Provide paths to limit the extent of disturbance

Overall effectiveness category Likely to be beneficial
Number of studies: 2
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How is the evidence assessed?

Effectiveness

50%
Certainty

40%
Harms

0%

Calculating overall effectiveness category

Background information and definitions

Studies have shown that visitors keep to paths when they are provided, thereby reducing disturbance to the wider habitat without the need for specific access restrictions (e.g. Pearce-Higgins & Yalden 1997).

Pearce-Higgins, J.W. & Yalden, D.W. (1997) The effect of resurfacing the Pennine Way on recreational use of blanket bog in the Peak District National Park, England. Biological Conservation, 82, 337–343.

Study locations

Key messages

A before-and-after study from the UK found that two species of wader nested closer to a path, or at higher densities near the path, following resurfacing, which resulted in far fewer people leaving the path.

About key messages

Key messages provide a descriptive index to studies we have found that test this intervention.

Studies are not directly comparable or of equal value. When making decisions based on this evidence, you should consider factors such as study size, study design, reported metrics and relevance of the study to your situation, rather than simply counting the number of studies that support a particular interpretation.

Supporting evidence from individual studies

A before-and-after study from March-July in 1986-1988 and 1996-1998 at a moor and bog site within the Peak District, England (Finney et al. 2005), found that Eurasian golden plovers Pluvialis apricaria avoided a significantly smaller area surrounding a path after it was re-surfaced, compared with before (birds avoided areas up to 200 m from the path before re-surfacing vs. areas 50 m from the path afterwards; birds showed no avoidance on weekdays after re-surfacing). Before resurfacing, up to 30% of walkers left the path, afterwards only 4% left it. The study found no evidence that plover reproduction was adversely affected by disturbance around footpaths.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Finney S.K., Pearce-Higgins J.W. & Yalden D.W. (2005) The effect of recreational disturbance on an upland breeding bird, the golden plover Pluvialis apricaria. Biological Conservation, 121, 53-63.
A before-and-after study (Pearce-Higgins et al. 2007) using data from the same surveys as in (1) found that dunlin Calidris alpine occupancy within 200 m of the footpath increased by 50% following path re-surfacing in 1994 (35 birds seen before resurfacing vs. 57 afterwards). However, the authors caution that this was not a significant increase, probably due to small sample sizes. The study found no evidence that dunlin reproduction was adversely affected by disturbance around footpaths.
Study and other actions tested
Referenced paper
Pearce-Higgins J.W., Finney S.K. & Yalden D.W. (2007) Testing the effects of recreational disturbance on two upland breeding waders. Ibis, 149, 45-55.

Please cite as:

Williams, D.R., Child, M.F., Dicks, L.V., Ockendon, N., Pople, R.G., Showler, D.A., Walsh, J.C., zu Ermgassen, E.K.H.J. & Sutherland, W.J. (2020) Bird Conservation. Pages 137-281 in: W.J. Sutherland, L.V. Dicks, S.O. Petrovan & R.K. Smith (eds) What Works in Conservation 2020. Open Book Publishers, Cambridge, UK.

Where has this evidence come from?

List of journals searched by synopsis

All the journals searched for all synopses

This Action forms part of the Action Synopsis:

Bird Conservation

Related Actions

Actions	Effectiveness	Studies	Category
Use signs and access restrictions to reduce disturbance at nest sites Action Link	Likely to be beneficial	10	Synopsis Link
Habituate birds to human visitors Action Link	Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence)	1	Synopsis Link
Set minimum distances for approaching birds (buffer zones) Action Link	No evidence found (no assessment)	0	Synopsis Link