SongBird Survival explained

SongBird Survival
Abbreviation:SBS
Formation:2001
Status:Charitable Company
Purpose:To improve, sustain or halt the decline of song and other small bird populations across the British Isles
Headquarters:UK
Owners:-->

SongBird Survival (SBS) is an independent, UK-wide, environmental bird charity that funds research into the decline in Britain's songbirds. It is a not-for-profit organisation supported by grants, subscriptions and donations,[1] and a registered charity and company.[2]

Governance

SongBird Survival is a non-profit organisation, constituted as a Charitable Company under the laws of England & Wales. The governing document is the Memorandum and Articles of Association. Under the amended Articles of Association, adopted in March 2023, SongBird Survival is runby a Council of up to 15 persons elected by the membership. Council members are electedfor a 3-year term, renewable for a maximum of 3 terms.[3]

History

Formed in 1996 as Songbird Survival Action Group, SongBird Survival was registered as a limited company on 26 September 2000.[4] Shortly afterwards, in 2001, the organisation achieved charitable status.[3] In 2006, SBS merged with the Scottish charity Save our Songbirds,[5] [6] founded in 1998 by John Baillie-Hamilton, 13th Earl of Haddington.[7] In 2017 SongBird Survival launched the national awareness day: National Robin Day[8]

Aims

SongBird Survival's objective is to improve, protect and preserve the population of song and other small birds for the benefit of national biodiversity and the public.[9] It aims to achieve this by commissioning and funding scientific research, supporting the conservation and restoration or habitats, through public education and advocacy where changes in the law may be deemed necessary to protect songbirds.[10]

Research

SBS funds scientific research into the reasons why songbird numbers are declining in the UK. By doing so, the charity aims to advance the science of ornithology, and in particular the study of song and other small birds, as well as contribute to the national evidence base by researching areas where scientific evidence is currently sparse, inadequate or lacking.[11]

SBS commissions research to add to the evidence base and identify the drivers behind continued songbird declines. Its research to date has encompassed a range of issues, spanning countryside management, population ecology, complex predator-prey dynamics, pesticides,[12] and predator control, including bringing together previously unpublished research conducted at farms across Britain.[13]

Date Project Partner(s) Outputs
2003–Present Long-term farmland study monitoring the effects of environmental stewardship on breeding bird populations Blackmoor Farm Study ongoing[14]
2006 A review of the impact of mammalian predators on farm songbird population dynamics Published 2006 (without peer review)[15]
2007 Correlative analysis of long term data sets seeking negative associations between predator and prey species British Trust for OrnithologyPublished in the Journal of Applied Ecology 2010, 47, 244–252[16] [17]
2010 Comprehensive review of all predation research carried out in the UK to date Published in Methods in Ecology and Evolution 2010, 1, 300–310[18]
2010 Farm and woodland bird declines and the recolonisation of Britain by sparrowhawks[19] Dr. Christopher Bell Awaiting review and publication
2011 Corvid Research Project - evaluation of the impact of growing numbers of corvids on the productivity of UK farmland songbird population[20] Awaiting publication
2014 Corvid population ecology and its effect on songbird predation[21] University of Exeter, Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Published in European Journal of Wildlife Research (journal) (2019), 50, 9 - 11.[22] Published in Wildlife Biology 2017, 8.[23]
2014 The Keith Duckworth Project - Improving the conservation value of urban areas for garden birds University of Reading Published in Ibis (journal) (2016), 159, 158–167.[24] Published in Journal of Ornithology 2017, 1-15.[25]
2017 Cats, cat owners and predation - identifying means of mitigating any negative impacts of cat predation of wildlife[26] University of Exeter Published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science (journal) (2022).[27] Published in Current Biology 2021.[28] Published in Mammal Review 2020.[29] Published in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 2020.[30] Published in Trends in Ecology and Evolution 2020.[31] Published in People and Nature 2019.[32]
2020–Present Understanding pesticide use and how it may affect UK songbirds University of Sussex Published in PeerJ.[33] Published in University of Sussex.[34] Published in University of Sussex.[35]

Campaigns

SongBird Survival aims to provide information and guidance to the public on how they can takeaction to preserve and protect songbirds.[36] In 2022 their #FriendsNot Food campaign aimed to provide practical solutions to reducethe impact of cats hunting based on the findings of the University of Exeter Research Study.[37]

