GrassBirdHabitats Life IP

About the project

The protection of grassland birds, such as Black-tailed Godwits, Lapwings and Curlews, and their habitats are the focus of this project, funded by the European Union under the LIFE programme. Our aim is to create and connect optimal breeding and non-breeding areas along the East Atlantic Flyway. To this end, land use must be extensified and water levels optimised, among other things.

To network activities more closely in the future and to coordinate measures for successful meadow bird conservation, we develop a Strategic Conservation Planfor meadow bird habitats in Western Europe and in West Africa. Apart from that, meadow bird-friendly measures are being implemented in 27 project areas in the state of Lower Saxony (Germany) and in one large project area in the province of Fryslân (the Netherlands).

The project will run for ten years, from November 2020 until October 2030. Its total budget is around 27 million euros, including a 12 million share from the State of Lower Saxony.

As the coordinating beneficiary, the Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment has commissioned the State Agency for Bird Conservation in the Lower Saxony Water Management, Coastal and Nature Protection Agency (NLWKN) to implement the project.

Objectives

The main objective of the LIFE IP GrassBirdHabitats is to boost the populations of wet grassland breeding birds along the East Atlantic Flyway. This includes measures to increase the birds’ reproduction rates in the Netherlands and Germany, and to improve their return rates from their wintering areas in West Africa.

The total project area comprises around 291,000 ha in Lower Saxony and Friesland. In Lower Saxony, the goal is to create 21,000 ha of biodiverse wet meadows, of which 19,000 ha will be public land while another 2,000 ha will be acquired through complementary funds. In Friesland, conservation management in two pilot areas totalling 100 ha will demonstrate ecological and economic sustainability and motivate farmers to participate in grassland conservation. Additionally, measures to improve the quality of meadow bird habitats will be implemented in conservation areas on 600 ha.

Furthermore, the project team will develop and implement an international Strategic Conservation Planfor wet grassland breeding birds in the Atlantic region. It will include a habitat restoration plan to improve breeding and resting sites in Europe and it will be linked to a strategic plan for the wintering areas in West Africa. The aim is to transfer the team’s experience to other European regions.

The project aims to fully implement the Prioritised Action Frameworks (PAFs) for Natura 2000 for Germany and the Netherlands in all sections related to grassland breeding birds and their habitats. In addition to implementing EU policy on nature conservation and biodiversity, the project contributes to sustainable agriculture, water resources and climate change, to the EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation, the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, the 2030 Climate and Energy Framework and the European Green Deal.

Project information

Study sites

Lower Saxony, Friesland (the Netherlands), Senegal

Funders

EU Life

Partners

Nds. Landesbetrieb für Wasserwirtschaft, Küsten- und Naturschutz (NLWKN, DE) ;Wadden Sea National Park Administration (DE); BIO-CONSULT OS (DE); Province of Fryslân; Collectief Súdwestkust (NL); Bond Friese VogelWachten (BFVW, NL)

Contacts

BirdEyes project coordinator
Ruth Howison: r.a.howison-fraser@rug.nl