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Highlights from the 5th International Chough Conference

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By Liz Corry

The 5th International Chough Conference was held in Segovia, Spain from the 3rd to 5th October. Held at the Palacio Episcopal building adjoined to Casa de Espiritualidad San Frutos. A very religious affair! And very inclusive events with delegates from Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, France and all around the UK. And Jersey!

There were two days of talks focused on red-billed choughs and yellow-billed (Alpine) choughs and a field trip to Hoces del Duratón Natural Park on the final day. Being the chough geeks that we are, the evenings were spent staking out chough roosts in ‘downtown’ Segovia. More on that later.

Question time after each set of talks.

Segovian chouvas

Segovia is a 25 minute train journey north of Madrid and famous for it’s gothic cathedral, roman aqueduct, and Disney-esque Alcázar Palace. It also happens to be home to a large population of red-billed choughs.

A census carried out this year by José González del Barrio and his team recorded 123 choughs roosting in the city. They seem to have a penchant for architectural masterpieces; its not hard to see why. The cathedral is home to half the population with the alcazar and churches accommodating another 30%.

Segovia Cathedral is home to half of the city’s red-billed choughs. Photo by Liz Corry.

It stands to reason that they also have a considerable number of nest sites in Segovia. José’s team recorded 94 nests this year ranging from natural caves to guttering in the cathedral. Bell towers seem to be a particular favourite.

It is not unusual for Spanish choughs to nest in man-made structures, but researchers have noticed an increase in numbers of birds switching from natural mountain caves or crevices to these urban sites.

Just outside of the city (1-3km) there are cereal crops, fallow fields, and grazing cattle and sheep on land they refer to as ‘wasteland’ i.e. can’t grow commercial crops. These provide foraging sites for the choughs (and jackdaws). This is probably why the urban areas are more appealing to raise young rather than up in the mountains where temperatures fall below zero.

However, there is a rather unappealing element to urban living. I’m not referring to the flea-riddled stray cats that prowl the cathedral like a gang of hooded youth. Although cats and rats do predate the birds and eggs. 

Cathedral cats prowl the chough territories but don’t be fooled, its hiding a flick knife somewhere. Photo by Liz Corry

The problem is Segovia’s human inhabitants and their dislike of pigeons. Pigeons roost and nest in the same places as choughs. So when someone puts up a deterrent to stop pigeons pooping on an historic monument, it also stops the choughs. Nine nests failed this year due to human disturbance. The worse cases seeing chicks and/or adults blocked in and starving to death. 

Blocking off building access to combat pigeon problems can be fatal to choughs.

This behaviour is largely due to a lack of awareness over choughs in general. One reason why organisers selected Segovia to host the conference. Our presence in the city (especially on the roost visits) gives the choughs some ‘air time’.  We also had local government officials sit in on the talks. Hopefully public attitudes will change towards choughs. The real challenge will be how to pigeon-proof a structure whilst still giving access to a similar sized species.

City life or country living?

Despite the perils of city living, the choughs have been switching their country cliff-side dwellings for urban development over the last 10-15 year in central Spain. Guillermo Blanco presented data that showed the number of cliff nesting pairs had dropped by 180 pairs over a twenty-eight year period. Switching limestone or clay cliffs for farm buildings and human dwellings.

Jesús Zúñiga had a similar tale to tell in the Sierra Nevada National Park of southern Spain. The chough population has declined by 60% compared to data collected in 1980-1984. This also coincides with an increased use of buildings for roost and nesting.

Choughs in central Spain are switching from cliffs for buildings when it comes to nesting and roosting.

Some choice of nest sites may look familiar to Birds On The Edge readers. Others are a little more suited to the pages of Homes & Gardens magazine.

Kitchen corvids

Affordable homes

Many of the buildings the birds are choosing to nest in are abandoned and nowhere near as intricate as the cathedral and churches of Segovia. Ledges and boxes have been erected by conservationists to support nest construction. They are seeing some amazing results.

As eluded to earlier, predators are more of a problem in these areas. Cats, rats, pine marten and genets. A team from Sociedad de Ciencias Aranzadi have come up with a genius idea – “ugly nests” (patent pending). They have used reclaimed materials such as water containers (too slippery for the mammals to grip) and installed them so they are out of reach from predatory paws.

Installation of artificial nests built with recycled materials.

Wild chough chicks reared in reclaimed artificial nests.

The team were so proud of their ugly nests that we were treated to a demonstration of how easy it is to make one (we had the priest on standby if it all went wrong). We even had an auction with the winning bidder becoming the proud owner of a bespoke ugly nest!

