Wider Countryside Report Header
BTO Blueline
Main WCR menu image Site navigation menu item Results overview menu item Other info menu item BTO website menu item
BTO Blueline
REDSTART
Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Redstart © G H Higginbotham
 

• Population
  changes

• Productivity
  trends

• Additional
  information
Conservation listings
Europe: SPEC category 2 (depleted)
UK: amber (European status)
Long-term trend
UK, England: fluctuating, with no long-term trend
UK population size
At least 101,000 pairs in 2000 (1988–91 Atlas estimate updated using CBC/BBS trend: BiE04, APEP06)
Status summary
The decline in the late 1960s and early 1970s was thought to be due to severe drought conditions in the Sahel wintering area in Africa (Marchant et al. 1990). There was a loss of range of 20% in Britain between 1968–72 and 1988–91, in terms of the numbers of occupied 10-km squares (Gibbons et al. 1993). A recovery in population size began in the mid 1970s and appears to have continued, at least in England, into the late 1990s. This increase has been associated with improving breeding performance and progressively earlier laying dates. The trend towards earlier laying can be partly explained by recent climate change (Crick & Sparks 1999).
 

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

Source Period
(yrs)		 Years Plots
(n)		 Change
(%)		 Lower
limit		 Upper
limit		 Alert Comment
CBC/BBS UK 38 1967-2005 59 -20 -43 18    
  25 1980-2005 79 38 -4 76    
  10 1995-2005 153 -3 -15 8    
  5 2000-2005 141 -9 -18 -1    
CBC/BBS England 38 1967-2005 37 -20 -49 21   Small CBC sample
  25 1980-2005 48 35 -12 82   Small CBC sample
  10 1995-2005 86 -6 -25 9    
  5 2000-2005 76 -14 -24 -3    
BBS UK 10 1995-2005 138 0 -11 13    
  5 2000-2005 138 -9 -17 -1    
BBS England 10 1995-2005 74 -2 -21 12    
  5 2000-2005 73 -14 -22 -4    
BBS Wales 10 1995-2005 53 -6 -23 13    
  5 2000-2005 54 -10 -21 5    

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

Productivity trends
Table of productivity changes for Redstart

Variable Period
(yrs)		 Years Mean
annual
sample		 Trend Modelled
in first year		 Modelled
in 2005		 Change Comment
Clutch size 37 1968-2005 48 Curvilinear 5.88 eggs 6.21 eggs 5.5%  
Brood size 37 1968-2005 85 Curvilinear 5.08 chicks 5.42 chicks 6.6%  
Daily failure rate (eggs) 37 1968-2005 72 Linear decline 1.18% nests/day 0.31% nests/day -73.7%  
Daily failure rate (chicks) 37 1968-2005 52 Linear decline 1.2% nests/day 0.43% nests/day -64.2%  
Laying date 37 1968-2005 61 Curvilinear May 21 May 10 -11 days  

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

 

 

Insufficient data on CES
available for this species
 

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

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