PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Great snipe (Gallinago media) has a vulnerable conservation status in 27 EU countries, due to small and declining populations and its poor recovery prospects outside the EU. The main reason for the decline in great snipe numbers and the reduction of its range in Poland since the 1980s is the loss of nesting habitat, mainly caused by human activities. In the 1990s, the domestic population of great snipe was estimated at 750-900 displaying males. By 2018, its population was estimated at only 400-550 males, a drastic decline in lekking males of over 40 %. The most serious current threats in all the key sites in Poland are low water levels due to changed hydrological conditions, the loss of habitat due to plant succession, and predation by native and introduced species.
OBJECTIVES
The main aim of the LIFEGALLINAGO ACTION PLAN project is to stop the population decline of great snipe and to achieve favourable conservation status for the species in Poland. This will be achieved through the implementation of six specific objectives directly derived from the National Species Action Plan (SAP), concerning the great snipes conservation status, its habitats, and the threats it faces. The plan was approved by the Director of the General Directorate for Environmental Protection (GDO) in March 2017. The project will install sluices to improve hydrological conditions, restore meadows and reintroduce grazing to reverse the trend toward scrubland, and control predators in key lekking sites (where males gather for breeding). The improved habitat conditions will also benefit associated priority species, such as lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa), common snipe (Gallinago gallinago), and redshank (Tringa totanus). Expected results: