Ground nesting birds declining faster than any other bird species in Europe

Posted 23 October, 2024

Ground-nesting bird populations are more likely to be in decline than any other European bird species, (opens in a new window)warns new report.

As bird populations declining globally, with record losses in many European breeds having been recorded in recent years, researchers from the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science, and the Spanish research institute, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), found ground-nesting birds were 86% more likely to suffer a population decline than birds with other nesting strategies.

Published in the journal (opens in a new window)Global Ecology and Conservation, the new paper highlights that current habitat management measures have been ineffective in reversing these widespread declines and that predator control, although unpalatable to many conservationists, may be required in the short term to help reverse these decline.

“Although the Birds and Habitats Directive have been in existence for many years their effect does not seem to be impact ground-nesting birds,” said lead author (opens in a new window)Dr Barry McMahon, UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science.

Analysing national bird population trends from ten European countries, including Ireland and the UK, Dr McMahon found ground-nesting birds were 15.6 times more likely than other birds to have a declining trend across Europe, and ground-nesting birds in agricultural habitats were 17.8 times more likely to experience a drop in their numbers than those birds that nest in other habitats.

Matching trends across Europe showed consistently that this probability of population decline was related to nesting strategy and breeding habitat.

Most bird species in Europe classified as being at risk of various levels of extinction risk (Near Threatened, Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered) are ground-nesting species. Among these is the Eurasian (or Common) Curlew, one of the most threatened species in Ireland and the only Irish bird on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

The study expresses doubt that current legislation is sufficient to halt the widespread decline in ground-nesting birds; stating a need for new policy and conservation strategies including an efficient predation control system.

“Our results highlight a widespread challenge, therefore widespread instruments will be required to reverse these declines,” said Dr McMahon.

“It seems likely that habitat restoration alone might not bring about the recovery of ground-nesting bird species… [Human] activities have shaped new agricultural landscapes and new predator communities, including foxes and crows, in the last 50 years, and with these changes there are new challenges to manage species that are struggling to deal with this new ecological reality.

“Even if some species may adapt to these novel ecosystems, possibly experiencing lower predation risk, our data expose the fact that there is a widespread decline of in ground-nesting bird species across Europe and it is unlikely that a single policy instrument across the continent will effectively address this conservation challenge.”

By: David Kearns, Digital Journalist / Media Officer, UCD University Relations

To contact the UCD News & Content Team, email: newsdesk@ucd.ie