Wildlife disturbance form - Exe Estuary Management Partnership

Observer name:

Observer contact details: (address / email / phone number)

Description of disturbance event: (Please include a factual description of what was observed, including the behaviour of birds prior to and following incident (i.e. feeding / roosting), habitat prior to disturbance (i.e. shore, intertidal or water), and any other information not captured above)

Date of disturbance event:

Time of disturbance event: (include duration of event)

Location: (of activity and yourself, if possible use What3words or grid reference)

Weather: (include visibility)

Tide: (include tide height, i.e. high / low / rising / falling)

Binoculars or scope used by Observer:

Photos/video taken of event: Y/N (if yes, please email to exeestua@devon.gov.uk, stating “Disturbance Form” and your name as reference)

Activity:

Other activities:

Distance of activity to species disturbed:

Species: (see guidance notes below for list of SSSI protected species)

Approximate number of individuals (birds) affected:

Level of disturbance: (see guidance notes below for descriptions)

Name and contact details of any additional witnesses: (please confirm here that you have the consent of those witnesses before including their details)

FOR WARDEN USE ONLY: Record any discussion had with those involved in the incident: (including any information leaflets given out)

FOR WARDEN USE ONLY: Was this activity obviously intentional, and if so, why? (e.g. was information given prior to the event?)

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Guidance Notes:

Disturbance can be classed as any activity that interrupts the natural behaviour of an animal.

Major Flight (MF) = extreme change in behaviour. Flight of more than 50m or agitated behaviour e.g. remaining airborne for more than 2 minutes or leaving area

Short Flight (SF) = Flight of less than 50m, returning to original behaviour within 2 minutes.

Walk/Swim (WS) = notable change in behaviour but not resulting in flight.

Alert (A) = alert and vocalising, but little change in movement

No Response (NR) = no apparent change in behaviour

The special interest features of the Exe Estuary SSSI include the wintering avocet, black-tailed godwit, brent goose, ringed plover and wigeon. In addition the breeding birds, dragonflies, saltmarsh, reedbeds, grazing marsh, muddy shores (including the seagrass beds) and Orcombe rocks are also special interest features.

BTO Bird species codes:

Avocet	AV
Black-tailed Godwit	BW
Brent Goose	BG
Ringed Plover	RP
Wigeon	WN

Other species:

Bar-tailed Godwit	BW	Oystercatcher	OC
Curlew	CU	Red-breasted Merganser	RM
Dunlin	DN	Redshank	RK
Greenshank	GK	Sanderling	SS
Knot	KN	Shelduck	SU
Mallard	MA	Snipe	SN
Mute Swan	MS	Teal	T