Hope for one of UK's rarest seabirds as record number of chicks hatch at Northumberland nature reserve

A colony of one of the UK's rarest breeding seabirds which was devastated by bird flu for the past two years has seen a record number of chicks hatch at a Northumberland Nature Reserve.

Roseate terns, which were devastated by bird flu in 2022 and 2023 have produced more chicks than ever before on Coquet Island off the Northumberland Coast - the only place they breed in the UK. A total of 191 chicks hatched this year, with 175 (92%) of those going on to fledge.

This marks the island's second most successful breeding season yet for the colony, but RSPB experts say it's too early to say if this is a sign of recovery from bird flu. For long-lived species such as terns, the recovery process could take many years and bird flu has not gone away, but the figures nevertheless bring new hope for Coquet Island's approximately 45,000 breeding seabirds.

READ MORE: North East Museums formed to manage venues in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland

READ MORE: Durham local history museum housed in former church set to close

There was good news for Arctic Terns too, which fledged their highest number of chicks ever per pair at 1.49 and common terns fledged an above average number of chicks per breeding pair at 1.47. However, the number of breeding pairs at 353, compared with 1,875 pre bird flu in early 2022, was the lowest ever recorded.

Despite the good news, the numbers of Roseate Terns returning to nest on the island were lower this year than previous years, and the hope now is that numbers will increase next spring. In 2022, thanks to many years of targeted conservation work, numbers had grown to 154 pairs before then being hit by bird flu.

Conservationists say that 276 Roseate Terns seen on Coquet Island this year hatched during or before 2022, when the disease first took hold on the island. This also brings hope that some of the birds survived the virus, but it's also possible that some did not catch it.

It is not yet known how many Roseate Terns died from the disease, but RSPB seabird surveys revealed a 21% decline in the Coquet breeding population since before the bird flu outbreak. In total, 28 species of seabird nested on the island in 2024, including species of duck.

The oldest Roseate Tern, aged 13, returning to Coquet Island this year will have travelled at least 84,000 miles on its migration, the equivalent of travelling three times around the world. Stephen Westerberg, RSPB Northumberland Coast site manager, said: "Knowing that the Roseate Terns have had such a successful breeding season after two years of bird flu gives us great hope for the future.

"There are still a lot of unknowns though, and we could see outbreaks of Avian Influenza in subsequent breeding seasons on Coquet. We hope though that next year will bring another successful breeding season for our Roseates but surveillance and preparedness for outbreaks is key".

Bird flu remains a threat to seabirds, and between September and October this year, 20 great black-backed gulls were found dead on Coquet Island, with samples testing positive for a different sub-type of bird flu to that seen in 2022 and 2023. All seabirds, other than larger gulls, have now left the island for this season.

The birds will return next spring, and it is hoped that if enough vulnerable seabirds already exposed to bird flu have developed immunity, flock immunity may protect against large-scale outbreaks. However, immunity wanes over time and the virus can change.

Stephen finished: "We urgently need action from the UK governments to tackle the many threats our seabirds face so they can recover in numbers and reach healthy population sizes better able to withstand threats such as disease."