Seabirds in China in the face of industrial activities and oil spill: lessons learnt from Bohai Bay

Abstract

Seabirds play essential roles in both terrestrial and marine ecosystems, but oil spill and habitat loss through reclamation and degradation have long been adversely affecting their populations worldwide, and thus affecting the well-being of terrestrial and marine ecosystems. In this study, using Bohai Bay in north China, a semi-closed continental sea where oil and gas activities and habitat loss are happening at a rapid pace as an example, threats for seabirds and their overlap with highly-risked areas in terms of an oil spill are reviewed. The results showed that while Bohai Bay is one of the most important sites for seabirds and waterbirds on the eastern China coast, oil spills and habitat loss are affecting the population of the birds. We concluded that sea birds in Bohai are at severe risks of oil spill and habitat loss, oil spill risks are especially high for autumn migrants, residents and winter birds, while habitat loss harms less ocean-dependent species. Accordingly, more focused and oriented efforts should be done in establishing conservation areas among Bohai Strait and the north side of the Shandong Peninsula and the western Bohai coast where overlap between bird diversity hotspots and potential exposure to habitat loss and oil spill occurs. And a general insight into how are given species affected by the two factors is given. This study enhances our understanding of seabirds vulnerabilities, what has been neglected, and what should be more well-noticed in future conservational endeavors.