The 2024/2025 shooting season for red grouse Lagopus scotica in Britain was the last during a five-year voluntary transition period proposed by shooting and rural organisations in 2020, during which it was suggested that shooters of all live quarry switch from the use of lead to non-lead shotgun ammunition. We purchased carcasses of red grouse and dissected them to recover shotgun pellets for chemical analysis. All of the 78 carcasses from which shot were recovered contained lead shotgun pellets. One carcass had both lead and bismuth pellets. Samples of grouse meat had, on average, concentrations of lead that were substantially higher than is permitted in meat from farmed animals and poultry, even though shotgun pellets were removed from the meat before analysis. Lead levels were similar to those from grouse sampled five and 12 years before the beginning of the transition. X-rays of 12 carcasses revealed small (mostly 0.2 – 0.5 mm diameter) fragments in most of them, in addition to whole shot. Lead concentration in the meat was strongly correlated with the number of these fragments, which are too small to be detected and potentially rejected by scavenging animals and predators. We conclude that most of the lead found in meat from red grouse carcasses results from fragmentation of shotgun pellets impacting the birds’ bodies. The intended voluntary five-year transition has been unsuccessful in relation to red grouse.

Since 2020, the SHOT-SWITCH research project has monitored the proportion of wild-shot common pheasants Phasianus colchicus in Great Britain that were killed using lead and non-lead shot. This was set up in response to UK shooting and rural organisations’ announcement that game shooters should make a full voluntary transition from lead to non-lead shotgun ammunition by 2025 and initiatives by retailers and wholesalers of game meat products. In the study’s fifth and final season (2024/2025), 99% of pheasants obtained from businesses other than Waitrose & Partners had been killed using lead ammunition. There has only been a slight, non-significant downward trend in the proportion of pheasants killed using lead shot over the five-year transition period. Although some food retailers have stated their intention to cease selling game meat products from animals killed using lead ammunition, our study indicates that these initiatives have made limited progress so far. It appears that voluntary efforts to encourage shooters to switch from lead to non-lead shotgun ammunition for game shooting have been unsuccessful and have been diminishing as the deadline for complete transition approached.

The 2023/2024 shooting season was the fourth since UK shooting and rural organisations announced their intention that hunters should make a full voluntary transition from the use of lead to non-lead shotgun ammunition by 2025. The SHOT-SWITCH research project has monitored the proportions of wild-shot common pheasants Phasianus colchicus available to consumers in Great Britain that were killed using lead and non-lead shot in each of the shooting seasons since the beginning of the transition. In the study’s fourth season, 2023/2024, 93% of pheasants obtained during the usual sampling period had been killed using lead ammunition. Whilst this indicates a marginal decline in the proportion of pheasants shot using lead since the beginning of the transition, when it was over 99%, much remains to be done if the intended full voluntary transition to non-lead shotgun ammunition is to be achieved in its final season (2024/2025). Some food retailers intend to cease selling game meat products from animals killed using lead ammunition. Our study indicates that whilst all of a small sample of pheasant carcasses obtained from one of these retailers (Marks & Spencer) were from birds killed using non-lead shot, a larger sample obtained from another of the retailers (Waitrose) had mostly been killed using lead shot.

Capsule: Green Sandpipers Tringa ochropus wintering in southern Britain breed in western Scandinavia, from southern Norway to Finland. They leave Britain in late April and return by the end of June/early July.Aims: To determine the breeding areas of Green Sandpipers that spend their winter in southern Britain and to investigate their migration ecology.Methods: Green Sandpipers were fitted with archival tags (light level and GPS) whilst in their wintering area. Location data were collected during their northward migration to the breeding area, the breeding period and their return to southern England.Results: Birds departed from the wintering area in late April (median April 20) and moved rapidly to the breeding areas (median duration two days), a mean distance of 1463 km. Females stayed in the breeding areas for only 42 days and males 60 days. The return migration back to the wintering area took a median of 11.5 days with the first birds back by June 19 and the last by July 6.Conclusions: By spending the winter so far north and close to the breeding areas the birds are balancing the risks of poor survival in extreme cold winters with the benefits of rapid and relatively easy movement to and from their breeding areas.

