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Journal of BirdLife Australia
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Shorebirds along the Yellow Sea coast of China face an uncertain future – a review of threats

David S. Melville A C , Ying Chen B and Zhijun Ma B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A 1261 Dovedale Road, RD2 Wakefield, Nelson 7096, New Zealand.

B Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Biodiversity Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China.

C Corresponding author. Email: david.melville@xtra.co.nz

Emu 116(2) 100-110 https://doi.org/10.1071/MU15045
Submitted: 27 April 2015  Accepted: 29 September 2015   Published: 17 February 2016

Abstract

Wetlands along the Yellow Sea coast of China, which are a major staging area for shorebirds in the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, are in a state of crisis that threatens the future of this migration system. Populations of many shorebirds in the Flyway have declined in recent decades at a time when there has been widespread loss of habitat and degradation of coastal wetlands around the Yellow Sea. Here we examine current threats to coastal wetlands along China’s Yellow Sea coast based on field surveys in 2013 and 2014 and a review of the literature. Intertidal habitats have been lost to land claim or degraded through aquaculture and harvesting, as well as gross pollution and invasion of exotic Spartina, all of which have negatively affected shorebird foraging, roosting and breeding sites. Planned further development, if unchecked, will result in the loss of most of the remaining intertidal area, which is likely to result in calamitous declines in populations of many shorebirds. There is a need for immediate action to curb future land claim and to develop an integrated coastal management strategy. Further research on applied aspects of shorebird ecology is urgently needed to inform future policy development and decision making.

Additional keywords: aquaculture, conservation, land claim, migration, waders, wetlands.


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