BTO - Breeding Birds of the Wider Countryside: Wheatear

WHEATEAR
Oenanthe oenanthe

• Population
changes

• Productivity
trends

• Additional
information

Conservation listings

Europe: SPEC category 3 (declining)
UK: green

Long-term trend

UK: possible decline

UK population size

56,000 pairs in 1990 (1988–91 Atlas: APEP06); 52,500 pairs in 2000 (updated using BBS trend: BiE04)

Status summary

Although it is a common breeding species in many upland areas, the Wheatear was not monitored until the BBS began in 1994. Gibbons et al. (1993) had by then identified range contractions from lowland Britain, perhaps due to losses of suitable grassland and declines in rabbit abundance. BBS shows wide fluctuations but as yet no clear trend in abundance since 1994 in either England, Scotland or Wales. Failure rates at the egg stage (18 days, comprising 14 days incubation and 4 days laying) have fallen substantially, but there has also been a minor drop in average brood size. Following widespread declines across Europe during the 1990s, the European status of this species is no longer considered 'secure' (BirdLife International 2004).

Population changes

Productivity trends

Insufficient data on CES
available for this species

Additional information


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This report should be cited as: Baillie, S.R., Marchant, J.H., Crick, H.Q.P., Noble, D.G., Balmer, D.E., Coombes, R.H., Downie, I.S., Freeman, S.N., Joys, A.C., Leech, D.I., Raven, M.J., Robinson, R.A. and Thewlis, R.M. (2006) Breeding Birds in the Wider Countryside: their conservation status 2005. BTO Research Report No. 435. BTO, Thetford. (http://www.bto.org/birdtrends) Pages maintained by Susan Waghorn and Iain Downie: Last updated 2 May, 2006