Skylark, Corn Bunting, Tree Sparrow and Northern Lapwing in sharp decline across Europe

The Wild Bird Indicator 2005 shows that on average over the last twenty-five years, farmland birds such as the Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis, Corn Bunting Miliaria calandra, Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus and Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus, have declined sharply in number across Europe. As a whole from 1980 to 2003, common farmland birds on average fell in number by 28%.

On average, common forest birds such as the Marsh Tit Parus palustris and Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix have also declined over the same period by 13% – however the factors causing these declines are less easy to pinpoint.

In contrast, birds which require less specialist habitats such as the Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major, Eurasian Jackdaw Corvus monedula and European Greenfinch Carduelis chloris have increased on average by 28%. These birds are thought to be better-able to adapt to changes in their environment than their more-specialist relatives.

The study also suggests that the threat to wildlife may be greater in the new EU Members States, and in East and Central Europe generally, where human impacts appear to have been less marked in the past, but where rapid development is more likely in the future.

This contrast is even more marked if we compare East and West Europe. On average, common farmland bird populations have declined by 57% in the West, compared with an increase of 5% in the East. Likewise, common forest bird populations have declined by 18% in the West compared with an increase of 2% in the East. Curiously, other common birds have increased by 12% in the West, but declined by 13% in the East.

As a result the analysis suggests that projected human development across Europe will have a disproportionately negative impact upon specialist birds, and thus on other aspects of biodiversity. To avoid this, development must be carried out in a sustainable manner which incorporates the specific needs of nature.

Source: BirdLife International 08-06-2005
http://www.birdlife.org/news/news/2005/06/european_indicators.html

Bird List (English-Dutch):
http://members.ziggo.nl/devalk/vogellijst.htm