Practical demonstration of how to make a chough nest-box from a water container.

Food availability for choughs

The main reason for the ‘cultural shift’ in Spanish choughs has been the change in agriculture surrounding the limestone cliffs and gorges. Irrigation of the land for maize and fruit growing instead of traditional dry cultivation means a reduction in suitable foraging habitat for the birds.

Places like Segovia on the other hand have livestock grazing within a kilometre of the city walls. This is perfect foraging habitat for choughs (and several hundred jackdaw).

Cattle grazing outside Segovia’s train station provides perfect foraging habitat for choughs and jackdaws.

We know dung is a favourite food source for UK choughs. Gillian Gilbert (RSPB) explained how the Scottish birds particularly like to rummage through dung between July and October in search of invertebrates. In the 1980s, choughs were finding lots of beetles from the Aphodius family. Nowadays, Aphodius numbers have declined and the choughs are more reliant on species of Geotrupes beetles. So what is the problem? Well Geotrupes are soil-boring dung beetles, they drag the dung down into the ground, whereas Aphodius live in the dung. The birds have to work more to probe soil compared to dung which means Geotrupes have less nutritional value.

Eric Bignal feeding choughs in Islay as part of their conservation management.

Food availability (or lack thereof) was a common theme across all countries. In the UK, the Islay choughs began receiving supplemental food eight years ago when researchers noticed a population crash. This extra food, provided by farmers and chough-champions Eric and Sue Bignal, is crucial during the months of September and October. 

In the past few years, several of the Cornish birds have been visiting garden bird feeders to score some free food. This may be more opportunistic than essential for survival, but certainly something researchers should keep an eye on in case things change. 

Yellow-billed (or Alpine) choughs are known to be opportunistic feeders. Mention choughs to anyone who skis in the Alps and they will probably regale tales of over-friendly, black birds hanging around their restaurant table. Alpine choughs have a broader diet then their cousins.  In winter, as temperatures drop they start to forage on juniper berries, seeds, and après-ski leftovers.

Alpine choughs foraging. Spain 2014. Photo by Glyn Young

Cristina Vallino, University of Turin, has undertaken a novel approach to observing the feeding behaviour of these birds around ski resorts. Using the free-access public webcams from ski-resorts in three different Alpine countries she has clocked up 13,704 recordings and analysed flock size, stay time, food intake, vigilance distance and flushing distance. She then combined this with genetic studies of the diet to determine variation in diet. Her concerns for the Alpine chough are the long term effects of eating leftovers. Will this ‘fast food’ be effecting their health?

Frequent flyers

Conservation of European choughs can be a little tricky compared to the UK because the birds can travel long distances. For example, in some years individuals roosting in Segovia may nest in Madrid. Subsequent juvenile dispersal from those nests plays an important role in range expansion. Not just moving within country but between countries too.

Personally speaking, the two most anticipated conference presentations focused on the first use of solar-powered GPS tags on choughs. One on an Alpine chough in Aragon, Spain, the other on red-billed chough in central Spain.

Both studies used transmitters built by a Lithuania company, Ornitrack. The tags transmit data using the 3G mobile network. So as long as you have coverage you can receive data anywhere in the world…roaming charges apply. No joke – just ask the Russians!

Solar-powered GPS tag on a red-billed chough.

The tag is solar-powered which explains the bulky size; the panel needs to be above the feathers in order to charge. The weight of the tag requires harness attachment rather than just gluing on to the body. Juan Manual Pérez-Garcia and his team fitted harnesses to six birds this summer and had some interesting results.

One bird covered a distance of 173km in two days. Another flew 85km on its first flight (in under 3 hrs) then took another 15km journey before settling down for 12 days. Sadly it was then predated by a booted eagle. They know this because an accelerometer fitted in the tag gives an activity pattern. You can detect feeding events, roosting events, and sadly the shaking around and eventual immobility from a predation event. And then the carrying off to the nest to feed the eagle chicks event!

Data from the GPS can provide information on whether the bird is in flight or at rest. Or caught by a booted eagle!

These studies are in their infancy stage. A lot of work is needed looking at the welfare implications of tag attachment. Cost is a small hurdle to overcome considering each tag is about £1,200 plus a data transfer fee. There is definite potential and something we are keen to explore in Jersey.

