Survey shows Curlew, Swift and Yellowhammer among birds in biggest trouble

Yellowhammer (Derek Moore)

Young birds and failed breeders are already starting to disperse. Three Cattle Egrets at RSPB Cors Ddyga on Monday are perhaps the start of a post-breeding dispersal from colonies farther south that last autumn topped out at 14 birds in October. Across the wider Cefni Valley, where the Natur am Byth project is working with farmers to help Water Voles and Curlews, all the Curlew nests within temporary electric fencing have hatched. Some chicks are already three weeks old, just a couple of weeks away from fledging.

The Ring-necked Duck remains at Llyn Brenig and a Hooded Crow at Llandudno’s West Shore, with others recently on Bardsey and on Anglesey at Newborough and Traeth Coch. A Common Scoter alighted on Llyn Arenig Fach for a couple of days, perhaps an early returning migrant to Cardigan Bay from Russia. A Black Redstart was a surprising summer visitor to Llanfair Talhaiarn and 100 Swifts over Bagillt is noteworthy for its relative rarity: there were only four counts of larger numbers in the whole of Wales last year, indicative of the decline in this tropical migrant.

Browsing the results of the latest BTO/JNCC/RSPB Breeding Bird Survey results shows that Swift numbers in Wales fell a further 16% in just one year to 2023. It was one of 24 species in lower numbers than the previous year, with other big losers including Curlew (-31%), Wheatear (-28%) and Buzzard (-19%). A greater number of species, 36, increased on the previous year, including Red Kite (+28%), Redstart (+25%) and Swallow (+23%). The real value of the BBS is the long-term trends, however, and the biggest losers since 1995 remain Greenfinch, Curlew, Swift and Yellowhammer, all of which have decline by 75%. In other words, for every four individuals of each species in the Welsh countrywide 27 years ago, there is now only one.

Last week, a petition calling on Welsh Government to require “Swift bricks” to be incorporated into all new buildings was launched. Backed by RSPB Cymru, Wildlife Trusts Wales and local Swift groups, it already has more than 1600 signatures, but needs more than 10,000 to trigger consideration for a debate in the Senedd.