1. An introduction to upland birds - for the Stakeholder Workshop Who they are, Where they are, And some action to date

2. Upland Birds ‘Group’ 7 Red-listed 13 Amber-listed 1 Green-listed (Peregrine Falcon) 1 (not assessed) Birds of prey: Hen Harrier & Peregrine

3. Wildfowl Wintering Greenland White-fronted Geese: small numbers still utilise Irish bogs Breeding Teal: dispersed, breed near small upland streams & bog pools

4. Ubiquitous passerines Meadow Pipit & Skylark: abundant in uplands, becoming scarce as breeder in lowland agricultural land

5. Closely-related, but contrasting fortunes Widespread WheatearsWhinchat – almost gone

6. Golden Plover

7. Golden Plover nest in Owenduff/Nephin SPA Virtually all clutches are of 4 eggs in drier/elevated microhabitats The Irish population is in the region of 150 pairs We need better annual monitoring of this Annex 1, Red-listed species

8. Distribution of Golden Plover Restricted to NW Ireland (mapped at the tetrad level) based on 2002- 2004 Upland Bird Survey (from Newton & Cummins 2005) Counties present: Donegal Sligo Mayo Galway Cavan

10. Example of infrared aerial digital image of a section of the Nephin SPA (Ballycroy NP)

11. Curlew Formerly abundant in marginal upland areas Now, Globally Endangered and ‘on the brink’ as an Irish breeding bird Virtually none recorded in the three-year Upland Bird Survey in north and western counties (Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Mayo and Galway)

12. Two Red-listed passerines Ring OuzelTwite

13. Ring Ouzel...... Probably Ireland’s rarest regular breeding passerine Restricted to ‘heathery cliff’ habitats Possibly, only 15 pairs in Donegal, the same in Kerry and one or two in Wicklow

14. Red-throated Diver Where? > Restricted to Donegal How many? > 6-8 pairs regularly attempt to nest annually Typical breeding lough

15. Red-throated Diver nest Highly vulnerable to any form of disturbance, water level fluctuations & predators such as mink

16. Recent fortunes of Ireland’s Red- throated Divers

17. Spot the Golden Plover nest!