Conservation and Management

Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. Population trend of nominate lapponica and W African wintering taymyrensis unknown, but all other populations appear to be declining, menzbieri and baueri rapidly enough to be considered threatened External link .

Shooting And Trapping

In w. Alaska, indigenous people historically harvested both adults and eggs. Estimates of annual subsistence harvest of "large shorebirds" (either Bar-tailed Godwit and/or Numenius spp.) on Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta from 1994 to 1998 ranged from 200 to 1,900 birds (Wentworth and Seim 1996 Wentworth, C. and S. Seim. (1996). Subsistence waterfowl harvest survey: Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, comprehensive report 1985-1995 and result 1995. Anchorage, AK: U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. Close , Wentworth and Wong 1999 Wentworth, C. and D. Wong. (1999). Migratory bird subsistence harvests: Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and Bristol Bay, 1995-1998. Anchorage,AK: U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv. Close ). Based on timing and distribution, vast majority of harvest almost certainly Bar-tailed Godwit (BJM). Data suggest harvest is increasing but apparent trend probably result of recent inclusion in survey of single village where shorebird harvest is important. On Alaska Peninsula estuary, high proportion (1-3%) of fall staging birds observed with leg injuries suspected to be result of shooting (REG). Caught for food (perhaps 2,000-3,000/yr) on migration along e. China coast in spring, but proportion of baueri versus menzbieri unknown; harvest thought to be declining (Barter et al. 1997a Barter, M., F. Qian, S. Tang, X. Yuan and D. Tonkinson. (1997a). Hunting of waders on Chongming Dao: a declining occupation? Stilt 31:18-22. Close , Barter et al. 2000 Barter, M. A., J. R. Wilson, Z. W. Li, Z. G. Dong, Y. G. Cao, and L. S. Jiang (2000). Yalu Jiang National Nature Reserve, north-eastern China - a newly discovered internationally important Yellow Sea site for northward migrating shorebirds. Stilt 37:14–21. Close ).

Pesticides And Other Contaminants/Toxics

No information from North America. Fall migrant Bar-tailed Godwits (L. l. lapponica) ingest and concentrate heavy metals in Netherlands Wadden Sea (Goede 1985 Goede, A. A. (1985). Mercury, selenium, arsenic and zinc in waders from the Dutch Wadden Sea. Environ. Pollut. (Ser. A) 37:287-309. Close , Goede and Voogt 1985 Goede, A. A. and P. de Voogt. (1985). Lead and cadmium in waders from the Dutch Wadden Sea. Environ. Pollut. (Ser. A) 37:311-322. Close ). Paradoxically, longevity found in Bar-tailed Godwits and other shorebirds with strong marine attachment hypothesized to come from intake of selenium (Goede 1993 Goede, A. A. (1993). Longevity in homeotherms, the high lifespan and lifespan energy potential in Charadriiformes. Ardea 81:81-88. Close ). Mortality from oil spills, though less than with other waterbirds, recorded for Bar-tailed Godwits from several oil spills in Europe (Bourne 1968 Bourne, W. R. P. (1968). "Oil pollution and bird populations." In The biological effects of oil pollution on littoral communities., edited by J. D. F. Cathy and D. R. Arther, 99-118. London: Field Stud. Council. Close ). Among 96 dead godwits on shore of Netherlands Wadden Sea, 8 (8.3%) had oil on plumage (K. Camhuysen unpubl.).

Ingestion Of Plastics, Lead, Etc

No information.

Collisions With Stationary/Moving Structure Or Objects

At Cold Bay, AK, flock of juveniles flew into lighted military radar dome, resulting in death or injury to 12 individuals (Piersma and Gill 1998 Piersma, T., and R. E. Gill Jr. (1998). Guts don't fly: Small digestive organs in obese Bar-tailed Godwits. Auk 115:196–203. Close ); similar incidents known at this site (C. Dau pers. comm.). Mortality from collision with power lines reported from New Zealand (Riegen 1999 Riegen, A. (1999). Movements of banded Arctic waders to and from New Zealand. Notornis 46:123-142. Close ). Nominate lapponica killed at lighthouses during spring migration (Cramp and Simmons 1983 Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons (1983). The Birds of the Western Palearctic, Volume 3: Waders to Gulls. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ).

Fishing Nets

No information.

