Recently I have been exploring the IUCN’s list of endangered species with a view to discovering more about the lesser-known rare species that inhabit Surrey. Without taking the time to find out what’s out there, it will be difficult for us to know how to protect these elusive surprises and where we might expect to find them. 

The Common Pochard Aythya ferina is a species of diving duck, feeding on aquatic plants and invertebrates. The male is the more striking bird, with its reddish head and a grey body helping it to stand out and attract the mottled brown females.

Interestingly, the male will do an ‘eclipse’ moult in the summer, where it also becomes a mottled brown. This is because most water birds cannot fly during the moult and if you are brightly coloured and unable to fly, you will inevitably become a target for predators. 

Turning a mottled brown during the moult increases camouflage and reduces this risk. If you are out an about during this duck’s May-to-July breeding season, listen out for the whistling sound which is often made by the male. If a female is interested, she will softly growl back at her suitor. 

Sadly, this duck species has been in decline for quite some time in the UK, now finding itself on the Red List of UK birds.It has also been given a Vulnerable status on the IUCN’s list of endangered species. 

It still winters is large numbers in the UK (nearly fifty thousand visit us every year) but it used to be a common breeding bird too. Sadly only a few breeding pairs now remain, including on Papercourt Marshes (a Surrey Wildlife Trust Reserve near Guildford). 

The cause of the decline is manyfold.The UK has drained and dredged most of its wetlands, meaning this duck is suffering from habitat loss. Secondly the American Mink has wreaked havoc on this species, predating eggs, young and adults and furtherdriving the population down. 

One study in Poland suggests that over a 30-year period the population of Pochard went down by 90% thanks in no small part to the activities of these rapacious invaders. However with conservation efforts to restore wetlands with the use of Beavers, and the eradication of Mink as part of programmes to bring back the Water Vole, there could yet be hope for the Pochard. 

Although not in the headlines, the removal of Mink will surely help this species to rebound - and if there are more habitat opportunities via wetland creation, that’ll allow populations to grow and spread further. 

The tide can be turned in the Pochard’s favour!