Densities and population estimates of breeding Skylarks Alauda arvensis in Britain in 1997

Abstract

We present the results of a national survey of breeding Skylarks Alauda arvensis in Britain in 1997 carried out by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). Numbers of Skylarks and land-use types were recorded by volunteers in 608 1-km squares, selected using random stratification based on the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology's (ITE) Landscape Classification to avoid over- or under-sampling particular habitat types. The results suggest a maximum national population of around 1000 000 pairs. This agrees extremely well with the national population estimate of around 1046 000 pairs derived from the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) of the BTO/Joint Nature Conservation Committee/Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and provides further evidence for the robustness of the BBS as a national monitoring scheme for common and widespread species. The figure is approximately half that of the most recent published estimate of 2000 000 in 1988–91. However, the scale of this discrepancy is likely to reflect a bias in Atlas field methodology and site selection since there has been a real decline of approximately 9% since 1990. Arable squares supported the highest densities of Skylarks; 4.6–6.0 pairs per km2, and 46–49% of the British breeding population was associated with arable areas. Marginal upland and upland areas supported lower densities but still accounted for approximately 34% of the estimated national breeding population. Differences in density at broad habitat scales were reflected in geographical differences across Britain, with southern and eastern arable regions supporting much higher densities than western and northern ones. At a finer scale, Skylarks occurred at highest densities on, and showed highest habitat preferences for, set-aside and various types of ungrazed grassland. Winter cereal, improved grassland and set-aside held the highest proportion of the Skylark population on farmland in England and Wales; grazed pasture, winter cereals and spring cereals held the highest proportion in Scotland.