Degradation Of Habitat

Most habitat of baueri in Alaska apparently secure and relatively unchanged. Breeding habitat of nominate lapponica in Norway, however, severely degraded due to reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) overgrazing and trampling; "ecologically disastrous" habitat changes include drainage and drying of wetlands used for foraging, as well as re-duction of natural vegetative cover (I. Byrkjedal pers. comm.). Local impact of reindeer grazing on godwit habitats in Alaska needs study. Nonbreeding habitat of baueri in Australia and New Zealand afforded varying levels of protection (Riegen 1996 Riegen, A. (1996). "Conservation of shorebirds and their wetland habitats in New Zealand." In Conservation of migratory waterbirds and their wetland habitats in the east Asian-Australasian flyway., edited by D. R. Wells and T. Mundkur, 218-235. Tokyo: Proc. int. workshop, Kushiro, Japan. Wetlands Int.-Asia Pac., Kuala Lumpur, Publ. no. 116, and Int. Waterfowl and Wetlands Res. Bureau. Close , Watkins et al. 1996 Watkins, D., M. Barter and K. Weaver. (1996). "Shorebird conservation in Australia." In Conservation of migratory waterbirds and their wetland habitats in the east Asian-Australasian flyway., edited by D. R. Wells and T. Mundkur, 203-217. Tokyo: Proc. int. workshop, Kushiro, Japan. Wetlands Int.-Asia Pac., Kuala Lumpur, Publ. no. 116, and Int. Waterfowl and Wetlands Res. Bureau. Close , Watkins 2000 Watkins, D. (2000). New laws for migratory birds. Tattler 24:6. Close ). Species vulnerable due to concentration at a few wetlands in non-breeding season. Habitat loss and degradation of intertidal stopover habitat along e. Asian coast, especially Yellow Sea area, apparently greatest threat to L. lapponica and numerous other waterbirds during migrations between Arctic and Australasia (Barter et al. 1997a Barter, M., F. Qian, S. Tang, X. Yuan and D. Tonkinson. (1997a). Hunting of waders on Chongming Dao: a declining occupation? Stilt 31:18-22. Close , Melville 1997 Melville, D. S. (1997). "Threats to waders along the east Asian-Australian flyway." In Shorebird conservation in the Asia-Pacific region., edited by P. Straw, 15-34. Melbourne: Aust. Wader Stud. Group. Close , Wilson and Barter 1998 Wilson, J. R. and M. A. Barter. (1998). Identification of potentially important staging areas of "long jump" migration waders in the east Asian-Australasian flyway during northward migration. Stilt 32:16-27. Close , M. Barter pers. comm.), and may be driving population declines (Yang et al. 2011 Yang, H.-Y., B. Chen, M. Barter, T. Piersma, C.-F. Zhou, F.-S. Li, and Z.-W. Zhang (2011). Impacts of tidal land reclamation in Bohai Bay, China: ongoing losses of critical Yellow Sea waterbird staging and wintering sites. Bird Conservation International 21(3):242–259. Close , Choi et al. 2015 Choi, C.-Y., P. F. Battley, M. A. Potter, K. G. Rogers, and Z. Ma (2015). The importance of Yalu Jiang coastal wetland in the north Yellow Sea to Bar-tailed Godwits Limosa lapponica and Great Knots Calidris tenuirostris during northward migration. Bird Conservation International 25(1):53–70. Close ). Up to 65 percent of intertidal habitat in the Yellow Sea has been lost over the past 50 years, and more than 1% of remaining habitat is being lost per year to reclamation for agriculture, aquaculture, and other development (Murray et al. 2014 Murray, N. J., R. S. Clemens, S. R. Phinn, H. P. Possingham, and R. A. Fuller (2014). Tracking the rapid loss of tidal wetlands in the Yellow Sea. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 12(5):267–272. Close ). Similar concerns in Europe, where loss and degradation of coastal habitats are widespread; current legislation inadequate to address major threats (Tucker and M. I. Evans 1997 Tucker, G. M. and compilers M. I. Evans. (1997). "Coastal habitat." In Habitats for birds in Europe: a conservation strategy for the wader enviroments, 93-123. BirdLife Conserv. Ser. 6. Close ).

Disturbance At Nest And Roost Sites; Direct Human/Research Impacts

Incubating birds not known to abandon nests when exposed to routine nest checks (REG); consequence of such actions on adults and nests from potential increased exposure to natural predators not known. Roosting birds quick to take flight when observer near, but will often do same without apparent stimuli. In China, feeding and especially roosting birds increasingly disturbed by activities associated with fishing and shrimp-farming (Barter et al. 2000 Barter, M. A., J. R. Wilson, Z. W. Li, Z. G. Dong, Y. G. Cao, and L. S. Jiang (2000). Yalu Jiang National Nature Reserve, north-eastern China - a newly discovered internationally important Yellow Sea site for northward migrating shorebirds. Stilt 37:14–21. Close , M. Barter pers. comm.). Land reclamation, pollution and human disturbance have detrimental effects on feeding conditions. Godwits particularly susceptible to capture myopathy ("leg cramp") if precautions not taken during trapping and banding operations (Green 1980 Green, G. H. (1980). Capture myopathy ('cramp') in waders. Wader Study Group Bulletin 28:15. Close , Minton 1980 Minton, C. D. T. (1980). Occurrence of "cramp" in a catch of Bar-tailed Godwits. Wader Study Group Bulletin 28:15-16. Close , Purchase and Minton 1982 Purchase, D. and C. D. T. Minton. (1982). Possible capture myopathy in Bar-tailed Godwits Limosa lapponica in Australia. Wader Study Group Bulletin 32:24-26. Close ).

Conservation Status

Not globally threatened, although recently considered Near Threatened. Fully protected throughout most of range (see below), but concern exists for habitat degradation in e. Asia and Scandinavia (see above).

Measures Proposed Or Taken

Since 1918, fully protected in U.S. and Canada under Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Also protected in New Zealand and Australia (Riegen 1996 Riegen, A. (1996). "Conservation of shorebirds and their wetland habitats in New Zealand." In Conservation of migratory waterbirds and their wetland habitats in the east Asian-Australasian flyway., edited by D. R. Wells and T. Mundkur, 218-235. Tokyo: Proc. int. workshop, Kushiro, Japan. Wetlands Int.-Asia Pac., Kuala Lumpur, Publ. no. 116, and Int. Waterfowl and Wetlands Res. Bureau. Close , Watkins et al. 1996 Watkins, D., M. Barter and K. Weaver. (1996). "Shorebird conservation in Australia." In Conservation of migratory waterbirds and their wetland habitats in the east Asian-Australasian flyway., edited by D. R. Wells and T. Mundkur, 203-217. Tokyo: Proc. int. workshop, Kushiro, Japan. Wetlands Int.-Asia Pac., Kuala Lumpur, Publ. no. 116, and Int. Waterfowl and Wetlands Res. Bureau. Close ). Important staging and wintering areas in France, Portugal and Guinea-Bissau are not yet protected. Other important wintering areas may include sites in Oman, Saudi Arabia and Sumatra. Not considered of conservation concern until 2015.

Effectiveness Of Measures

Unknown and untested.