Wild bird populations in the UK have fallen to their lowest level since records began, figures show, with nearly half of species in decline. Figures produced by leading nature conservation bodies for the government show that average populations across 132 native breeding species fell by 19% between 1970 and 2025, with farmland birds and seabirds […]
Tag: turtle doves
Conservationists race to rescue England’s turtle doves from extinction
Hundreds of turtle doves are being released this summer as conservationists race against the clock to save the species from extinction in England. The cooing doves, which mate for life, are the fastest-declining bird species in the country. Just 2,000 pairs are left, a decline of 98% since the 1970s. This is because their habitats […]
‘Reckless and shortsighted’: EU lifts ban on turtle dove hunting in Spain, France and Italy
Turtle doves returning to Europe this spring face a less hospitable welcome, as the EU has just voted to let hunters resume shooting the birds. The species – which migrates from sub-Saharan Africa to Europe every year – has benefited from a hunting ban since 2021, helping its western European population increase by 40 per […]
Phew, turtle doves: ban on annual shoot raises hopes for endangered bird
There are signs of hope for the turtle dove, one of the most endangered birds that has been plummeting towards extinction in Britain. After a temporary ban on the annual shoot of the migratory birds as they pass through France, Spain and Portugal, which began in 2021, there has been a remarkable 25% increase in […]