except rodenticides, analysed in (Shore et
al., 2005b)) that occurred during the monitoring period up to
and including the year 2003. Results are published periodically in
the scientific literature, and recent key papers are listed in the
references to the present report.
The Wildlife and Pollution contract was the subject of
scientific assessment within JNCC’s rolling programme of peer
review in autumn 1993 and was further assessed in 1996. As a result
of the last two assessments, some monitoring was curtailed. Most
notably, common kestrels Falco tinnunculus are no longer
monitored for organochlorines. However, kestrels have been
monitored for second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides since
2001. This is because an individual study, carried out as part of
the PBMS activities, demonstrated that this species may be
particularly vulnerable to exposure to these compounds (Shore
et al., 2001b). Carcasses and eggs of predatory bird
species (such as peregrine falcon Falco peregrinus, common
buzzard Buteo buteo, long-eared owl Asio otus,
little owl Athene noctua, common kingfisher Alcedo
atthis, great crested grebe Podiceps cristatus, and
great bittern Botaurus stellaris) which do not form the
core part of the PBMS, but are sent to the Centre for Ecology &
Hydrology (CEH) by volunteers, are not analysed chemically.
However, post-mortem examinations are carried out the carcasses,
relevant information is recorded and the cause of death is
determined (and reported back to the volunteer who submitted the
carcass). Samples of the egg contents and body organs for these
species, and samples for the species that do form part of the core
monitoring, are all archived at -20°C as part of CEH’s unique
long-term tissue bank, and are often used in specific targeted
research studies in subsequent years.
Each section within the Wildlife and Pollution contract is
summarised below. Each is dependent on the provision of material
from amateur naturalists and other interested parties, and it is
not always possible to obtain desired material for analysis,
especially from remote areas.