I can hear the sound of a mouse clicking in the Hastings Library
already ...
Regards, Laurie
http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/ewd/sparrows.pdf
House Sparrows in Great Britain
20 February 2004
Many of us take house sparrows for granted and are unaware that their
numbers are declining. This booklet highlights possible causes of the
house sparrow decline and sugggests ways you can help them recover.
Why do sparrows need help?
At their peak in the early 1970s, there were estimated to be
approximately 25 million house sparrows breeding in Britain. The number
is now closer to 13 million. The question now is ‘Where have all the
house sparrows gone?’
In general, the house sparrow is an unadventurous sort, with most
travelling no more than a few hundred yards from where they are born.
This means that house sparrow populations in different areas (and
habitats) may change in very different ways, as there is little
interchange between different geographical populations.
This view is supported by the British Trust for Ornithology’s (BTO)
longrunning surveys. In Scotland, house sparrows seem to be holding
their own; the greatest declines have been in the strongholds of the
south and east of England. Nation-wide, the decline in numbers became
apparent in the mid 1980s; but in some places, like London, there has
been a steady decrease since the 1930s. House sparrows that live in
towns appear to be most in danger and this loss is continuing. Seven
out of ten Cockney sparrows disappeared between 1994 and 2000.
Why are sparrow numbers declining?
In looking for reasons for the sparrow’s plight, we need to consider
those occurring in towns and gardens separately from those occurring in
the countryside, as the problems are almost certainly different.
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