Europe’s red kites down by 30-40%
23/11/2009 08:44:09
Red kites, thriving in parts of the UK, are in sharp decline in Europe. Credit Sue Tranter (rspb-images.com).
Poisoning has led to huge declines in Europe's red kite population.
November 2009. Numbers on the bird's main wintering grounds in Europe have halved since 1994 and there have been big falls in the number of breeding pairs in its heartlands of Spain, France and Germany. In fact, so alarming is the drop in numbers that the EU has now adopted a Red Kite Action Plan, produced by the RSPB on behalf of Birdlife International and with the support of red kite experts across Europe.
Poisoned carcasses
Intensification of agriculture in Eastern Europe is one cause, but the main problem is the widespread use of poison. The greatest threat comes from birds feeding on carcasses that have been illegally laced with agricultural pesticides to control foxes and wolves. In some places, birds of prey are also deliberately targeted to protect game birds.
Vole plagues
Red kites are excellent scavengers and are particularly vulnerable to poisoned baits. In some countries, vole plagues are legally controlled by farmers using large quantities of rodenticides spread out in the open across fields. Red kites then scavenge the dead rodents and become poisoned in turn.
40% decline in Spain - 30% decline in France & Germany
The steep decline in breeding pairs - 40 per cent in Spain and 30 per cent in France and Germany - contrasts sharply with their success in most parts of the UK.
UK Red kite numbers booming
Here, recovery of the native Welsh population combined with a hugely successful reintroduction programme, has seen the red kite return from the brink of extinction. There are now estimated to be more than 1,600 breeding pairs in the UK thanks to a successful partnership between conservationists and landowners.
UK now home to 7% of world population
Together with the declines on the continent, this means the UK is now home to seven per cent of the world's red kites - up from five per cent only a year ago. Poisoning, both accidental and deliberate, continues to take its toll of UK kites however and remains particular problem in the north of Scotland where illegal poisoning may be preventing population growth and stopping the birds' spread.
Such deaths are one reason the RSPB has been running a campaign to stamp out the killing of birds of prey.
The RSPB's Peter Newbery, who wrote the Action Plan, said: "This wonderful bird, a familiar sight across much of Europe, is suddenly in real trouble. Governments must act quickly to reduce the amount of poisons being used in the countryside and to better regulate their use. Our experience in the UK shows the tremendous ability of these birds to recover if given the chance. If the threat of poisoning can be reduced and the red kite's habitat protected, there is no reason why they should not bounce back. But the work has to start now."
The Red Kite Action Plan outlines steps countries can take to:Stop the use of poison baits. Reduce the risk of red kites eating poisoned rats and voles. Maintain and improve the places where red kites' feed and breed.
The first, truly international census of red kites will be carried out in 2013 and again five years later to see if these steps are working. Spain
The results of the 2004 national census of red kites in Spain show the Spanish wintering population declined by about 50% from 66,235-72,165 in 1994 to 35,523-36,233 in 2004. This is of particular concern as Spain hosts almost half of the global population in winter. Together, Spain France and Germany hold nearly two thirds of the European and world populations of breeding red kites. The red kite is the only UK bird of prey whose population is confined to Europe. Given the increasing importance of the UK population, we have a particular responsibility for its conservation. 
Red kites spreading into England from Wales | Red kites in the UKIn the UK, red kites were once widespread but were reduced to just 10 pairs in Wales by the 1930s. Protection by landowners and other passionate enthusiasts only just prevented them from becoming extinct, but even by the mid- 1980s there were fewer than 100 pairs in Wales. Although this population was recovering, it remained concentrated in Wales, and so a reintroduction programme to England and Scotland began in 1989. This has been a great success: by 2009, there were estimated to be more than 500 breeding pairs at seven localities outside Wales, where red kites have also continued to recover, aided by the progressive attitudes of many landowners and the work of the Welsh Kite Trust. The UK and Ireland Red Kite Co-ordination Group is responsible for carrying out and monitoring reintroduction projects. However, illegal poisoning and secondary poisoning from second-generation rodenticides remain threats to these birds - the former is especially important in northern Scotland, where it is a major cause of mortality in juvenile red kites. As a result, the original red kite reintroduction programme on the Black Isle, near Inverness has a population, which has barely grown since 2001 beyond 40-50 breeding pairs in contrast to all other reintroduction areas. Populations in Wales and in reintroduction localities in southern and central England are now so large that they cannot be censused annually. Here they can be considered as birds of the wider countryside, fully re-established and well able to flourish without further direct conservation intervention. In all localities, populations (including the native birds in Wales) are continuing to increase and spread, and productivity is good in most years (though poor in some parts of the country at times because of bad weather during the breeding season). However, deliberate poisoning and secondary/accidental poisoning by rodenticides, diazanon sheep dips and lead continue to cause concern in certain areas |
Scotland's red kites buck the trend
Scotland's population of red kites is bucking the trend of Europe-wide declines in the species. There are now estimated to be 149 breeding pairs in Scotland thanks to a re-introduction programme and a successful partnership between conservationists and landowners. This compares with an estimated 122 pairs in 2008.
The Scottish population of kites has also been displaying unusual dispersal patterns, with birds regularly recorded as travelling hundreds of miles during the winter months. Juvenile kites are routinely fitted with wing tags at the nest, making them easy to identify, and their sociability means that travellers frequently join with groups of other kites at feeding stations or roost sites around the country.
Jenny Lennon, RSPB Scotland Red Kite Project Officer, said: "This winter, the kites have been moving around so fast that it's been difficult keeping up with them!
"We've got one of our kites from the Aberdeen re-introduction project visiting Northern Ireland at the moment, and down at Argaty near Stirling, they've had a visit from two kites from a nest near Tain in Easter Ross, the most northern kite territory in Scotland. Northern kites have also been recorded on the Galloway Kite Trail in the far south of Scotland. It's incredible how much they move around."
Although the exact reason for these journeys is unclear, it is thought that it may relate to the genetic origins of the birds, many of which were introduced here from Sweden where there is a migratory population.
Poisoning still a problem
Despite the rise in population numbers, poisoning, both accidental and deliberate, continues to take its toll of UK kites and remains a particular problem in the north of Scotland where illegal poisoning may be preventing population growth and stopping the birds' spread.
Such deaths are one reason the RSPB has been running a campaign to stamp out the killing of birds of prey.
The EU has now adopted a Red Kite Action Plan, produced by the RSPB on behalf of Birdlife International and with the support of red kite experts across Europe.
It outlines steps countries can take to:
Stop the use of illegal poison baits.
Reduce the risk of secondary poisoning of red kites from eating rats, mice and voles killed with rodenticides.
Maintain and improve the places where red kites feed and breed.
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