Shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Vertebrate > bird > Bird |
| Red List Status: | Endangered (Breeding) [EN(br)] |
| D5 Status: | Included in the baseline Red List Index for England (Wilkins, Wilson & Brown, 2022) |
| Section 41 Status: | (not listed) |
| Taxa Included Synonym: | European shag |
| UKSI Recommended Name: | Gulosus aristotelis |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (not specified) |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Stanbury et al., 2021 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | 36% decline since 2000 |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | declining population, localised distribution, most of population on 5 sites. HPAI impacts |
| Question 3: | At a landscape scale, would the species benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase habitat mosaics, structural diversity, or particular successional stages? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | Coastal and Marine species. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 6. Recovery solutions trialled |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Structured - sufficient |
| Species Comments: |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Manage key breeding sites optimally, taking into account predator management, biosecurity, habitat and species management. Regular monitoring will assess impact of interventions and inform management.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Isles of Scilly, Farnes Coquet
Comments:
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Manage waters close to breeding colonies to provide abundant food, and free from threat e.g. bycatch, pollutants etc
Action targets: 5. Remedial action identified
Action type: Pressure Mitigation
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Isles of Scilly Farnes Coquet
Comments:
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Consider and as appropriate implement the recommendations of the 2016 SPA Review for this species. Up to date evidence is required.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Site protection
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites:
Comments:
Acknowledgment:
Data used on this website are adapted from Threatened species recovery actions 2025 baseline (JP065): Technical report and spreadsheet user guide (Natural England, 2025). Available here.