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BTO Blueline
STONECHAT
Saxicola torquatus
 Stonechat © G H Higginbotham
 

• Population
  changes

• Productivity
  trends

• Additional
  information
Conservation listings
Europe: no SPEC category (favourable conservation status in Europe, not concentrated in Europe)
UK: amber (European status)
Long-term trend
UK: uncertain, possible decline
UK population size
9,000–23,000 pairs in 1990 (1988–91 Atlas: APEP06); 19,300–49,400 pairs in 2000 (updated using BBS trend: BiE04)
Status summary
Numerical trends were not measured before the start of the BBS, but a long-term decline is suspected: severe winter weather, and loss and fragmentation of suitable breeding habitat in many inland regions, are believed to have reduced the population from the 1940s onward (Marchant et al. 1990). Breeding atlas data showed a substantial contraction in the Stonechat's range between the early 1970s and late 1980s (Gibbons et al. 1993). Nest failure rates have fallen markedly over the long term. Against this background, the current, strongly increasing BBS trend represents substantial recovery. Following similar increases widely across Europe, the species is now provisionally categorised as 'secure' (BirdLife International 2004). The UK amber listing rests on the earlier European decline, so a change to green may be warranted at the next review.
 

Population changes
BBS UK graph
 
Table of population changes for Stonechat

Source Period
(yrs)		 Years Plots
(n)		 Change
(%)		 Lower
limit		 Upper
limit		 Alert Comment
BBS UK 11 1995-2006 122 200 140 265    
  10 1996-2006 128 188 136 228    
  5 2001-2006 172 48 29 61    
BBS England 11 1995-2006 48 167 83 278    
  10 1996-2006 50 156 75 253    
  5 2001-2006 69 37 11 61    
BBS Scotland 5 2001-2006 38 79 40 109    
BBS Wales 11 1995-2006 33 207 117 360    
  10 1996-2006 35 158 81 247    
  5 2001-2006 47 24 -5 54    

BBS acknowledgement
 
BBS England graph
 

Productivity trends
Table of productivity changes for Stonechat

Variable Period
(yrs)		 Years Mean
annual
sample		 Trend Modelled
in first year		 Modelled
in 2006		 Change Comment
Clutch size 38 1968-2006 30 None        
Brood size 38 1968-2006 59 None        
Daily failure rate (eggs) 38 1968-2006 35 Curvilinear 0.52% nests/day 0.27% nests/day -48.1%  
Daily failure rate (chicks) 38 1968-2006 54 Curvilinear 1.16% nests/day 0.4% nests/day -65.5%  
Laying date 38 1968-2006 35 Curvilinear May 3 Apr 27 -6 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
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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