Study of the feeding habits of the Brent Goose in the Saint Brieuc Bay National Nature Reserve
The Saint Brieuc Bay National Nature Reserve, located in the north of Brittany, is winter migration site of international importance for the dark-bellied Brent Goose Branta bernicla bernicla, despite the total absence of its favourite food, eel grass. Monitoring has revealed that Ulves Ulva armocicana represents 90% of the sustenance locally ingested by Brent Geese. This ulvaceae is responsible for spectacular green tides which have a great impact on the bay each summer. Each year Brent Geese consume 400 tonnes, but nevertheless does not stem the phenomenon. However, the reabsorbtion policy for excess nitrates which are coming into effect in the bay could, in time, reduce this food source and mean the geese would need to find an alternative food source. Here in the bay, this could be a grass which grows in the salt marshes (Puccinellia maritima), or winter cereals planted in the fields bordering the bay. In order to avoid potential crop damage, the reserve may need to enlarge the existing Puccinellia maritima salt marshes, either by mowing or by cultivating pastures of Halimione portulacoides in climacic areas, as is the case in Aiguillon Bay.
This will have to be done with caution, the areas with sea-purslanes being important feeding grounds for young fish during high tides. It is clear that, in this bay, a wintering area of international interest for a particular species of water bird has developed thanks to serious environmental imbalance. It is therefore possible that this ornithological interest could be disrupted by current curative water quality restoration policies, should no compensatory measures arise to compensate for the planned reduction of the green tide.
Simple
- Title
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Study of the feeding habits of the Brent Goose in the Saint Brieuc Bay National Nature Reserve
- Date (Creation)
- 2006-01-01T00:00:00
- Citation identifier
- FR-DCSMM-PDS-REGIME-ALIMENTAIRE-LA-BERNACHE-CRAVANT
- Presentation form
- Digital profile
- Abstract
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The Saint Brieuc Bay National Nature Reserve, located in the north of Brittany, is winter migration site of international importance for the dark-bellied Brent Goose Branta bernicla bernicla, despite the total absence of its favourite food, eel grass. Monitoring has revealed that Ulves Ulva armocicana represents 90% of the sustenance locally ingested by Brent Geese. This ulvaceae is responsible for spectacular green tides which have a great impact on the bay each summer. Each year Brent Geese consume 400 tonnes, but nevertheless does not stem the phenomenon. However, the reabsorbtion policy for excess nitrates which are coming into effect in the bay could, in time, reduce this food source and mean the geese would need to find an alternative food source. Here in the bay, this could be a grass which grows in the salt marshes (Puccinellia maritima), or winter cereals planted in the fields bordering the bay. In order to avoid potential crop damage, the reserve may need to enlarge the existing Puccinellia maritima salt marshes, either by mowing or by cultivating pastures of Halimione portulacoides in climacic areas, as is the case in Aiguillon Bay.
This will have to be done with caution, the areas with sea-purslanes being important feeding grounds for young fish during high tides. It is clear that, in this bay, a wintering area of international interest for a particular species of water bird has developed thanks to serious environmental imbalance. It is therefore possible that this ornithological interest could be disrupted by current curative water quality restoration policies, should no compensatory measures arise to compensate for the planned reduction of the green tide.
- Credit
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Data producer : national nature reserve of the bay of Saint-Brieuc
- Status
- Completed
- Point of contact
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Organisation name Individual name Electronic mail address Role Réserve naturelle nationale de la Baie de Saint-Brieuc
PONSERO ALAIN
Local service desk
- Maintenance and update frequency
- Unknown
- Maintenance note
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Network duration : temporary network
- Theme
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Food chains
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Conservation
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Green tide
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Phenotype
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GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0
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Environmental monitoring facilities
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Sous-regions marines
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Channel-North Sea
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DCSMM : Type d'espace concerné
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Réserve Naturelle Nationale (RNN)
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Site Natura 2000
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DCSMM : Descripteurs
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D4: Marine Food Webs
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D5: Eutrophication
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DCSMM : Méthodes de recueil des données
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Observation directe
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Thèmes Sextant
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/Biological Environment/Species/Fish Species preyed on by Avifauna
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- Use constraints
- Other restrictions
- Other legal constraints
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Free and open access
- Spatial representation type
- Vector
- Denominator
- 50000
- Language
- Français
- Character set
- UTF8
- Topic category
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- Oceans
- Supplemental Information
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Project leader:
National Nature Reserve of the Bay of Saint-Brieuc 2006-2009
Prime contractor :
National Nature Reserve of the Bay of Saint-Brieuc 2006-2009
Backer :
Direction Régionale de l'Environnement, de l'Aménagement et du Logement de Bretagne 2006-2009
- Reference system identifier
- EPSG / WGS 84 (EPSG:4326) / 7.9
- Topology level
- Geometry only
- Geometric object type
- Complex
- Geometric object count
- 0
- Hierarchy level
- Dataset
Conformance result
- Title
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Inspire specifications
- Date (Creation)
- 2012-01-16
- Explanation
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Non assessed
- Pass
- Statement
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Nov 2005 – Feb 2006 : Study of feeding behaviour
Nov 2012 – Feb 2013 : possibility of field phase in situation with small quantities of green tide
Number of observation or measurement points : 3
- Description
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Data type : Aves Class
Precision on the data type :
Observation of Brent Geese feeding behaviour
Measured or observed parameters :
Abundance
Activity Type (feeding, rest)
Location (foreshore, water, salt-marsh, farmed field).
Environmental Condition (T)
Observation frequency :
2 series of observation per month : one during a spring tide and one during a neap tide.
Observations every 30 minutes, during daylight hours
- Description
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Sampling method :
spatial
Metadata
- File identifier
- 6f267d13-0b81-4605-863d-2d5e5088780f
- Metadata language
- Français
- Other language
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Language Character encoding English
- Character set
- UTF8
- Hierarchy level
- Series
- Date stamp
- 2020-06-04T01:10:22
- Metadata standard name
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ISO 19115:2003/19139 - SEXTANT
- Metadata standard version
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1.0
- Metadata author
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Organisation name Individual name Electronic mail address Role Sextant
Local service desk