Future prospects for choughs

The scope of work and tireless dedication evident from everyone in the room (any associates that could not be there in person) is promising for the future of choughs. Whilst classed as least concern, due to their global range, the species appears to be in decline. By sharing data, collaborating on research, and undertaking well-planned translocations or re-introductions we will hopefully halt any further decline. In the process, as several talks showed, this can have a far wider impact for global biodiversity because species restoration works in partnership with habitat restoration.

Helmut Magdefrau put forward their proposal to re-introduce choughs to Slovenia.

And finally

There was far too much to cover in one post. I will end with a photo gallery of chough sightings in Segovia and a couple of videos. All of which may help you plan your 2020 holidays!

La Palma island wildlife recovery centre: choughs often end up at the centre after collisions with power lines or collisions with cats mouths.

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  • The view from my B&B window!
  • Despite the loud call they can be hard to spot
  • Peek-a-boo
  • Building conservation practices often spell trouble for choughs
  • Our first night was spent watching the Cathedral choughs come home to roost
  • A bit of a twist on overflow guttering
  • Going to roost
  • One last fly around before bed
  • Which way to Madrid?
  • Its behind you!
  • Choughs will use overflow pipes to access buildings
  • “I’m not paying the entrance fee!”
  • Gothic architecture provides the perfect perch for choughs
  • One of many access point used by choughs in the cathedral
  • Iglesia San Martin is one of several chough abodes in Segovia
  • Our second night of roost checks took us to the Roman aqueduct
  • The impressive Roman aqueduct is home to choughs, pigeons, and jackdaws
  • Spot the chough?
  • Most visitors are oblivious to the choughs flying between cathedral and balconies
  • I’d pay good money to live in that apartment.
  • Storks also nest in Segovia
  • Black vultures are one of several birds of prey in the area
  • Downtown Segovia

Chough report: September 2019

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By Liz Corry

Alderney’s free range pigs. Photo by Liz Corry.

A blog post about cute pigs?! Nah. I’m just throwing you off the scent. Click bait. It is the monthly chough report of course with everything that happened in September.

Scoping out the racecourse

A group of twenty-seven choughs under observation at Les Landes Racecourse. Photo by Liz Corry.

The chough flock spent at lot of time in September foraging around Les Landes Racecourse. There appeared to be plenty of insects available in the soil. Leatherjackets (cranefly larvae) from the looks of things although viewing through a scope a some distance adds uncertainty. 

Beaker and Beanie Baby take flight from Les Landes Racecourse. Photo by Liz Corry.

We still have a fair few turn up at the supplemental feed. The noticeable difference is that they are taking less food. Instead of finding empty food dishes within an hour of food being put out we find leftover pellet. Presumably because they have eaten so well out and about in the mornings.

Our rodent-proof food stands mean we can leave the leftovers for the choughs to snack on later. Hunger should not be a problem for Jersey’s choughs this month!

Class of 2019 suffer another setback

Another dead juvenile has been found out on the north coast. The body was found by a dog walker near Devil’s Hole. The lady regularly visits Sorel and knew when we would be feeding so kindly handed over the remains. We identified the bird as PP042 who fledged this year in the quarry. Not a huge surprise as they were on the missing birds list. 

The surprise was the condition of the bird…headless and, on X-ray, very broken. You can see shattered bone in the left humerus (circled red in the image below). Our vet was a bit baffled at the post-mortem. The injuries sustained are something he is more familiar with seeing from a bird that had been hit by a car. Plus we don’t know if all this happened after the bird died or before.

Radiograph of dead chough PP042 showing a shattered left humerus (circled red). Image by Andrew Routh

We do know this means there are only 11 juveniles remaining. Three of those have not been seen in a long time. If they are still unaccounted for in October we will have to assume the worse.

PP035 is one juvenile very much alive and kicking. She was caught up mid-September because one of her plastic rings was unraveling. Not an easy thing to do for a bird to do. It would have required force. The ring was replaced and this time a lot of glue was used to seal the overlapping edges. She looked in good health and was released straight away.

Where’s woolly?

The flock of sheep at Sorel were moved off site this month as part of their management plan. 

There was, however, one little sheep who avoided the round-up. We found her merrily grazing away at the aviary. She had pushed through the fencing and entered the hedgerow bank rather cunningly hiding in the hedgerow when the shepherd was around and reappearing at the chough feed.

With a bit a team work and a lot of patience she was eventually moved out (it gave our push-mower a bit of a break!).

After seven years of working out at Sorel it felt quite eerie to visit and have no sheep and no choughs*. You can still find the sheep in various locations around Jersey doing their bit for conservation grazing. Maybe it could become the next rewilding game #whereswoolly?