Notes and References

  1. News: 26 March 2008 . Queen's private donation to songbird charity . The Telegraph . 20 March 2017.
  2. Web site: Company Overview . Companies House . 7 March 2017.
  3. Web site: Charity Overview - SongBird Survival . Charity Commission . 7 March 2017.
  4. Web site: Company Overview. Companies House. 7 March 2017.
  5. Web site: Saving Our Songbirds. ShootingUK. 20 October 2012 . 7 March 2017.
  6. News: Eco Soundings. The Guardian. 21 February 2007 . 7 March 2017. Vidal. John.
  7. Book: Winter. Laura. 'Haddington, John George Baillie-Hamilton 13 Earl of (S 1619)'. Debrett's People of Today 2016. Debrett's Peerage Limited. London. 2016.
  8. Web site: National Robin Day, United Kingdom Charity Awareness Day Appeal. National Robin Day, United Kingdom Charity Awareness Day Appeal. 2017-09-19.
  9. Web site: UK National Association for Environmental Education . NAEE . 13 March 2017. 2016-06-29 .
  10. Web site: Charity Overview - SongBird Survival Activities . Charity Commission . 7 March 2017.
  11. Web site: Songbird Survival Association . HMCA News . 25 June 2014 . 8 March 2017.
  12. News: Sussex researchers find pesticide use is linked to garden bird decline . University of Sussex . 6 February 2023 . 4 July 2023.
  13. News: Animals 'devastate' UK songbirds . BBC . 29 May 2006 . 28 March 2017.
  14. Web site: 2014 Report and Accounts . SongBird Survival . 13 January 2015 . 8 March 2017.
  15. Web site: Squirrels and wild cats worst predators of farmland songbirds . Wales Online . 8 August 2006 . 8 March 2017.
  16. Population change of avian predators and grey squirrels in England: is there evidence for an impact on avian prey populations? . Journal of Applied Ecology . 47 . 2 . 244–252 . Newson . etal . 8 March 2010 . 10.1111/j.1365-2664.2010.01771.x .
  17. Web site: Are predators to blame for songbird declines? . British Trust for Ornithology . 7 March 2017.
  18. Detecting an impact of predation on bird populations depends on the methods used to assess the predators . Methods in Ecology and Evolution . 300–310 . Malcolm Nicoll & Ken Norris . 18 May 2010 . 1 . 3 . 10.1111/j.2041-210X.2010.00030.x . 86284100 . free .
  19. Web site: Farm and Woodland Bird Declines and the Recolonisation of Britain by Sparrowhawks . SongBird Survival . 8 March 2017.
  20. Web site: Springwatch Investigates . BBC . 13 June 2011 . 8 March 2017.
  21. Web site: The breeding ecology of crows and magpies and their impact on farmland songbirds . Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust . 8 March 2017.
  22. Capstick, Sage, Madden . 8 May 2019 . Predation of artificial nests in UK farmland by magpies (Pica pica): interacting environmental, temporal, and social factors influence a nest's risk . European Journal of Wildlife Research . 65 . 50 . 9. 10.1007/s10344-019-1290-6. 254192430. free . 10871/37642 . free .
  23. Aebischer, Sage . 29 October 2017 . Does best-practice crow Corvus corone and magpie Pica pica control on UK farmland improve nest success in hedgerow-nesting songbirds? A field experiment . Wildlife Biology . 7 . 10.1007/s10336-017-1462-7 . 5 July 2017 . free .
  24. Provision of supplementary food for wild birds may increase the risk of local nest predation . Ibis. 159. 158–167. Hugh Hanmer . etal . 2 December 2016 . 10.1111/ibi.12432 .
  25. Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success . Journal of Ornithology . 158 . 4 . 1045–1059 . Hugh Hanmer . etal . 8 May 2017 . 5 July 2017. 10.1007/s10336-017-1462-7 . free .
  26. Web site: University of Exeter PhD studentship: Cats, cat owners and predation of wildlife Ref: 2239 . University of Exeter . 23 March 2017.
  27. Owner-ascribed personality profiles distinguish domestic cats that capture and bring home wild animal prey . Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 256. Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Jennifer McDonald, Robbie A. McDonald . etal . 2 December 2016 . 10.1111/ibi.12432 .
  28. Provision of High Meat Content Food and Object Play Reduce Predation of Wild Animals by Domestic Cats . Current Biology . 31 . 5 . 1107–1111 . Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Jennifer McDonald, Robbie A. McDonald . 8 May 2017 . 10.1016/j.cub.2020.12.044 . 33577746 . free . 10871/126938 . free .
  29. Drivers and facilitators of hunting behaviour in domestic cats and options for management . Mammal Review . Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Jennifer McDonald, Robbie A. McDonald . 2 October 2020 .
  30. Diverse perspectives of cat owners indicate barriers to and opportunities for managing cat predation of wildlife . Mammal Review . Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Robbie A. McDonald . 2020 . 18 . 10 . 544–549 . 10.1002/fee.2254 . 221881189 . 3 September 2020 . free .
  31. Diverse perspectives of cat owners indicate barriers to and opportunities for managing cat predation of wildlife . Trends in Ecology and Evolution . Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Robbie A. McDonald . 2023-07-16.
  32. Hunting behaviour in domestic cats: An exploratory study of risk and responsibility among cat owners . People and Nature . Martina Cecchetti, Sarah L. Crowley, Robbie A. McDonald . 26 October 2019.
  33. Web site: Identifying agricultural pesticides that may pose a risk for birds . PeerJ . 4 August 2020 . Cannelle TASSIN DE MONTAIGUCannelle TASSIN DE MONTAIGU, Dave Goulson . 4 August 2020.
  34. Web site: Field evidence of UK wild bird exposure to fludioxonil and extrapolation to other pesticides used as seed treatments . Sussex Research Online . 9 June 2023 . Cannelle TASSIN DE MONTAIGU, Dave Goulson . 9 June 2023.
  35. Web site: Habitat quality, urbanisation & pesticides influence bird abundance and richness in gardens . Sussex Research Online . 10 June 2023 . Cannelle TASSIN DE MONTAIGU, Dave Goulson . 10 June 2023.
  36. Web site: Annual Report and Accounts . SongBird Survival . 2023-07-17.
  37. Web site: Exeter University study finds cats less likely to hunt wildlife with more play and meaty food . itv.com . 2021-02-12 . 2023-07-17.

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