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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/sep/26/social-media-posts-endangered-species-capercaillie-birders-aoe>
"With its impressive size, striking plumage and rowdy displays, sighting a
capercaillie is many birders’ dream. Only about 530 of the large woodland
grouse survive in the wild in Scotland, most in the Cairngorms national park.
But in recent years, those tasked with saving the species from extinction have
had to walk a line between calling attention to the birds’ plight and
discouraging people from seeking them out.
Although it is illegal to disturb capercaillie during the breeding season from
March to August, that hasn’t deterred birders and nature photographers,
motivated by the possibility of a prestigious spot – or shot.
Over the 2022 season, 17 people were found on or around the “lek”, where male
birds gather to compete for the attention of females in spring, says Carolyn
Robertson, the project manager of the Cairngorms Capercaillie Project.
That same year, a birdwatcher was caught on camera, flushing six capercaillie
from the breeding site. The man was arrested, but let go with a verbal warning.
By then the damage may have already been done.
Even fleeting disruption can “make the difference between birds breeding, or
not,” says Robertson. “We know that it increases their stress levels, so
there’s a high chance they didn’t come back to the area to breed that morning;
they might not have returned for days.”
With so few birds remaining in the wild, human disturbance could be
“catastrophic” for the species, Robertson says – but discouraging nature
enthusiasts from seeking them out has proved challenging.
“When people have taken photographs of capercaillie and put them online,
they’ve been liked thousands of times. By the time we ask them to take them
down, it’s got them so much kudos, they don’t want to do so.”
It reflects a new and increasing threat to vulnerable species and habitats
around the world: social media. A new paper in the
Science of The Total
Environment journal has highlighted the negative impacts of online posting and
photography on biodiversity.
By calling attention to rare flora and fauna – and in some cases their precise
locations – nature enthusiasts posting about finds can cause others to flock to
the same location, and even to deploy unethical tactics (such as playing back
bird calls or using bait) to secure a sighting for themselves.
Robert Davis, a senior lecturer in wildlife ecology at Edith Cowan University
in Western Australia and the paper’s lead author, says the research was “driven
by collective rage” at having seen pristine natural spots and vulnerable
species negatively affected by visitors.
“There’s actually probably never been a time in human history where you can
share information so rapidly to so many people, and with that has come this
immense pressure to systems,” he says."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
