Hundreds of farmers and landowners have been hailed for their efforts in boosting turtle dove numbers, with hopes the iconic species may start to rise across the UK.
Operation Turtle Dove aims to provide better nesting and feeding habitat for the rare birds across southern and eastern England.
Ten years ago, the prospects for turtle doves looked bleak: plummeting populations and little sign of being able to fix either their breeding habitats or high levels of hunting.
However, thanks to the work of farmers, experts believe that numbers of the species could start to increase across the country soon.
This year, the project is celebrating a record year of effort since the project began in 2012, with over 260 farms and 107 land managers participating.
So far, it has led to the creation of 620 foraging and supplementary feeding sites this year alone, a figure almost double the number provided in 2022.
Farmers have been working to create these feeding areas, maintain dense scrub and hedgerows as nesting sites, provide ponds for drinking and washing, and supply seed food – all of which have been shown to benefit turtle doves in trials.
Now these conservation tools are being rolled out to improve the fortunes of these summer visitors across the southern and eastern of England.
Mike Shurmer, head of species for RSPB England, which is taking part in the project, said: “The ambition of the communities and landowners we work with to help save these iconic birds is nothing short of amazing.
"If we continue with this momentum, it won’t be long before we can expect to see turtle dove numbers starting to rise across the UK.”
Engaging with farmers has been vital for the project, as changes to the farmed landscape have made it increasingly difficult for farmland birds, including turtle doves, to find food and suitable nesting habitat.
These agricultural changes have meant that an estimated 2,100 breeding territories remain in the UK according to the 2021 National Turtle Dove survey.
Meanwhile, recently released data shows that overall farmland bird numbers have fallen by over 60% across the UK since the 1970s.
Previous conservation work, in partnership with farmers, has however shown that declines can be reversed, as demonstrated by successful work to bring back cirl bunting and stone-curlew from the brink of extinction.
Operation Turtle Dove is a project spearheaded by RSPB, Natural England, Pensthorpe Conservation Trust and Fair to Nature.
