ONE TO WATCH
Saving the Spoon-billed Sandpiper
Fondly known in birding circles as “Spoonie”, this charismatic wader occupies a limited breeding range in north-eastern Russia, from where it migrates down the western
Pacific coast to its main wintering grounds in Bangladesh and Myanmar. Due to Spoonie’s particular liking for certain types of mudflats – lagoon spits with crowberry-lichen
vegetation or dwarf birch and willow sedges – it has probably always been a scarce
species. However, numbers have dropped by 88% in just 10 years according to our latest surveys. Their favourite stopover sites are being reclaimed for industry, infrastructure and aquaculture and the mudflats that remain are getting heavily polluted. With
only less than 200 pairs left in the wild, we’re taking urgent action to save the species
from imminent extinction. Do you want to help? Read more and donate to scale up our
work at www.donorbox.org/save-the-spoon-billed-sandpiper
PHOTO BY KAJORNYOT WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY/SHUTTERSTOCK