There are fresh concerns over the willow tit, one of Britain’s most endangered birds, which has suffered another dramatic plunge in numbers.
The Rare Breeding Birds Panel has just announced that willow tits are now down to just 2,000 breeding pairs in the United Kingdom.
There are thought to be less than 400 pairs in the North West.
Nationally, the UK population has fallen by 90 per cent in the past 30 years, placing it on the red list of species of conservation concern.
Living off insects, seeds and berries, the willow tit’s favourite home is in elder, alder, birch and willow thickets in damp places, like Irlam and Cadishead Mosses.
The Lancashire Wildlife Trust are trying to halt the decline by creating new willow habitats in Salford.
The birds flourish best in wet woodland
In February they invited nature-lovers to join their workers in planting groves and setting up nesting logs at the Little Woolden Moss reserve in Cadishead.
The Lottery-funded project will continue into 2017.
Read: Help build new homes for endangered willow tits in Salford
Over 50 volunteers have been building new habitats in Salford
The Wildlife Trust’s Wigan Reserves Manager Mark Champion said: “The situation is critical and we need to ensure the willow tit is protected both locally and nationally.
“Last year we were reporting that there were 5,000 birds in the UK, this new report says we are now down to 4,000. This is not good news.”
Much of the willow tits’ decline is down to loss of habitat with housing and industrial developers seeing no merit in the willow scrub which these beautiful birds inhabit.
The willow tit’s plight is not helped by its large territories, often stretching up to an acre.
Mark said: “‘Normal’ habitat work involves clearing scrub and planting trees like ash and oak, but willow tits do not like this. The birds prefer the scrub where they build their own nest hole by digging into rotten wood in the soft timber tree stumps, less than a metre from the ground.
“Another problem is bird boxes, aimed mainly at blue tits. In most nature reserves you would see bird boxes on trees around here that attract blue tits and great tits, which discourages the willow tits.
“Of course we want to create areas for the other birds but not at the expense of a unique sub-species of bird which you will not find anywhere else in the world.
“We must ensure we are not contributing to another extinction – this time on our own doorsteps.”
Main image: Willow Tit – Maria A/Flickr