In 2020, UK shooting and rural organisations pledged to achieve a voluntary transition from the use of lead shotgun ammunition to non-lead alternatives for hunting by 2025.The SHOT-SWITCH research project was set up in 2020 to monitor progress towards this aim by examining the proportions of wild-shot common pheasants Phasianus colchicus available to consumers in Great Britain that were killed using lead and non-lead shot.In the study's third season, 2022/2023, 94% of pheasants sampled had been killed using lead ammunition.Statistically, this is a significantly smaller proportion than in the preceding two seasons (both > 99% lead), but it remains large.We found no direct evidence of any effect of recent voluntary initiatives to promote the replacement of lead with non-lead ammunition by suppliers and retailers of wild-shot game.

In 2020, nine major UK shooting and rural organisations proposed a voluntary transition from the use for hunting of lead shotgun ammunition to non-lead alternatives. The major food retailer Waitrose & Partners has announced its intention to move to not supplying game meat products from animals killed using any kind of lead ammunition and the National Game Dealers Association announced a plan for a similar policy to be implemented in 2022. The SHOT-SWITCH research project, which is intended to monitor the progress of these voluntary initiatives, began in the 2020/2021 shooting season. The project monitors changes in the proportions of wild-shot common pheasants Phasianus colchicus available to consumers in Great Britain that had been killed using lead and non-lead shotgun ammunition, as assessed by using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry to identify the composition of shotgun pellets recovered from carcasses. In 2020/2021, 99.4% of the pheasants sampled had been killed using lead ammunition. We report here further results from this study for the 2021/2022 season. We found that 99.5% of the 215 pheasants from which shotgun pellets were recovered had been killed using lead ammunition. We conclude that the shooting and rural organisations’ joint statement and two years of their considerable efforts in education, awareness-raising and promotion, have not yet had a detectable effect on the ammunition types used by hunters who supply pheasants to the British game meat market.

"The Wryneck: biology, behaviour, conservation and symbolism of Jynx torquilla." Bird Study, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print), p. 1

Capsule:There has been no trend in nest survival of Lesser Spotted WoodpeckerDryobates minorin the 70 years since the 1940s whereas the numbers of young per nesting attempt has declined. Late nests in any year are now significantly less productive than early ones. Aims:To test whether there has been a long-term decline in the nest survival and productivity of the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker in Britain. Methods:Breeding data from 331 nests over the period 1949-2019 have been analysed. There were three sources - nest records submitted to the British Trust for Ornithology, a study by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds from 2006 to 2009 and records submitted to the Woodpecker Network from 2015 to 2019. Generalized linear models were used to analyse the records for first egg date, clutch size, numbers of young fledged, and numbers of nest days for which the nest was under observation. Data were grouped into three periods reflecting population trends of the bird (pre-1980, 1980-1999, 2000-2019) and we also analysed trends with year and spring temperature. Results:There was no trend in first egg date up to 1980 but subsequently it has advanced by 13 days. The mean clutch was 5.3 with no trend with period or year. There were no trends in nest survival during the egg stage or chick rearing. The mean number of young fledged was 2.6, with nests since 1980 fledging lower numbers of young than those pre-1980 and a decline with year. Loss of chicks, probably to starvation, was the main cause of low productivity. In the last period (2000-2019) nests started early in the season fledged more young than those started later, a trend not apparent in the earlier periods. Conclusions:Low productivity is a widespread problem for the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker which has probably been exacerbated by the trend towards warm springs.

