Western European population of Turtle Doves up 25% following temporary hunting ban

Western European population of Turtle Doves up 25% following temporary hunting ban - RSPB

Cause for Hope in UK populations

Conservationists are celebrating a significant increase in Turtle Dove numbers in western Europe following just two years of a hunting moratorium, offering hope for the UK population in the future.
The news of the 25% increase in Turtle Doves across western Europe, an additional 400,000 breeding pairs, from 2021 to 2023, comes as France, Spain and Portugal confirm a fourth year pause in hunting.
In the UK, farmers, landowners, communities and volunteers are helping secure vital habitat for these migratory birds, here on the northern edge of their breeding range, through the Operation Turtle Dove project. The RSPB and our project partners anticipate that these efforts, coupled with the population boost across the western continent, will mean that Turtle Dove numbers can increase in the UK again once more.

Conservationists across western Europe are celebrating after a report shows a rapid 25% increase in their Turtle Dove breeding population during just the first two years of a moratorium on Turtle Dove hunting.

The report prepared for the European Commission, comes from the international team of scientists advising governments on how to manage their populations of Turtle Doves sustainably. The temporary hunting ban, in place across France, Spain and Portugal since 2021, resulted from evidence-based advice from the same team.

Hunting of Turtle Doves has taken place for many years in France, Spain and Portugal, and prior to 2018, around one million Turtle Doves were being hunted each autumn across these three countries alone. These numbers were clearly unsustainable for the population, leading to the development of better management system, and the recent temporary hunting ban. The rapid initial success of this ban revealed in the report has provided impetus for all three countries involved to introduce a fourth consecutive year of no Turtle Dove hunting in 2024.

As part of a long-term sustainable management process, this hunting moratorium was called for by an international conservation action plan for Turtle Doves. RSPB led the production of this plan, launched in 2018, bringing together experts from across the Turtle Dove’s range, working collaboratively across borders to identify the actions needed to secure the future of the Turtle Dove, including as a breeding bird in the UK.