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The site was identified as internationally important for bird conservation in 2007 because it was regularly supporting significant populations of the species listed below, meeting ('triggering') IBA criteria.

Populations meeting IBA criteria ('trigger species') at the site:

Species	Red List	Season (year/s of estimate)	Size	IBA criteria
European Shag Gulosus aristotelis	LC	breeding (2000)	1,207 pairs	A4i, B1i, B3, C3
Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii	LC	breeding (2000)	1 pairs	C6
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	LC	breeding (2000)	147 pairs	C6
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	LC	breeding (2007)	117 pairs	C6
Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea	LC	breeding (2000)	1,526 pairs	C2, C6
Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea	LC	breeding (2007)	2,256 pairs	C2, C6
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	LC	breeding (2000)	1,950 pairs	A4i, B1i, B2, C2, C6
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	LC	breeding (2007)	1,413 pairs	C2, C6
Atlantic Puffin Fratercula arctica	VU	breeding (2003)	55,674 pairs	B1ii, B2, C3
A4iii Species group - seabirds	n/a	breeding (2000–2003)	77,163 pairs	A4iii, C4
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	n/a	breeding (2000–2003)	11,401 pairs	A4iii, C4

Ideally the conservation status of the IBA will have been checked regularly since the site was first identified in 2007. The most recent assessment (2007) is shown below.

State (condition of the trigger species' populations)
Species	Actual vs Reference (units)	% remaining	Result
European Shag Gulosus aristotelis	1,207 / 1,020 (pairs)	100	good
Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus	665 / 1,380 (pairs)	49	poor
Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii	0 / 2 (pairs)	0	not assessed
Common Tern Sterna hirundo	117 / 250 (pairs)	47	poor
Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea	2,256 / 3,070 (pairs)	74	moderate
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis	1,413 / 1,950 (pairs)	73	moderate
Atlantic Puffin Fratercula arctica	55,674 / 34,700 (pairs)	100	good
A4iii Species group - seabirds	77,163 / 54,182 (pairs)	100	good
A4iii Species group - waterbirds	11,401 / 14,155 (pairs)	81	moderate

Pressure (threats to the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Threat	Timing	Scope	Severity	Result
No known threats	happe­ning now	few indivi­duals/small area (<10%)	no or slight decline (<1% over 3 gener­ations)	low

Response (conservation actions taken for the trigger species and/or their habitats)
Designation	Planning	Action	Result
Whole area (>90%) covered by appropriate conservation designation	A compre­hensive and appropriate management plan exists that aims to maintain or improve the populations of qualifying bird species	The conservation measures needed for the site are being compre­hensively and effectively implemented	high

Year	Protected Area	Designation (management category)	% coverage of IBA
-	Farne Islands (NT)	Reserve (-)	100
1925	Farne Islands	Nature Reserve (Ia)	21
1958	Northumberland Coast	Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (V)	100
1983	Farne Islands	Site of Special Scientific Interest (UK) (IV)	100
1992	North Northumberland	Heritage Coast (V)	100
1993	Farne Islands	National Nature Reserve (IV)	100
2005	Berwickshire and North Northumberland Coast	Marine Protected Area (OSPAR) (UA)	100

Habitat	% of IBA	Habitat detail
Grassland	-	Mesophile grasslands
Marine Coastal/Supratidal	-

Land use	% of IBA
nature conservation and research	100

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Farne Islands (United Kingdom). Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/farne-islands-iba-united-kingdom on 22/12/2024.