Operation Turtledove: How conservationists are racing to save UK’s fastest declining bird species
The turtle dove may be one of the UK’s most iconic Christmas birds but, as the fastest declining bird species, conservationists are hoping 2024 might be the year to save it.
Numbers of turtle doves have plummeted by 99% since the late 1960s.
It is believed only around 2,100 breeding pairs remain in the UK.
The biggest reason for their decline is the loss of breeding season habitats that provide the necessary food for doves to survive.
The RSPB’s Operation Turtledove is trying to turn round the bird’s fortunes.
As intensive farming is one of the biggest factors for reducing the number of seeds for doves to feed on, turtle dove conservation advisor Nicole Khan says they are working directly with farmers to help them manage their land so that more turtle doves will want to breed.
The turtle dove is the UK’s fastest declining bird species
“Obviously it takes time to recover a population, but we’ve got some wonderful examples of farmers doing all the right things and they’ve managed to attract turtle doves back as a breeding species, so I think it’s definitely a cause for hope,” she said.
But the landmark State of Nature 2023 report was less hopeful.
It was put together by leading scientists and presented the most up-to-date picture of the decline of wildlife throughout the UK.
It said that one in six species was at risk of being lost. Creatures such as the hazel dormouse, the lady’s slipper orchid and the European eel also face uncertain futures.
But birds had the most worrying results, with 43% at risk of extinction.
The report found that intensive farming and the effects of climate change are having the biggest impacts on our wildlife.
Staff at the RSPB Dungeness in Kent are fighting the effects of climate change.
The enormous reserve of shingle, freshwater pits, wet grassland and meadows aims to create good breeding conditions to attract birds such as Lapwings, Redshanks and Garganeys.
Staff at RSPB Dungeness in Kent are doing all they can to create the right conditions to attract birds
“We have breeding bird islands within the open water which provides habitats for the migratory Terns to nest on when they arrive here in the spring and over the summer,” Isobel Donovon, the reserve’s conservation advisor said.
“Due to the rising levels because of climate change and the unpredictability of the water, we are having to do more work on site, diggers are creating more height to the islands so we safeguard the breeding of Terns on site for the future.”
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The government says it is putting millions into projects to improve habitats for wildlife, including £25m for the Species Survival Fund and £750m for woodland and peatland restoration.
But for birds like the turtle dove, time is running out.
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A workman saved a seven-year-old boy from a burning car in the aftermath of a deadly crash caused by a suicidal ex-pilot, an inquest has heard.
The schoolboy’s rescue came following the collision on the M6, which killed former RAF man Richard Woods and four others, in October last year.
Last week a coroner ruled that Woods, 40, took his own life by deliberately driving his Skoda the wrong way down the motorway while drunk and hitting a Toyota Yaris head-on.
The driver of the Toyota, Jaroslaw Rossa, 42, was also killed, along with his two sons, Filip, 15, and Dominic, seven, and his partner Jade McEnroe, 33.
Cockermouth Coroner’s Court heard on Thursday that Ms McEnroe’s son was also in the car but survived after workman Gavin Walsh came to his rescue at the scene, which was near Tebay services in Cumbria.
In a statement to the inquest, Mr Walsh said he was a passenger in a transit van travelling to Scotland when he witnessed the crash.
He jumped out of the vehicle and used a jack to smash the rear windscreen of the Toyota and pulled the boy out of the burning vehicle.
Mr Walsh said: “We really did try, I can assure everyone we did our best. We only had minimal time.
“I saved a life that day and I hope never to witness anything like that again.”
He added that he has never stopped thinking about the boy, and said: “I hope we will meet again one day and I will give you a massive hug.”
At the time, the family were returning to Glasgow from a trip to Legoland in Windsor, Berkshire.
The inquest heard that Wood, who was travelling at a speed of at least 65mph, would have been charged with manslaughter had he survived.
Recording conclusions of unlawful killing, Cumbria assistant coroner Margaret Taylor said: “I found that Jaroslaw, Jade, Filip and Dominic died as a consequence of the unlawful acts of another driver.”
The inquest heard how Mr Woods, from Cambridgeshire, had served a distinguished 14-year career in the RAF and was a flight instructor for BAE Systems at the time of his death.
Jade McEnroe. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Dominic and Filip. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
In Ms Taylor’s record of inquest, Mr Woods was said to have been experiencing “a number of stressors in his life” and had a “history of harmful use of alcohol”.
Following the crash, he was found to be nearly four times over the legal drink-drive limit and a two-thirds empty bottle of gin was found in his car.
On the day of his death, concerns had been raised over his behaviour at a work conference near Preston in Lancashire.
Mr Woods failed to return to his seat after lunch and was later spotted driving erratically and swerving across three northbound carriageway lanes on the M6.
After pulling onto the hard shoulder, he then proceeded to U-turn and drove southward on lane three.
Filip, Dominic and Jaroslaw Rossa. Pic: Cumbria Constabulary
Detective Sergeant Deborah Story, from Cumbria Police, told the inquest that Mr Woods would have been prosecuted on four counts of manslaughter had he lived.
She said hypothetical charges of murder were considered by detectives but not thought appropriate because of a lack of information that Mr Woods knew the family or anything that provided a link between them.
Ms McEnroe’s parents, Marie McEnroe and George McNellis, told the coroner they thought it was “murder”.
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A statement from the mother of Filip and Dominic, and the ex-wife of Mr Rossa, Kamila, was read out at the inquest.
She said Mr Rossa, known as Jarek, was born in Poland where they became a couple and went on to have three boys.
He loved playing computer games and had “lots of friends”, she said, and worked at the Wagamama restaurant in Silverburn, Glasgow.
She said she was “devastated” over the deaths, adding: “Our lives will never be the same.
“I am heartbroken at the passing of my beloved angels Filip and Dominic.”
Marie McEnroe said her daughter, a spa therapist, had been in a relationship with Mr Rossa for about two-and-a-half years.
She said Jade had been a “brilliant mother” to her only child, was “really happy” with Mr Rossa and it was “lovely chaos” when all the boys were playing together.
Ms McEnroe added: “Life changed forever that day”.
Ms Taylor praised the “selfless acts of bravery” from those in the aftermath of the collision, including Mr Walsh, who she said went towards the burning car “without hesitation for his own safety”.
The coroner added: “Without his swift response, Jade’s child would also have perished.”
Addressing the bereaved family members, she said: “Your loss is unimaginable but you have conducted yourself with dignity and I thank you for that. I wish you strength for the future.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
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