By Ella Davies Reporter, BBC Nature
Mistle thrushes have disappeared from UK gardens
at a "staggering" rate, according to the Royal Society for the
Protection of Birds.
Results from the charity's annual survey suggest
the birds are seen in fewer than half the number of gardens they were 10 years
ago.
Population estimates published at the end of
last year confirm there are now just 170,000 breeding pairs.
The warning comes on the eve of the RSPB's
annual Big Garden Birdwatch.
Experts compare the decline to that of the
closely related song thrush.
Both thrush species have become rarer sights in
UK gardens, with populations falling by more than half since the 1970s,
according to the ongoing Breeding
Bird Survey carried out by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and
partners.
But the continuing trend of decline among mistle
thrushes is a key concern.
"If you look at the decline in the short
term, from 1995 to 2010, we see that mistle thrushes have declined by
28%," said the RSPB's Graham Madge.
Over the same period, the song thrush, which has
been recognised as a species of serious conservation concern, increased by 13%,
according to figures from the The State
of UK Birds report jointly published last November by the RSPB, BTO
and Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.
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