*don’t worry we haven’t removed the birds, they do that themselves by flying off during the day.

Flocking season in the Zoo

At this time of year, with breeding over, we normally move all the Zoo choughs back into one aviary. This mimics the flocking behaviour you see in choughs over winter. However, this year was a bit different. 

This is the first year we have had only one breeding pair at Jersey Zoo. It is also the first year we haven’t released parent-reared chicks. So that means trying to mix a family of four with the only other chough we have – Gianna.

Gianna has not been welcomed this year by the other choughs in the flocking aviary. Photo by Liz Corry.

Normally the other choughs ignore Gianna, but with one family and an uninvited guest in their territory things are a little different. We have made three attempts to mix Gianna with the group this month. The first time we assumed tensions were high because the male in the family had only just been moved back. He had been housed separately for the past two months due to bad behaviour. We gave him some more time to settle in and calm down before the next attempt. No change. We waited again. Surely the hormones had settled? Nope.

As soon as I leave the aviary the pair fly over and shout loudly at Gianna. If I then walk away from Gianna, they dive-bomb her and it gets physical. Thankfully, Gianna is thick skinned and once I’m back inside with her she returns to preening and picking out insects.

Gianna claimed rights to the enrichment log looking for tasty rewards. Photo by Liz Corry.

Sadly for Gianna I can’t live in the aviary and be 24-hr bodyguard (although the rent would be free). She has been moved back to her off-show aviary and might have to stay in there over winter.

New placement student

If Gianna does have to stay off-show she will receive lots of attention because….fanfare please…we have a student placement again! After more than a year with a vacant position, Flavio has joined the project.

He is with us until March and has already got stuck in to the task at hand. As evident in the video below. Faceal sampling for health checks, camera trap reviews for roost ID, and dealing with a dead chough all in Week 1.

Flavio has previously worked on a beetle conservation project in the UK so we are hoping to put his survey skills to use in Jersey. His mode of transport is a bicycle so be sure to give him a wide berth if you are overtaking – he has an expensive scope in his bag. I wouldn’t want it damaged! 

Wilder Islands

The annual Inter-Islands Environmental Meeting was held in Alderney this year hosted by the Alderney Wildlife Trust. With the theme of Wilder Islands, delegates attended a two day symposium highlighting work carried out across the Channel Islands, Isle of Man and islands of the British Overseas Territories. Birds On The Edge was represented by myself and Cristina Sellares with Glyn Young joining on the challenging third day.

Just some of the flags adorning the Island hall representing the delegates’ country of origin. Photo by Liz Corry.

The third day was a mixture of talks and working groups tackling the challenges islanders face with biodiversity and climate change. Tony Juniper gave the introductory keynote speech.

We were also treated to an evening lecture from Dr George McGavin the esteemed entomologist and patron of the Alderney Wildlife Trust.

Roland Gauvain, Alderney Wildlife Trust, introducing guest speaker Dr George McGavin. Photo by Liz Corry.

A separate blog will be posted going into more detail. The highlights for this report include the mention we got in Jamie Marsh’s talk on the white-tailed sea eagle reintroduction in the Isle of Wight. Guess where we might be taking choughs next? And our first possible sighting of a Jersey chough visiting Sark! Suffice to say our holidays work plans for 2020 are quickly filling up.

Alderney’s pigs provide prime foraging habitat if any of our choughs decide to relocate. Photo by Liz Corry.

Wilder Kent

Alderney Wildlife Trust was not the only Trust we were involved with this month. I attended further planning meetings this month for the Kentish Chough Partnership (KCP). This includes Kent Wildlife Trust, WildWood Trust, and the National Trust to name all the trusts. Also involved are Paradise Park, White Cliffs Countryside Partnership, and English Heritage. As you can imagine there are a lot of stakeholders with an invested interest in restoring Kent’s biodiveristy.

Image courtesy of Kent Wildlife Trust

Building on the success of the Jersey choughs, can reintroduced choughs help restore Kent’s chalk grasslands? Could we eventually join the Cornish population and Kentish population to bring back this charismatic bird to England’s entire south coast as in days gone by? Ok, that last bit is jumping the gun. Although it is early days, the KCP are certainly working hard to make sure the first aim is achievable.

You can click the link here to read about Kent Wildlife Trust’s vision for a Wilder Kent.

