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BTO Blueline
BUZZARD
Buteo buteo
 Buzzard © Derek Belsey
 

• Population
  changes

• Productivity
  trends

• Additional
  information
Conservation listings
Europe: no SPEC category (favourable conservation status in Europe, not concentrated in Europe)
UK: green
Long-term trend
UK, England: rapid increase
UK population size
31,100–44,000 territories in 2000 (1988–91 Atlas estimate updated using CBC/BBS trend: BiE04, APEP06); 44,000–61,000 territorial pairs in GB in 2001 (Clements 2002)
Status summary
The Common Buzzard has shown a substantial eastward range expansion since the 1988–91 Atlas, and is arguably now the most abundant diurnal raptor in Britain (Clements 2002). The increasing trend identified by the CBC relates especially to the spread of range into central and eastern Britain, where CBC was more strongly represented. The upsurge has, however, if anything, been ampified by the addition of the more geographically representative BBS data since 1994. The increase has been associated with improving nesting success, perhaps through reduced persecution, the recovery of rabbit populations from the effects of myxomatosis and release from the deleterious effects of organochlorine pesticides (Elliott & Avery 1991, Clements 2002). Numbers have risen widely in Europe since 1980 (PECBM 2006).
 

Population changes
 
CBC/BBS UK graph
 
Table of population changes for Buzzard

Source Period
(yrs)		 Years Plots
(n)		 Change
(%)		 Lower
limit		 Upper
limit		 Alert Comment
CBC/BBS UK 38 1967-2005 190 422 259 1244    
  25 1980-2005 283 219 124 365    
  10 1995-2005 644 51 39 64    
  5 2000-2005 790 11 4 18    
CBC/BBS England 38 1967-2005 113 455 267 1145   Small CBC sample
  25 1980-2005 167 300 186 579    
  10 1995-2005 380 86 68 106    
  5 2000-2005 478 32 22 42    
BBS UK 10 1995-2005 619 47 36 59    
  5 2000-2005 782 12 5 18    
BBS England 10 1995-2005 361 82 62 107    
  5 2000-2005 472 33 25 43    
BBS Scotland 10 1995-2005 111 32 13 56    
  5 2000-2005 126 -8 -17 3    
BBS Wales 10 1995-2005 127 3 -11 19    
  5 2000-2005 154 1 -10 11    

BBS acknowledgement
 
CBC/BBS England graph
BBS UK graph
BBS England graph
BBS Scotland graph
BBS Wales graph
 

Productivity trends
Table of productivity changes for Buzzard

Variable Period
(yrs)		 Years Mean
annual
sample		 Trend Modelled
in first year		 Modelled
in 2005		 Change Comment
Clutch size 37 1968-2005 31 Curvilinear 2.2 eggs 2.24 eggs 1.6%  
Brood size 37 1968-2005 91 Curvilinear 1.87 chicks 1.97 chicks 5.2%  
Daily failure rate (eggs) 37 1968-2005 25 Linear decline 0.68% nests/day 0.13% nests/day -80.9% Small sample
Daily failure rate (chicks) 37 1968-2005 45 None        

 
Clutch size graph
Brood size graph
Egg nest failure graph
Chick nest failure graph

 

Insufficient data on laying dates
available for this species

 

Insufficient data on CES
available for this species
 

Additional information
BTO blue divider
BirdWeb logo, click to go to BirdWeb

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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., 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