The North Sea\u2019s chalk reefs, sea grass meadows and shallow waters are home to a huge array of life, including internationally important seabird colonies. But centuries of overfishing, pollution, oil and gas exploration and the climate crisis have degraded the seas between Britain, Scandinavia and western Europe, driving declines in wildlife.<\/p>\n
Overfishing of herring resulted in an estimated 97% biomass decline from the 1950s to the 1980s, according to one study, which found populations have since made a modest recovery. North Sea anglerfish and cod are among fish populations in a \u201cdeeply troubling state\u201d, a 2023 report found, while demersal fish \u2013 species living close to the sea floor \u2013 have declined by 23% since 1993, according to the state of nature 2023 report. But in recent years, a bounceback in some wildlife has given conservationists reason for cautious optimism.<\/p>\n \u201cThe North Sea is one of the most pressured areas of ocean on planet Earth. There are relatively few other places that have a combination of industrialised countries around a largely enclosed sea, intensive agriculture, and pressures from fishing going back centuries. But the wonderful thing about nature is that it can recover pretty quickly if you give it the chance,\u201d says Juniper.<\/p>\n The North Sea was one of the most productive in the world which is why we\u2019ve seen so much extraction over the centuries Bottlenose dolphins, along with humpback and minke whales, have been spotted in greater numbers in recent years along England\u2019s North Sea coast, monitoring groups say. Their reasons for returning are not entirely clear. Grey seals \u2013 once in danger of disappearing around the UK \u2013 are flourishing. Visits to colonies on Norfolk beaches \u2013 where thousands of pups are born every year \u2013 have become a Christmas ritual for local people. Around the beach at Horsey, nearly 4,000 seal pups were born last year during a record-breaking season.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know the grey seals are doing well, which is fantastic news, and we know that\u2019s also true of other species in the North Sea,\u201d says Bex Lynam, marine advocacy manager for North Sea Wildlife Trusts. \u201cBottlenose dolphins \u2013 which we weren\u2019t seeing off the Yorkshire coast until the last five years \u2013 have been recorded in a huge number of sightings. It\u2019s clear they have enough food. They are also calving down here, which is fantastic,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Lynam credits the impact of growing protections for nature in the North Sea, such as new marine protected areas and increased controls on fishing. In April, the UK and Scottish governments announced a ban on commercial sandeel fishing in the North Sea in an effort to help other marine species recover. Sandeels are a leading food source for puffins, kittiwakes and other bird species, many of which are suffering significant population declines. They are also a food source for many of the fish humans regularly eat. This ban is being contested by the EU.<\/p>\n \u201cI think what we are seeing is some of the benefits of some of the legislation that\u2019s been put in years ago,\u201d says Lynam. \u201cThe EU\u2019s common fisheries policy put catch limits on some fish species. While they\u2019re not as ambitious as we might like to see, having been in place for decades now, I think we are starting to see the recovery to some fish stocks. It is undoubtedly helping the wider marine environment,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n With the expansion of offshore wind infrastructure already signalling a new industrial era in the North Sea, conservation groups have cautioned that they could present a new challenge to wildlife. But others are daring to imagine the species that could return with strengthened conservation measures, for example orca, salmon and even the bluefin tuna.<\/p>\n \u201cThe North Sea was one of the most productive seas in the world, which is why we\u2019ve seen so much extraction over the centuries,\u201d says Kirsten Carter, head of UK marine policy with the RSPB.<\/p>\n \u201c[But] we did have big species living off our coast in mass quantities. Currently, everyone gets excited when we see one whale, a few dolphins \u2026 Seeing things in mass numbers is something that we\u2019ve lost. We normalise what we are seeing now. But things can be different,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
\nKirsten Carter, RSPB<\/p><\/blockquote>\n