Inland breeding of shelduck tadorna tadorna in britain

Abstract

Shelduck first bred inland in Britain late last century, but a rapid expansion in the incidence of nesting away from coastal habitats has occurred during the last two decades. Analysis of National Wildfowl Count data for inland Shelduck in March shows a 6.6% annual increase in Britain between 1967and 1987. Longer established inland populations in South-east Scotland and East Anglia are more stable, perhaps reflecting the more complete habitat occupancy, although mineral extraction and reservoir creation continue to provide a large amount of new habitat in these and other areas. In 1986, an estimated 250-300 pairs of Shelduck attempted to breed inland in Britain. © 1991 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.