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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: shallow decline
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 39 1967-2006 63 -19 -44 23    
  25 1981-2006 86 27 -8 60    
  10 1996-2006 156 -7 -22 4    
  5 2001-2006 144 -5 -15 5    
CBC/BBS England 39 1967-2006 38 -18 -42 37   Small CBC sample
  25 1981-2006 51 27 -8 62   Small CBC sample
  10 1996-2006 87 -11 -23 4    
  5 2001-2006 77 -9 -20 2    
BBS UK 11 1995-2006 142 0 -14 12    
  10 1996-2006 145 -7 -18 4    
  5 2001-2006 144 -6 -14 2    
BBS England 11 1995-2006 76 -1 -18 15    
  10 1996-2006 77 -10 -23 4    
  5 2001-2006 77 -10 -18 1    
BBS Wales 11 1995-2006 54 -8 -27 15    
  10 1996-2006 55 -10 -28 12    
  5 2001-2006 56 -8 -22 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 2006
Change Comment
Clutch size 38 1968-2006 48 Curvilinear 5.89 eggs 6.23 eggs 5.8%  
Brood size 38 1968-2006 85 Curvilinear 5.1 chicks 5.48 chicks 7.4%  
Daily failure rate (eggs) 38 1968-2006 73 Linear decline 1.16% nests/day 0.31% nests/day -73.3%  
Daily failure rate (chicks) 38 1968-2006 52 Linear decline 1.23% nests/day 0.39% nests/day -68.3%  
Laying date 38 1968-2006 61 Curvilinear May 21 May 9 -12 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
 

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This report should be cited as:
Baillie, S.R., Marchant, J.H., Leech, D.I., Joys, A.C., Noble, D.G.,
Barimore, C., Grantham, M.J., Risely, K. & Robinson, R.A. (2009).
Breeding Birds in the Wider Countryside: their conservation status 2008.
BTO Research Report No. 516. BTO, Thetford. (http://www.bto.org/birdtrends)

Pages maintained by Iain Downie, Mandy T Andrews and Laura Smith: Last updated 18.02.2009