November volunteer activity

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Sunday 3rd November 2019 – Parc de la Petite Falaise, Trinity – 10:30-13.00

From Jersey Conservation Volunteers

Please note that November’s task is a week earlier than normal to avoid clashing with Remembrance Sunday

Task Join us this Sunday for hazel coppicing and dead-hedge creation. Coppicing means to cut back (a tree or shrub) to ground level periodically to stimulate growth. Did you know the word ‘coppice’ is derived from the French ‘couper’ which means ‘to cut’?

If you have any questions, or if you wish to be added to the Jersey Conservation Volunteers email list, please contact either Julia Clively (tel: 441600; j.clively@gov.je) or Jon Parkes (tel: 483193; jon.parkes@nationaltrust.je).

The site Parc de la Petite Falaise (Bouley Bay Common), La Rue de la Petite Falaise, Trinity (Jersey Phone Directory Map 5: BB 7. Google maps here

Parking  Parking is available on site but please also consider car sharing or cycling.

Please arrive in time to start work at 10.30. We will be finished by 13.00.

Tools needed As always, we can supply some tools, but if you have a pair of gardening gloves, and cutting tools (e.g. pruning saw, loppers, secateurs) it would be helpful if you could bring them along with you.

Clothing needed Good thick gloves (though we can supply a pair if you don’t have them), wellies or sturdy boots, and common sense clothes to cope with whatever the weather throws at us.

Children All are welcome, young or old although we do ask that volunteers under 16 years of age are accompanied by an adult.

Refreshments Down tools at around 12.30 for some of Kim’s homemade cakes and a cuppa!

See you there!

Biodiversity Conference 2019

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Theme: Biodiversity Losses and Gains: Are We on Target? 

The Convention on Biological Diversity was ratified by the United Kingdom on 3rd June 1994. At the same time, the treaty was extended to the Bailiwick of Jersey alongside other crown dependencies and overseas territories. This conference will be based around the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 goals, including Aichi Biodiversity Targets 

Over the two days you will hear about local conservation efforts and Jersey’s overseas efforts to safeguard biodiversity. There will be workshops run by Jersey Overseas Aid and the Jersey Biodiversity Centre and also an opportunity for attendees to discuss how Jersey is doing with respect to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets as well as providing suggestions for the future.

Covering topics include:

Theme 1: Biodiversity Loss

Theme 2: Reducing the pressures on biodiversity and promoting Sustainable use

Theme 3: Safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity

Theme 4: Enhancing the benefits from biodiversity and ecosystem services

Theme 5: Planning, knowledge management and capacity building.

On Thursday 21st November evening we will be holding drinks in the Jersey Museum concourse.

If you would like to submit a poster for display please email sarah.maguire@societe-jersiaise.org 

The conference is a partnership between; The Jersey Biodiversity Centre, Société Jersiaise, Jersey Overseas Aid, Government of Jersey’s Eco Active Biodiversity Partnership and Jersey International Centre of Advanced Studies.

Tickets are free and available from the partners link here  

Class of 2019!

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As always there are far too many photos to feature in the monthly reports. Here are some of the photos taken over June and July giving you an insight into the daily life of the young choughs in Jersey. You can tell which are the youngsters by the colour of their bill. It takes a couple of months to achieve the adults red colouration.

Birds benefiting from climate change may find boost is short-lived. And more news from North America

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From Rare Bird Alert

Climate change is a major global threat to humanity and nature. It threatens to undermine our water and food supplies, it’s fueling extreme weather and some mega-cities are predicted to disappear under rising sea levels.

So conservationists were flummoxed by studies which showed climate change is having a stronger effect upon species which benefit from climate change compared to those which suffer negative impacts.

The authors of a major study investigating 525 bird species over 30 years and across two continents believed there could be a time lag in the response of populations to climate change, creating an ‘extinction debt’. They were also concerned most studies cover time spans too short to pick up on shrinking habitat ranges and focused on changes in range, rather than change in numbers.

But the most detailed report of its kind to date has turned theories about the effects of climate change upon birds on their head.

Despite carefully examining the population trends of over 500 bird species over three decades, the researchers found no evidence climate change has a more profound effect upon birds which should cope well with climate change compared to those which might struggle. Climate change is causing widespread population change in birds.

The researchers called for further research into the long-term consequences of climate change on wildlife to be commissioned urgently.

Earlier this month a landmark paper in Science (read about it here) suggested the loss of nearly 3 billion birds in North America over the last fifty years linked to a range of factors, such as habitat loss and intensive agriculture, were all exacerbated by climate change. The new study, led by the RSPB, goes even further and argues climate change may be a major driver of population change in birds, aggravated by other factors.

