THE SAD DECLINE OF OUR BIRDS

So many of our much-loved and familiar bird species are in trouble that it seems strange there is not a lot more public outcry. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has been pressing the government to do more but, to illustrate the scale of the catastrophe, between 1970 and 2022 the UK lost 53% of its breeding skylarks, 62% of lapwings and 89% of nightingales. The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has said its monitoring is continuing to find worrying declines in bird species, many of which have fallen significantly.

In our own garden we have noticed the reduction or complete absence of thrushes, warblers, flycatchers, swifts, swallows, house martins and even starlings and house sparrows. I have not heard the tawny owls lately, either. Water birds have gone from our pond, too, where we used to have coots, moorhens and many mallard. There are still a few mallard but the coots and moorhens have disappeared completely. There is just an occasional heron after the goldfish! On a recent tour of local ponds, I saw no water birds at all. The situation has recently been aggravated by an outbreak of bird ‘flu near the Severn.

For those birds that are insectivorous, I believe the problem is that there is no food. Insect populations have collapsed. Even mosquitos and house flies are scarce and we have noticed many dead spiders this year, presumably starved. So why have the insects disappeared?

I do not know the answer but the strong suspicion is that it is a combination of over-intensive agriculture (spray, spray, spray – up to seventeen times a year on arable crops!), over-development (widespread habitat destruction for huge new housing estates on greenfield sites), other alterations of traditional land use, pollution everywhere including Pfas and micro plastics, and climate change. The problem is not limited to the UK. A quick look around the internet reveals that insect population collapse is extensive. Studies indicate that flying insect biomass has decreased by as much as 75% in some areas over the past few decades, which poses serious risks to ecosystems and, because of the reduction in pollinators, food systems.

What’s to be done? The RSPB has called for the government to do more to support nature, calling for swift bricks to be installed in every new home (which the government rejected) and pushing for amendments to the controversial new Planning and Infrastructure legislation, only some of which have been adopted. The BTO and many other wildlife organisations are also alerting and pressurising the government but I see little result. What can we do?

Betts Ecology recommends supporting the organisations protecting birds and nature. Feed the birds in our gardens, avoid pesticide use, leave areas to grow wild and not be too tidy[1].

[1] You can download my Wildlife Gardening book for free at: https://www.bettsecology.co.uk/media/1519/inhortoferitas_final.pdf