Without urgent support, the Beacon Ponds Little Tern Project may not be able to run in 2026.

This one-off appeal is to fund professional wardening for the coming breeding season and protect one of the UK’s most successful Little Tern colonies.

Little Terns once came close to disappearing from Beacon Ponds altogether.

As recently as the 1970s, they were virtually lost from the site. Their recovery began in the 1990s with the appointment of a dedicated warden and the introduction of protective measures. In recent years, that effort has grown into one of the UK’s real conservation success stories.

The Beacon Ponds Little Tern Project is led by Spurn Bird Observatory, working in partnership with a number of other non-profit organisations. Together, we coordinate wardening, monitoring and protection throughout the breeding season to give Little Terns the best possible chance of success.

When funding allowed three wardens to provide round-the-clock protection throughout the breeding season, everything changed. Disturbance was reduced, threats were dealt with quickly, and breeding success rose steadily.

Last season was our best ever. 105 pairs of Little Terns fledged 107 chicks.

For a small reserve, that is a remarkable result. Beacon Ponds is now one of the most successful Little Tern sites in the country and an important contributor to national research and conservation work.

But that success is now at risk.

Despite huge effort, we do not yet have the funding in place to run the project in 2026. At present, we have not secured enough to employ even one full-time professional warden.

Without a warden, the project cannot run. And without protection, the Little Terns are left vulnerable to disturbance, predation and nest failure.

Volunteers are, and always will be, vital to this project. But experience has shown very clearly that volunteers alone cannot deliver the level of protection these birds need. A full-time, experienced warden is essential to coordinate volunteers, manage protection measures and respond quickly when problems arise.

This is why we are asking for your help.

What your donation will do

We have set clear, staged targets so you can see exactly what your support would achieve:

£10,000 would allow us to employ one warden for the season

£16,000 would fund one warden and one deputy

£25,000 would allow us to run with three wardens

£30,000 would enable the project to operate at full capacity, as in our most successful recent seasons

The cost of running the full project for a season is £25,000. The great bulk of this goes directly to wardens’ wages, paid at national living wage. The Head Warden covers the whole season, with two deputies employed for slightly shorter periods.

A one-off appeal

This is a one-off ask.

We are part of a major multi-partner initiative, and funding prospects from 2027 onwards are much more promising. But without support now, there may be no project left to carry forward.

We are doing everything we can to secure other funding, but time is short and the breeding season will soon be upon us.

How you can help

We know that many people are facing financial pressures, and we would not be asking if it were not absolutely necessary.

Any contribution, large or small, will make a real difference. If you are unable to donate, sharing this appeal is just as important and helps us reach new supporters.

The Little Terns of Beacon Ponds quite literally depend on this protection.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for any support you are able to give.