Head of Species Monitoring and Research, Conservation Science at the RSPB, Prof. Richard Gregory said: “Our precious wildlife is already struggling to cope with habitat destruction, farming practices, pollution, harmful fishing and invasive non-native species humans have introduced into fragile eco-systems.

“The climate crisis and biodiversity crisis are two sides of the same coin and need to be tackled together.

Scientists from around Europe contributed to the report, which was led by the RSPB.

Download the full paper Population responses of bird populations to climate change on two continents vary with species’ ecological traits but not with direction of change in climate suitability here

There is further alarming news from North America where Audubon scientists took advantage of 140 million observations, recorded by birders and scientists, to describe where 604 North American bird species live today. They then used the latest climate models to project how each species’ range will shift as climate change and other human impacts advance across the continent.

The results are clear: Birds will be forced to relocate to find favourable homes. And they may not survive. Read their report Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink here

And feeling like you can’t make a difference? That couldn’t be further from the truth. Here’s where to begin and how to ­amplify your efforts to make lasting change in the world – read Audubon’s guide to climate action here

 

October volunteer activity

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Sunday 13th October 2019 – Victoria Tower, St Martin – 10:30-13.00

From Jersey Conservation Volunteers

Task The grassland at Victoria Tower is managed with an annual late-season cut, with patches of uncut vegetation left for overwintering invertebrates in different parts of the site from year to year. This task will primarily involve raking up and clearing cuttings, although we may also undertake a small amount of sensitive scrub management and self-seeded sycamore control if time allows. We will work with the National Trust for Jersey.

If you have any questions, or if you wish to be added to the Jersey Conservation Volunteers email list, please contact either Julia Clively (tel: 441600; j.clively@gov.je) or Jon Parkes (tel: 483193; jon.parkes@nationaltrust.je).

The site Victoria Tower, St Martin. We will meet in the car park at the end of Le Mont Mallet (Jersey phone directory map Map 11, MM15) Google maps here

Parking Parking at the site is very limited but further on road parking is available along La Rue de La Pouclee et des Quatre Chemins. Please also consider car sharing or cycling.

Please meet at 10:20 for a 10:30 start and we will be finished by 13.00.

Tools needed As always, tools will be provided but if you have a pair of gardening gloves, a rake, fork or cutting tools (e.g. pruning saw, loppers, secateurs) it would be helpful if you could bring them along with you.

Clothing needed Please check the weather forecast and wear suitable clothing.

Children All are welcome, young or old although we do ask that volunteers under 16 years of age are accompanied by an adult.

Refreshments We will be treated to Kim’s latest batch of delicious cakes, washed down with a nice cup of tea or coffee.

No let-up in loss of UK’s nature

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The UK’s wildlife continues to decline according to the State of Nature 2019 report. The latest findings show that since rigorous scientific monitoring began in the 1970s there has been a 13% decline in average abundance across wildlife studied and that the declines continue unabated.

Following the State of Nature reports in 2013 and 2016, leading professionals from more than 70 wildlife organisations have joined with government agencies for the first time, to present the clearest picture to date of the status of our species across land and sea.

The State of Nature 2019 report also reveals that 41% of UK species studied have declined, 26% have increased and 33% shown little change since 1970, while 133 species assessed have already been lost from our shores since 1500. 

Butterflies and moths have been particularly hard hit with numbers of butterflies down by 17% and moths down by 25%. The numbers of species, such as the high brown fritillary and grayling, that require more specialised habitats have declined by more than three quarters.

The UK’s mammals also fare badly with greater than 26% of species at risk of disappearing altogether. The wild cat and greater mouse-eared bat are among those species teetering on the edge of disappearing.

Much is known about the causes of decline and about some of the ways in which we could reduce impacts and help struggling species. The evidence from the last 50 years shows that significant and ongoing changes in the way we manage our land for agriculture, and the ongoing effects of climate change are having the biggest impacts on nature.

Pollution is also a major issue. Whilst emissions of many pollutants have been reduced dramatically in recent decades, pollution continues to have a severe impact on the UK’s sensitive habitats and freshwaters, and new pollutant threats are continuing to emerge.

