Does anyone have any biblio references on the impact of cockle fishing on seabirds. Specifically the method is a combination of pneumatic extraction and dredging. In the area of concern about 10% of the known stock is removed annually. There is no apparent impact on bird numbers to date (it has been in place for about 5 or 6 years but expanding each year) - in fact oystercatcher, the species that depends most on cockles are slightly increasing over the period (there are many complicating factors). However impact on diving ducks is unknown due to difficulty in estimating populations (among other things).
Also any information on the impact this has on other fauna and flora in a large (1000+ hectare) area of mudflat?
Merci!
Also any information on the impact this has on other fauna and flora in a large (1000+ hectare) area of mudflat?
Merci!