The decline of the Ring OuzelTurdus torquatusin Britain: Evidence from bird observatory data

Abstract

Analysis of British and Irish bird observatory data from shows that the number of Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus bird days has declined significantly in spring at western observatories through which British-breeding birds pass, but not at east coast observatories through which Fennoscandian breeders pass. The extent of decline corresponds roughly to the decline in numbers of British breeders as assessed on the breeding grounds. While these results could indicate that the decline in British Ring Ouzels is caused by problems on the breeding grounds, we also highlight the possibility that differences in the timing and routing of British and Fennoscandian birds when migrating across continental Europe could expose the former to greater risks from hunting.

Coexistência entre Turdus leucomelas Vieillot, 1818 e Turdus rufiventris Vieillot, 1818 (Aves: Passeriformes) em um fragmento urbano de floresta com araucárias, Sul do Brasil

“…Dentre as espécies com potencial de dispersão zoocórica estão a uva-do-Japão Hovenia dulcis e o alfeneiro Ligustrum lucidum, sendo que está última espécie já passa a constituir a estrutura horizontal da floresta, obtendo o 29° lugar no índice de valor de importância (Cordeiro & Rodrigues 2007). Burfield & Brooke (2005) constataram o declínio de T. torquatus Linnaeus, 1758 frente à substituição de paisagens naturais na Grã-Bretanha, entre outros. Estes estudos possuem os mais variáveis enfoques, uma vez que os turdídeos formam um grupo amplamente distribuído, onde cada região possui suas próprias espécies e, por se tratar de espécies abundantes em centros urbanos, acabam sendo utilizadas para testar modelos experimentais (Bonnevie 2005).…”

Habitat selection of the Ring OuzelTurdus torquatusin the Western Carpathians: the role of the landscape mosaic

“…This species occurs in the western Palearctic in three geographically isolated areas, comprising distinct subspecies: the boreal T. t. torquatus occurring in the British Isles and Scandinavia; the mountain T. t. alpestris occurring in the Pyrenees, Massif Central, Alps, Carpathians, and Balkans; and T. t. amicorum occurring in Asia Minor (Cramp 1988). Recent studies indicate a decline in number of the Ring Ouzel in various parts of its range (Janiga & Poxton 1997, BirdLife International 2004, Burfield & Brooke 2005, Sim et al 2010 and not very optimistic scenarios for the future (Beale et al 2006, von dem Bussche et al 2008. However, data on the Carpathian population of the Ring Ouzel is vague and basically limited to information on the range of occurrence and population estimates (Hudec 1983, Janiga & Poxton 1997, Danko et al 2002, Tomiałojc& Stawarczyk 2003, Štǎstný et al 2006, Dyrcz & Mielczarek 2007.…”

Longer term trends in arrival timing of long distance migrants: the influence of abundance and population change

“…Birds encountered in southeast England are on passage. A recent study (Burfield & Brooke 2005) has shown that birds that pass through east coast observatories are Fennoscandian breeders, which have not suffered the same decline as the UK breeding population. The Cheshire and Sheffield-area findings evidently reflect the local decline.…”