Daniel Hayhow, lead author on the report, said: “We know more about the UK’s wildlife than any other country on the planet, and what it is telling us should make us sit up and listen. We need to respond more urgently across the board if we are to put nature back where it belongs. Governments, conservation groups and individuals must continue to work together to help restore our land and sea for wildlife and people in a way that is both ambitious and inspiring for future generations”

“In this report we have drawn on the best available data on the UK’s biodiversity, produced by partnerships between conservation NGOs, research institutes, UK and national governments, and thousands of dedicated volunteers. It’s through working together that we can help nature recover but the battle must intensify.”

Whilst the data that the report shows are alarming there is also cause for some cautious hope. The report showcases a wide range of exciting conservation initiatives, with partnerships delivering inspiring results for some of the UK’s nature. Species such as bitterns and large blue butterfly have been saved through the concerted efforts of organisations and individuals.

Reflecting growing concern about the environmental and climate emergencies, public support for conservation also continues to grow, with NGO expenditure up by 26% since 2010/11 and time donated by volunteers having increased by 40% since 2000. However, public sector expenditure on biodiversity in the UK, as a proportion of GDP, has fallen by 42% since a peak in 2008/09.

The report has a foreword by a collective of young conservationists who are passionate about conservation and the future of our wildlife and nature to preserve it for future generations.

Dan Rouse, a young conservationist said, “Nature is something that shaped my childhood, that allowed me to be free to use my sense of wonder, and to gain an insight into the wonderful world of nature! It’s young people that are now picking up the baton to save our nature – we’ve already lost Corn Buntings and Nightingales in Wales – how long until they’re gone from the rest of the UK? Along with the eerie calls of curlew and the gentle purr of the turtle doves.”

Sophie Pavelle, a young conservationist said “What a huge wake-up call 2019 has been! I have felt the loss of nature more acutely this year than any other. A dawn chorus less deafening, hedgerows less frantic, bizarre, worrying weather…it seems that in a more complex world nature is tired, muted and confused. People protect what they love, and if we can find quirky, empowering ways to encourage young people to connect with nature emotionally and see it as something they can truly champion – only then can we dig deep to find real hope for a brighter, sustained future for our natural world.”

Locally, partners in the report include Channel Islands representatives (see the list below) and Guernsey’s Andy McCutcheon, Principal Environment Services Officer, Agriculture, Countryside & Land Management Services (ACLMS) “Guernsey welcomes the opportunity to be part of the State of Nature report.  The report paints a picture which should concern everyone. We have had a Biodiversity Strategy in place for nearly four years and this report forces us to face facts. It is only by understanding what we are losing and how we are losing it that we can begin to reverse the serious decline in our species rich habitats such as unimproved grassland.”

Download a full copy of the State of Nature 2019 report here and to find out how you can do your bit to save UK wildlife. Reports and summaries for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also available here

  1. The State of Nature 2019 UK partnership includes: A Focus On Nature, A Rocha, Action for Conservation, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC), Association of Local Environmental Records Centres (ALERC), Badenoch & Strathspey Conservation Group, Bat Conservation Ireland, Bat Conservation Trust (BCT), Biodiversity Ireland, Biological Records Centre (BRC), Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland, British Arachnological Society (BAS), British Bryological Society (BBS), British Dragonfly Society (BDS), British Lichen Society, British Mycological Society (BMS), British Pteridological Society (BPS), British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), Buglife, Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Butterfly Conservation, Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH), Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM), Chester Zoo, Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland, Continuous Plankton Recorder, Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust (Durrell), Earthwatch, Freshwater Habitats Trust, Friends of the Earth, Froglife, Isle of Man Government, iSpot (The Open University), Jersey Government Department of the Environment, John Muir Trust, Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC), Local Environmental Records Centre Wales, Mammal Society, Manx BirdLife, Marine Biological Association (MBA), Marine Conservation Society, Marine Ecosystems Research Programme, MARINELife, National Biodiversity Network (NBN), National Forum for Biological Recording, CEDAR Centre for Environmental Data and Recording, National Trust, National Trust for Scotland, Natural England (NE), Natural History Museum, Natural Resources Wales (NRW), Northern Ireland Bat Group, Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), ORCA, People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), Plantlife, Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, Scottish Badgers, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH), Scottish Environment Link, Scottish Wild Land Group, Shark Trust, States of Guernsey, The Fungus Conservation Trust, Trees for Life, Ulster Wildlife Trust, University of Plymouth, University of Sheffield, Vincent Wildlife Trust, Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT), Wildlife Trusts, Scottish Wildlife Trust, Woodland Trust, WWF, Zoological Society of London (ZSL).

