BTO - Breeding Birds of the Wider Countryside: Chaffinch

CHAFFINCH
Fringilla coelebs

• Population
changes

• Productivity
trends

• Additional
information

Conservation listings

Europe: no SPEC category (concentrated in Europe, conservation status favourable)
UK: green

Long-term trend

UK, England: shallow increase

UK population size

5,974,000 territories in 2000 (1988–91 Atlas estimate updated using CBC/BBS trend: BiE04, APEP06)

Status summary

Chaffinch abundance increased rapidly during the 1970s and 1980s, according to CBC/BBS and CES, but numbers seemed to stabilise during the1990s. The recent relative stability has been associated with a reduction in annual survival, which could be density-dependent (Siriwardena et al. 1999). There was also some evidence of improved breeding performance during the early years of population increase, with larger brood sizes and fewer egg-stage nest failures. The trend towards earlier laying may be partly explained by recent climate change (Crick & Sparks 1999). Chaffinches are well adapted to suburban and garden habitats, as well as to highly fragmented woodland and hedgerows, occurring less in the open-field, arable habitats that have been affected most by agricultural intensification, so may have benefited by environmental changes from which other seed-eating passerines have suffered.

Population changes

Table of population changes for Chaffinch

Source	Period (yrs)	Years	Plots (n)	Change (%)	Lower limit	Upper limit
CBC/BBS UK	38	1967-2005	763	30	17	46
	25	1980-2005	1054	20	10	30
	10	1995-2005	2164	12	8	16
	5	2000-2005	2253	7	4	10
CBC/BBS England	38	1967-2005	605	37	21	54
	25	1980-2005	828	29	18	40
	10	1995-2005	1682	17	14	21
	5	2000-2005	1735	9	7	12
CES adults	21	1984-2005	79	55	-12	205
	10	1995-2005	90	13	-12	37
	5	2000-2005	86	21	-1	39
CES juveniles	21	1984-2005	59	119	-14	285
	10	1995-2005	70	47	-8	127
	5	2000-2005	69	88	44	122
BBS UK	10	1995-2005	2041	12	8	17
	5	2000-2005	2221	7	4	9
BBS England	10	1995-2005	1575	18	14	23
	5	2000-2005	1708	10	7	13
BBS Scotland	10	1995-2005	200	5	-5	16
	5	2000-2005	196	4	-4	11
BBS Wales	10	1995-2005	179	0	-12	16
	5	2000-2005	213	11	2	24
BBS N.Ireland	10	1995-2005	77	31	2	47
	5	2000-2005	93	-11	-23	3

Productivity trends

Table of productivity changes for Chaffinch

Variable	Period (yrs)	Years	Mean annual sample	Trend	Modelled in first year	Modelled in 2005	Change
Clutch size	37	1968-2005	86	Curvilinear	4.21 eggs	4.03 eggs	-4.3%
Brood size	37	1968-2005	136	Curvilinear	3.56 chicks	3.44 chicks	-3.3%
Daily failure rate (eggs)	37	1968-2005	165	Curvilinear	2.97% nests/day	3.56% nests/day	19.9%
Daily failure rate (chicks)	37	1968-2005	115	None
Laying date	37	1968-2005	108	Linear decline	May 11	May 4	-7 days
Juvenile to Adult ratio (CES)	21	1984-2005	84	Smoothed trend	51 Index value	100 Index value	95%
Juvenile to Adult ratio (CES)	10	1995-2005	97	Smoothed trend	86 Index value	100 Index value	17%
Juvenile to Adult ratio (CES)	5	2000-2005	93	Smoothed trend	79 Index value	100 Index value	27%

Additional information


	BTO Home \| JNCC Home © British Trust for Ornithology. Charity No 216652 (England and Wales). Company Limited by Guarantee No 357284 (England and Wales). Registered Office: The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, UK. Terms and Conditions \| Privacy Statement Email:
This report should be cited as: Baillie, S.R., Marchant, J.H., Crick, H.Q.P., Noble, D.G., Balmer, D.E., Barimore, C., Coombes, R.H., Downie, I.S., Freeman, S.N., Joys, A.C., Leech, D.I., Raven, M.J., Robinson, R.A. & Thewlis, R.M. (2007) Breeding Birds in the Wider Countryside: their conservation status 2007. BTO Research Report No. 487. BTO, Thetford. (http://www.bto.org/birdtrends) Pages maintained by Susan Waghorn and Iain Downie: Last updated 3 January, 2008