Some birds soar, others plummet

Certain birds in Britain have increased in numbers this year, while others are in steep decline, according to the British Trust for Ornithology.

The trust’s Birdtrends report shows a very mixed bag for our birds, with 31 species declining by more than half over the past 20 to 50 years, but 27 species doubling in number.

Only the bullfinch, linnet and tree sparrow have shown any signs that a long-term downward trend may be reversing over the past decade.

The turtle dove has shown the largest decline (98 per cent) and may soon disappear from the UK.

Meanwhile, the wren, great-spotted woodpecker, carrion crow and magpie have thrived. Nuthatch numbers are up and their range has extended northwards. Conservation measures have also led to an explosion in the numbers of red kites – an increase of 1,624 per cent between 1995 and 2017. Samantha Herbert