Forty years of midwinter Counts of waterfowl along the Coasts of Scania, South Sweden.

The International Midwinter Counts, organised by
Wetlands International, started in January 1967, but
co-ordinated counts were organised along the coasts
of Scania, south Sweden, already since January 1964.
This paper summarises the results of the first forty
years. During the first years full coverage was attained,
but in later years the counts covered nine larger areas,
containing about 75% of all waterfowl. Of the more
common species, ten showed significantly increasing,
four significantly decreasing, and two species no clear
trend. National midwinter indices are available for 11
species; in 10 of these the regional trends are similar to
the national trends, Scania forming an important part of
the national sample. Several of the changes are related
to the hardness of the winters, the milder winters making
it possible for more waterfowl to winter in Sweden
now compared to earlier years. The decreasing trend for
Aythya fuligula in Scania is an example of such changes
in winter distribution within he country, more individuals
now staying in the Baltic archipelagos than earlier.