{"id":243,"date":"2021-12-29T10:00:13","date_gmt":"2021-12-29T09:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.countryfile.com\/?p=39249"},"modified":"2021-12-29T10:12:19","modified_gmt":"2021-12-29T09:12:19","slug":"guide-to-british-seabirds-how-to-identify-and-where-to-see-them","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbccountryfile\/rss_feed\/guide-to-british-seabirds-how-to-identify-and-where-to-see-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Guide to British seabirds: how to identify and where to see them"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Daniel Graham\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 29 December 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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British seabirds come in all shapes, sizes and colours. Some can be seen year round along our shores, whilst other species are migrants<\/a>, arriving in spring to breed for the summer\u00a0months, before leaving again in autumn.<\/p>\n

Some of our seabirds are large and others small; some rare and some common; and some our colourful and showy, whilst others have adapted to blend in with their surroundings.<\/p>\n

There are dozens of seabird species to look out for, each with their own set of unique characteristics and behaviour patterns. Our guide to seabirds found in the UK includes some of the most abundant species and the best places to see them.<\/p>\n

\""Seabirds\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A colony of seabirds on the Farne Islands\/Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

What is a seabird?<\/h2>\n

Many bird species live on or near the coast. Wildfowl<\/a>, for example, are often found on estuaries or coastal marshland, and ravens, doves and kestrels<\/a> regularly make use of sea cliffs. But they aren\u2019t true seabirds. Seabirds are birds that rely, at least most of the time, on the ocean to survive. Their bodies are adapted to the marine world.<\/p>\n

In recent years, and largely due to human-induced environmental changes, some species of seabird \u2013 including cormorants and a number of gull species \u2013 have adapted to life away from the sea. These species are still regarded as seabirds.<\/p>\n

\""Gull\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Some seabird species have adapted to life away from the ocean\/Credit: Jake Graham<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Threats to British seabirds<\/h2>\n

Britain\u2019s seabirds are in decline, with climate change and overfishing reducing their food stocks, but you can still\u00a0find teeming colonies on our coasts.<\/p>\n

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