Capsule: Nest survival of Great Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos major was not related to the abundance or timing of their caterpillar prey, whereas the number of young fledged per nest was higher in years with high numbers of defoliating caterpillars and when there was a good temporal match between food demand and the peak caterpillar abundance. Aims: To test whether the breeding parameters of Great Spotted Woodpeckers were affected by the abundance and timing of their caterpillar prey. Methods: The breeding parameters of Great Spotted Woodpeckers were monitored in four woods in Hertfordshire, UK, from 2001 to 2016. All nests and their outcomes were followed by regular observations and inspection using nest video cameras; 836 nests were found. The timing and abundance of defoliating caterpillars were monitored using frass trays and damage assessments of oak leaves. Results: The caterpillar abundance rose to a peak and fell again towards the end of the 16-year study. The date of the maximum frass fall was best predicted by the mean April-May temperature. On average, the date of peak food demand of the young woodpeckers was mismatched with the peak prey by four days. The mean number of young fledged per nest was higher in years with high numbers of defoliating caterpillars and in years when the greatest food demand of the chicks coincided with the peak caterpillar abundance. Nest survival was high and was unrelated to caterpillar abundance or timing. Conclusion: A high abundance of defoliating caterpillars and good synchronization of timing of breeding with the peak availability of the caterpillars can increase brood productivity of the generalist Great Spotted Woodpecker. A combination of low caterpillar abundance and a warm spring is predicted to reduce productivity considerably.

The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor is in serious decline in Britain and in many other countries in northwest Europe. In this paper we review the recent research on the species in Britain and elsewhere in Europe, and discuss the conservation implications of this work. The breeding success of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers in Britain is currently lower than reported previously and is also lower than that found in recent studies in Germany and Sweden. The proximate cause of this low breeding success appears to be chick starvation but more work is needed on the ecology of the species in the prebreeding and breeding periods to identify the ultimate cause. A pair of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos minor displaying in early spring

Increasing temperatures associated with climate change may generate phenological mismatches that disrupt previously synchronous trophic interactions. Most work on mismatch has focused on temporal trends, whereas spatial variation in the degree of trophic synchrony has largely been neglected, even though the degree to which mismatch varies in space has implications for meso-scale population dynamics and evolution. Here we quantify latitudinal trends in phenological mismatch, using phenological data on an oak-caterpillar-bird system from across the UK. Increasing latitude delays phenology of all species, but more so for oak, resulting in a shorter interval between leaf emergence and peak caterpillar biomass at northern locations. Asynchrony found between peak caterpillar biomass and peak nestling demand of blue tits, great tits and pied flycatchers increases in earlier (warm) springs. There is no evidence of spatial variation in the timing of peak nestling demand relative to peak caterpillar biomass for any species. Phenological mismatch alone is thus unlikely to explain spatial variation in population trends. Given projections of continued spring warming, we predict that temperate forest birds will become increasingly mismatched with peak caterpillar timing. Latitudinal invariance in the direction of mismatch may act as a double-edged sword that presents no opportunities for spatial buffering from the effects of mismatch on population size, but generates spatially consistent directional selection on timing, which could facilitate rapid evolutionary change.

We have measured the activity patterns of wintering Green Sandpipers before and after they were fitted with geolocators attached using leg loop harnesses and compared these with a control group of untagged birds. The geolocators and harnesses represented 1.4–1.6% of the body mass of the birds. Although the proportion of time the birds spent feeding increased over the course of the winter, we found no significant effect of tagging. Tagged birds spent significantly more time preening than untagged birds (6.3% overall compared with 4.6% for untagged birds) but the effect decreased with days after tagging. There was no evidence that this small increase in preening activity led to lower survival of the birds or changes in their migration timetable.

Capsule: The direction and magnitude of changes in structure of UK woodlands since the 1980s, are inconsistent with them playing a causative role in the declines of four migrant bird species in upland oak woods.Aims: To investigate whether changes in woodland structure were a possible cause of population changes of four Afro-Palearctic migrants (Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix, Tree Pipit Anthus trivial's, Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca and Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus) in the upland oakwoods of western and northern Britain.Methods: Bird population estimates and measures of woodland structure were recorded in two time periods 1982-85 and 2003-04 across six regions of the UK. We modelled the effect of habitat change and initial habitat state on population changes between the two time periods. The predicted effects of habitat change on populations were then compared with observed population changes across the different regions.Results: All four species underwent population declines; there were also significant increases in ground cover and understorey cover. The number of birds in 2003-04 was influenced by habitat structure at this time in addition to showing regional differences. Change in bird numbers varied between regions and was affected by both the initial habitat state and change in habitat structure, with regional variation in the effect of habitat change. There was however no relationship between the predicted effect of change in habitat structure on population size and observed regional population changes.Conclusions: Changes in woodland structure are unlikely to be the main driver of population change in these four migrant bird species, and large-scale factors affecting demographics in other parts of their breeding range or in their wintering areas are likely reasons for local population declines.

