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Record breaking year for farmland bird survey

16 January 2012

Nik Shelton
Media Officer
E-mail: nik.shelton@rspb.org.uk

With golden orioles and golden eagles identified, records broken and thousands of skylarks recorded - 2011 was another eventful year for the RSPB’s Volunteer & Farmer Alliance.

The annual results for the scheme, which sees volunteers carrying out free bird surveys for farmers across the UK, are in. They paint a picture of birds thriving on many wildlife-friendly farms across our countryside as well as increasing demand from farmers for advice on how to help them.

Last year the scheme saw nearly 750 surveys carried out with more than 100 species recorded across the UK. A farm in Lincolnshire set a new record with an amazing 85 species spotted in one survey, including breeding avocets.

On the Devon coast one volunteer was lucky enough to glimpse a golden oriole – one of Britain’s rarest birds – while a survey on a farm in Kent recorded 61 species including quail, ring ouzel and spotted flycatcher.

Nine out of ten farms in East Anglia and the Midlands recorded skylarks while starlings were the most sighted species in Northern England and yellowhammers in the South West. Grey partridges cropped up on more than half of farms in Northern England and cuckoos were found on more than 40 per cent of South East farms. Turtle doves were a rare sight for surveyors with just 14 per cent of farms in the species’ stronghold in East Anglia recording the birds.

In Scotland an average of 30 species per farm were recorded on the 140 farms surveyed. These included golden eagles, hen harriers and black grouse.

In Wales the average number of species per farm was 40 with highlights including a massive flock of hundreds of house sparrows, goldfinches, greenfinches and linnets over a well managed hay meadow.

In Northern Ireland a red kite was recorded by our volunteers for the first time. The average number of bird species per farm this year was 30, and the largest number of species recorded on a single farm was 50.

Richard Winspear, senior RSPB agriculture advisor, said: “It’s been a fantastic year for the Volunteer & Farmer Alliance with more and more farmers learning about the wildlife on their farms thanks to an army of dedicated amateur experts.

“These volunteers get up at the crack of dawn to carry out these surveys and do an amazing job. Every farmer gets a map of their farm showing where each species is breeding which they can use to plan conservation measures.

“It’s great to hear all the stories we get back from our volunteers which over the past year have included encounters with some rare and spectacular birds like golden eagle, quail and even a golden oriole.

“But the most heartening thing is to see the enthusiasm farmers show for the wildlife on their land. With vital information from surveys like these and the right advice and support through the agri-environment schemes, they can make a real difference for farmland birds.

“This is a very popular service and we get a lot of requests from farmers, so much so that in some areas we are oversubscribed. Farmers have benefitted from this free service for a number of years however it does require investment and in these austere times we are looking to see how we can continue to support it into the future.”

The Volunteer & Farmer Alliance has been running since 1999. More than 6,000 farms have been surveyed since the project began. This has involved over 107,500 hours - more than 12 years - of volunteer support.

Since 2010 it has been supported by funding from the EU Life+ Programme. For more information, to sign up for a survey, or to volunteer to carry out surveys, visit the Volunteer & Farmer Alliance webpage at www.rspb.org.uk/vandfa

Notes

Volunteer and Farmer Alliance 2011 results tables

England – percentage of farms where birds were found

Scotland – percentage of farms where birds were found

Wales – percentage of farms where birds were found

Northern Ireland – percentage of farms where birds were found

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