Abstract
This report details the results of seabird surveys conducted by the Institute of Estuarine & Coastal Studies (IECS) on behalf of Humber Wind Ltd (HWL) in the vicinity of a proposed offshore windfarm site off the Yorkshire coast. The proposed windfarm site lies in inshore waters c. 8km off the Holderness coast and covers an area of 35.5km2. In addition to a desk study collating published and unpublished ornithological data for this section of the Holderness coast, two survey techniques were employed in and around the proposed windfarm site in order to collect and collate information on seabird usage. The monitoring programme included a total of 29 ship-based seabird surveys conducted between September 2003 and December 2005, and a further 16 aeroplane surveys during the October 2003 to September 2005 period; both monitoring techniques were conducted using the standard seabird methodology recording techniques using a transect based approach. Subsequent to the survey programme, the data have been analysed for abundance, seasonality and density and the data input to a series of maps in order to graphically demonstrate the distribution of key species on a seasonal basis).