Capsule There is no evidence of widespread significant nest-site competition in Britain or the Western Palearctic between cavity-nesting birds and bumblebees or social wasps.Aims To investigate competition between cavity-nesting birds and bumblebees and wasps, particularly the range-expanding Tree Bumblebee, Saxon Wasp and European Hornet in Britain, and review evidence throughout the Western Palearctic.Methods We compared field data from English and Polish studies of tits and woodpeckers breeding in nest-boxes and/or tree holes to assess nest-site competition with bumblebees and wasps. We reviewed the literature quantifying nest-site competition between birds and these insects in the Western Palearctic.Results Bumblebees and wasps are capable of usurping small passerines from nests. In England, these insects commandeered a mean annual 4.1% of tit nests initiated in nest-boxes; occurrence of hornets showed a long-term increase, but not other wasps or bumblebees. Across the Western Palearctic, insect occupation of nest-boxes was generally low, and was lower in England than in Poland. No insects were discovered in tree cavities, including those created by woodpeckers (Picidae).Conclusion Nest-site competition between cavity-nesting birds and bumblebees and wasps appears to be a nest-box phenomenon', which may occasionally interfere with nest-box studies, but appears negligible in natural nest-sites.

There is compelling evidence that A fro‐ P alaearctic ( A ‐ P ) migrant bird populations have declined in E urope in recent decades, often to a greater degree than resident or short‐distance migrants. There appear to have been two phases of decline. The first in the 1960s–1970s, and in some cases into the early 1980s, largely affected species wintering predominantly in the arid S ahelian zone, and the second since the 1980s has mostly affected species wintering in the humid tropics and G uinea forest zone. Potential drivers of these declines are diverse and are spread across and interact within the migratory cycle. Our knowledge of declining species is generally better for the breeding than the non‐breeding parts of their life cycles, but there are significant gaps in both for many species. On the breeding grounds, degradation of breeding habitats is the factor affecting the demography of the largest number of species, particularly within agricultural systems and woodland and forests. In the non‐breeding areas, the interacting factors of anthropogenic habitat degradation and climatic conditions, particularly drought in the Sahel zone, appear to be the most important factors. Based on our synthesis of existing information, we suggest four priorities for further research: (1) use of new and emerging tracking technologies to identify migratory pathways and strategies, understand migratory connectivity and enable field research to be targeted more effectively; (2) undertake detailed field studies in sub‐ S aharan A frica and at staging sites, where we understand little about distribution patterns, habitat use and foraging ecology; (3) make better use of the wealth of data from the E uropean breeding grounds to explore spatial and temporal patterns in demographic parameters and relate these to migratory pathways and large‐scale patterns of habitat change and climatic factors; and (4) make better use of remote sensing to improve our understanding of how and where land cover is changing across these extensive areas and how this impacts A ‐ P migrants. This research needs to inform and underpin a flyway approach to conservation, evaluating a suite of drivers across the migratory cycle and combining this with an understanding of land management practices that integrate the needs of birds and people in these areas.