3 Billion birds gone

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From American Bird Conservancy

The biodiversity crisis has come to our backyards. In less than a single human lifetime, 2.9 billion breeding adult birds have been lost from the United States and Canada, including birds in every ecosystem. Numbers have plummeted even among familiar species: the dark-eyed junco has lost an incredible 175 million individuals from its population. The white-throated sparrow has lost 93 million. To put it another way, we’ve lost more than one in every four birds since 1970.

These findings were reported in the world’s leading scientific journal, Science, by researchers at seven institutions, including American Bird Conservancy. Watch the  short video highlighting the main findings and the threats behind the numbers above.

One of the striking images from American Bird Conservancy https://abcbirds.org/3-billion-birds/#homepage. Western meadowlark. Photo by David Zeig/Audubon Photography Awards

There’s no time to lose

Birds are signalling a broader crisis in the natural world — one that is echoed by global losses in insects, amphibians, and other wildlife. The disappearance of even common bird species indicates a shift in our ecosystems’ ability to support basic birdlife.

Of the nearly three billion birds lost, 90% came from just 12 bird families, including (New World) sparrows, (New World) warblers, finches, and swallows. These common, widespread species play influential roles in ecosystems. If they’re in trouble, the wider web of life, including us, is in trouble, too.

Behind the numbers

This is the first study to undertake an accounting of the net population changes across a total of 529 breeding bird species in the United States and Canada. The researchers analysed birds on a group-by-group basis, allowing them to identify declines among species that use similar habitats. The findings included 48 years of data from multiple independent sources, including the North American Breeding Bird Survey and the Christmas Bird Count. A comprehensive analysis of 11 years of data from 143 NEXRAD radar stations showed a similarly steep decline in the magnitude of migration.

Where the losses are

A number as big as 2.9 billion is hard to fathom. Look at it like a balance sheet. Each year, many birds produce young while many others die. But since 1970, on balance, many more birds have died than have survived, resulting in 2.9 billion fewer breeding birds today.

Some ecosystems show worse losses than others. For example, forests alone have lost one billion birds since 1970. Grassland birds are also hard hit, with a 53% reduction in population — more than 720 million birds. Aerial insectivores — birds like swallows, nighthawks and flycatchers — are down by 32%, or 160 million. Coastal shorebirds, already at dangerously low numbers, lost more than one-third of their population.

The volume of spring migration, measured by radar in the night skies, has dropped by 14% in just the past decade.

Drivers of decline

Although the study did not investigate causes, scientists have identified that habitat loss is the biggest overall driver of bird declines. Habitat loss occurs when land is converted for agriculture, development, resource extraction, and other uses. Habitat degradation is a second cause of losses. In this case, habitat doesn’t disappear outright but becomes less able to support birds, such as when habitat is fragmented, altered by invasive plants, or when water quality is compromised.

Aside from habitat loss and degradation, other major human-caused threats to birds come from cats and other invasive species; collisions with glass and industrial infrastructure such as communications towers and wind turbines; and exposure to pesticides and other toxics.

Climate change is expected to exacerbate these threats, as well as creating new challenges; for example, changing habitat distributions and shifting the timing of peak food supplies for birds.

Fortunately, individuals can take action to reduce many of these threats. Learn more about ways you can help birds through everyday actions.

Help combat the crisis

ABC’s “50-50-5” plan in North America is designed to address the current bird crisis there. It will make a transformational difference for birds, and at the same time, protect millions of additional species of plants and animals, and make a huge contribution to solving our planet’s biodiversity and climate crises.

The plan is to save 50 flagship bird species, protect and conserve 50 million acres, and fight five critical threats. Can we do the same in Europe?

Download a manuscript of the full study Decline of the North American Avifauna here.

Belle-Île, Brittany and its choughs. A photo gallery

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By Regis Perdriat

Belle-Île, nine miles (15km) off the coast of the Gulf of Morbihan, is Brittany’s largest island and a popular place for visitors. Birds On The Edge correspondent Regis Perdriat took his family over to this beautiful island (pun fully intended) in May but wasn’t content with just relaxing on the island’s many beaches. Belle-Île has red-billed choughs.

At 32 miles² (84 kilometres²),  Belle-Île is smaller than Jersey (45.6 miles²) and, with a truly rugged coastline, it has far fewer residents, only 4,920 in the 2009 census. This human population may increase to a whopping 35,000 in summer – Jersey has nearly 107,000 residents. Anyway, plenty of nice chough-friendly coastline and although an important site for Brittany’s choughs there may sadly not be many these days. Maybe there are only around 20 birds; however, as Regis was able to confirm, they are breeding.