More sad news for our British birds - I can remember when we used to see all 3 wagtails every day - I actually saw a pied wagtail the other day and was delighted, wondering to myself that I had not seen one for a long time - now I know why! The latest Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) annual report, published by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), shows that all three UK breeding wagtail species are in long-term decline. However, the reasons behind these trends are not clear. Our three wagtail species are: yellow wagtail, a farmland bird that migrates to sub-Saharan Africa, grey wagtail and pied wagtail, both of which remain largely in the UK over the winter. Importantly, the races of both pied and yellow wagtails breeding in the UK nest almost nowhere else in the world. Yellow wagtails are in severe decline, as the latest BBS figures reveal a 43 per cent reduction between 1995 and 2012. Research suggests that changes in agricultural practices have driven this decline, but the species is a long-distance migrant so conditions overseas cannot be ruled out. Grey wagtails, which has been on the Amber list of Birds of Conservation Concern since 2002, has shown a decline of 32 per cent since the start of the survey, and pied wagtail a shallower decline of 11 per cent. Both grey and pied wagtail BBS trends match closely those of the more riverine-focused Waterways Breeding Bird Survey (WBBS) which has also recorded a rapid decline of both species along rivers and canals. In this case, the pied wagtail decline is recorded as steeper than in the BBS trends, which covers all habitats, suggesting that there might be a common factor affecting both species relating to the riverine habitat. Sarah Harris, BBS Organiser at the British Trust for Ornithology, said, “I find it fascinating that three seemingly similar birds, the yellow, grey and pied wagtail can lead such different lives and face such a variety of challenges. “With the UK races of two of these species – pied and yellow wagtails – being largely confined to our islands, these population changes are of global conservation significance.” She added: The Breeding Bird Survey is an invaluable tool for assessing the annual and long-term population trends of common UK breeding birds and can be used as a baseline for further, more species-specific research. Of course, none of the 110 UK species trends would be possible without the thousands of dedicated BBS volunteers carrying out the survey across the UK. Dr Mark Eaton, Principal Conservation Scientist at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), added: This survey is most valuable for showing us trends stretching back nearly 20 years. However, it is also provides a snapshot into changes between years, and this report reveals that 2012 was clearly a bad year for some of our breeding birds. A cold spring followed by the wettest summer on record have to be prime candidates for why many species showed a significant decline in 2013. Of the 36 species which showed a significant change in numbers between 2012 and 2013, 34 decreased. For some species, such as turtle dove, these recent falls compound long-term declines. Researchers added that the 1995-2012 BBS trends for Grey Partridge and Skylark show that both of these farmland species remain in decline, falling by 56 per cent and 24 per cent respectively. They added that research into both species has identified agricultural intensification as a key factor in their decline, and management solutions that are effective at local scales have been developed for each. The BBS report looks at population trends for 110 bird species across the UK, which have been calculated using counts made by volunteer bird watchers. The report is jointly conducted by the British Trust for Ornithology, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Posted on: Sun, 31 Aug 2014 13:52:45 +0000
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