CapsuleThe provision of supplementary food in early spring led to an advance in laying date and increased productivity for the Great Spotted Woodpecker.AimsTo use the experimental provision of supplementary food in the prebreeding period to investigate the role of food supply in determining laying date, subsequent synchrony with natural food availability and the impact on productivity for the Great Spotted Woodpecker.MethodsSupplementary food in the form of fat blocks was provided at 13 feeding stations distributed over half of a 100-ha study wood from early February until late April 2011 with the other half of the wood left unfed. The breeding parameters (first egg date, clutch size, number of young fledged per nest and nest success) of Great Spotted Woodpeckers were monitored throughout the wood and data from the fed' and unfed' zones compared. The same breeding parameters collected throughout the wood in the five preceding years (2006-10) when there was no supplementary feeding were used to provide control data. The temporal pattern in the abundance of the main natural prey was monitored using caterpillar frass traps.ResultsIn 2011, the mean first egg date for woodpecker nests in the fed zone of the wood was 4-5days earlier than for those nests in the unfed zone. Nests in the fed zone were almost twice as productive as those in the unfed zone even though the supplementary feeding stopped before the main period of chick rearing. There were no differences in the breeding parameters in the two zones of the wood in the control years when there was no supplementary feeding. 2011 was a very warm spring and the natural prey abundance peaked very early so that none of the woodpeckers were well synchronized with their main breeding season prey. However, the small advancement in first egg date meant the supplemented birds were better synchronized than the controls.ConclusionThe response of Great Spotted Woodpeckers to supplementary feeding suggests they may be limited in their ability to shift their breeding period to maintain synchrony with their natural prey in the breeding season. This has important implications for the response of the birds to warm springs which are expected to be more frequent under future climate change. Use of garden feeders by Great Spotted Woodpeckers has the potential to increase breeding success and may be one of the many factors contributing to their current population increase.

This chapter focuses on the habitat relationships of birds that are closely associated with reedswamps and fens in western Europe. These are normally waterlogged habitats with vegetation frequently dominated by tall robust plant species. They embrace an extremely diverse range of ecological conditions, often described by tortuous technical terminology. Classification systems struggle to capture the fluid and fragile nature of these dynamic environments that change through time with hydroseral succession and frequently grade into one another in space. Water chemistry and the physical processes that create the waterlogged conditions underpin much of the complex variation in plant communities (e.g. Rodwell, 1995). Using British examples, this section introduces the variety of habitat types which, although generally very localised, support highly distinctive bird assemblages.

Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos minor have dramatically declined and retracted in range in Britain. Pre-breeding foraging may be critical and, although work has been carried out elsewhere in Europe our knowledge of habitat requirements for British birds is limited.We aim to describe foraging behaviour and selection of foraging locations in the pre-breeding period; and to provide descriptions of nest sites and wider habitat selection for nesting.We recorded foraging behaviour, attributes of foraging trees and nest site characteristics and compared them with random areas within woods. Small branches of live oaks at heights usually in the upper third of the tree were most frequently used for foraging. At a wider scale, areas selected contained more deadwood. Nest cavities were usually placed in the upper half of a tree, and oak was commonly used. For nesting, open areas were selected with more dead trees and a mature structure. Many of the attributes important for foraging and nesting have changed in English woodlands in the direction expected to have negative impacts on this species, except for deadwood. Further work shouldmeasure food availability in areas of differing structures. Knowledge of declining species' resource requirements allows targeted and informed management for conservation.

Capsule The breeding success of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos minor is now lower in England than previously reported and also lower than found in studies elsewhere in Europe.Aims To quantify the breeding success and identify the causes of nest failure. To test the hypotheses that breeding success is related to aspects of food limitation and parental care, and inclement weather during the nesting period, or to interactions with Great Spotted Woodpeckers.Methods Nests were monitored in three regions of England, recording survival and causes of failure. We measured aspects of food limitation and parental care, rainfall and Great Spotted Woodpecker interactions at nests, to explore whether there was any evidence that these factors were related to breeding success. We compared results to other studies from the UK and continental Europe.Results Nest survival was 52%. The average number of chicks produced from successful nests was 2.8. Chick-stage daily nest survival was positively related to provisioning rates, indicating that food supply may be limiting. The most common cause of nest failure was presumed starvation of chicks after the disappearance of an adult. Some females ceased visiting nests, leaving provisioning solely to the male. This behaviour has been reported elsewhere in Europe, but in the present study males were unable to compensate fully by increasing their provisioning rates, leading to poor nest survival. Provisioning rates and chick-stage daily nest survival were negatively associated with rainfall. Nest predation by Great Spotted Woodpeckers occurred but was a less frequent cause of failure. Aggressive interactions were recorded between the two woodpecker species but these were unrelated to breeding parameters.Conclusions Low breeding success is most probably related to food shortages in the breeding period. Simple population modelling using parameters from the present study and from published work shows that if the low productivity that we have observed is replicated throughout Britain, it would be sufficient to account for the observed population decline. However, the possibility that survival rates are also low cannot be ruled out.