Trends of Migratory and Wintering Waterbirds in the Wadden Sea 1987/1988 - 2022/2023

The Wadden Sea World Heritage Site is one of the world’s most important wetlands for migratory waterbirds. It is the single most important staging and moulting area and an important wintering area for waterbirds on the East Atlantic Flyway from the Arctic to South Africa. The monitoring efforts by the Expert Group Migratory Birds (EG-MB) are being carried out in the framework of the Trilateral Monitoring and Assessment Programme (TMAP) and constitute an internationally coordinated long-term monitoring programme. It covers the large tidal ecosystem stretching from Den Helder in the Netherlands to Esbjerg in Denmark. Regular ground counts for most species and areas are being conducted, plus aerial and boat counts for sea ducks, involving hundreds of observers and several institutes and agencies.