The latest, shocking, Wild Bird Indicator figures raise renewed fears that the Westminster Government is not doing anywhere near enough to reverse bird declines.
The indicators show an ongoing decline across most groups of birds in England, particularly farmland and woodland species. Birds we all know and love, like skylark, cuckoo and curlew. Birds that bring us joy, colour and music.
The Westminster Government has clear, legally binding, targets for both species abundance and protecting 30% of land in England for nature by 2030. But Defra and other departments are simply not showing the determination and ambition that’s needed to deliver. Nature needs action not words.
If we stay on this course, we can’t see how these trends will be reversed. Protected sites across the country continue to be in poor condition and the laws that protect nature are under constant threat. The ELM schemes that are supposed to support nature friendly farming are nowhere near ambitious enough and not being delivered fast enough.
We are in a nature and climate emergency. Wild birds are one of the very best indicators of the health of the environment. If they thrive, all nature thrives, and we thrive too. And if they fail, we all fail.
We know you love birds. We know you love nature. Now is the time to act! Read more here about our Nature Can’t Wait campaign: https://www.rspb.org.uk/nature-cant-wait
And read more here about the Wild Bird Indicators: The latest Wild Bird Indicators - Saving Nature With Science - Our work - The RSPB Community