Sandwich terns return to England Coast after avian flu wipeout

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and local volunteers restored a coastal habitat in Pagham, England, leading to the return of sandwich terns.

After avian flu wiped out the bird population in 2022, the colony at Pagham harbor sat empty. Conservationists worked on a 128,000-acre stretch of coastline between Brighton and Southampton to rebuild the environment. These actions included installing predator-proof fencing to protect ground-nesting birds, monitoring for rats, and removing specific vegetation to encourage nesting.

The RSPB and volunteers also established dog-friendly exercise areas away from the nesting sites to reduce human disturbance. These efforts as part of the Solent Seascape project have successfully repopulated the area. Beyond the sandwich terns, the project helped increase numbers of little terns, ringed plovers, black-headed gulls, and oystercatchers.