130925-studie-wildlife-comeback-in-europe

Table 2.
Latest Saker falcon
population estimates
in Europe, indicating
those countries that
hold at least 1% of the
European population.
Country No. of breeding pairs Year %
Austria 25–30 2010 [17] 4
Bulgaria 0–8 2012 [18]
Croatia 3–5 2010 [19] 1
Czech Republic 20–25 2013 [20] 3
Germany 0–1 2006 [9]
[21]
Hungary 241–245 2012 33
FYRO Macedonia 0–3 2013 [22]
Moldova 10–12 2010 [19] 2
was on the brink of extinction in the 1970s [35] . In
Ukraine, which also holds 45% of the Saker falcon
population in Europe, the population suffered
significant declines since the 1950/60s, but is now
considered to be relatively stable [10, 28, 36] . In Bulgaria,
Saker falcons used to be common and widespread
before the 1930s [37] , but are now close to extinction
(Table 2), and the last documented successful
breeding attempt was in 1997 [38] .
Table 3.
Major threats that
drove Saker falcon
decline and may
still constrain the
population [9] .
Threat Description Impact
Agricultural
intensification
Agricultural
abandonment
Wood and pulp
plantations
Conversion of grasslands into arable land, or into vineyards
in Bulgaria, leads to a reduction in prey availability.
Disturbance at nest sites from agricultural operations.
Poisoning by pesticides or other chemicals, resulting in
low productivity.
Tree felling in steppe and pseudo-steppe may limit
nest availability.
Decrease in grazing animal stock results in lower prey
availability.
Loss of foraging habitat through afforestation of
agricultural land.
Disturbance at nest sites from forestry activities.
High
locally
Medium
Unknown
Local
High
Local
Other Nest collapse when old or weak nests are occupied. High
Hunting and
collecting
Persecution/
control
Unintentional
effects of hunting
and collecting
Transportation and
service corridors
Trapping for use in falconry, especially in the Middle
East, Pakistan and North Africa.
Nest robbing was critical in the Czech Republic,
Slovakia and possibly Bulgaria, Ukraine and Russia.
Illegal shooting, especially in the migratory Asian
populations.
Destruction of artificial nests where considered a
threat by game keepers, particularly in the Czech
Republic.
Persecution by pigeon-fanciers (poisoning, shooting,
destruction of nest) in Serbia, Hungary, Slovakia
Suslik eradication – considered a pest or competitor
with livestock.
Unintentional poisoning from bait intended for foxes
and other vermin.
Electrocution by power lines.
Renewable energy Collisions with wind turbines. Low
Residential and
commercial
development
Mining and
quarrying
Invasive nonnative/alien
species
Problematic native
species
Climate change and
severe weather
Poland 0–2 2007 [23]
Romania 10 2010 [8] 1
Serbia 25–35 2013 [24] 4
Slovakia 40–45 2012 [25] 6
[19]
Ukraine 315–345 2010 45
Wind farm development has resulted in loss of
breeding and foraging areas in east Austria, west
Hungary, north Serbia, west and southeast Romania
Infrastructure development results in loss of Suslik
colonies.
Quarrying in some parts of the species’ range results
in loss of nest-sites.
Hybridisation with escaped hybrid falcons.
Nest predation by natural predators.
Extreme weather can cause nest collapse or death of
eggs or small chicks.
Low
Potentially
high
Potentially
high locally
Medium
Local
Low
Low
High
High
Medium
to locally
high
Medium
Local
Unknown
Low
Low
Distribution:
current status and changes
Since the mid-1900s, Saker falcon distribution
has become fragmented as a result of population
declines and range contractions, especially in
southeast Europe [5, 9] , and the species became
extinct from the European part of Russia in the early
21 st century. In the late 20 th century, populations
have undergone shifts within their regional distribution,
as a result of changing habitat occupancy [38] .
In central Europe, following the abandonment of
grazing in the foothills and mountains after 1990
and the end of the communist regime, Saker falcon
territories in mountains and hills were abandoned
in favour of lowland agricultural areas, where the
species continues to expand, occupying new (but
probably historically used) areas [8, 30] . Similarly, in
eastern Europe, Saker falcons declined in the forest
steppe, but remained and possibly increased in
the southern steppe zone [28, 33, 38] . Most nest sites for
the species in central and eastern Europe are now
electricity pylons [38] and artificial nests are used
extensively by Saker falcons in the Carpathian
Basin [8, 30, 35] .
Major threats
The Saker falcon suffered declines in central and
eastern Europe in the 19 th and 20 th centuries [9, 38] .
The main reasons include persecution, and habitat
loss and degradation, due to declines in key prey
species, as a result of abandonment of pastoralism
after the end of the communist regime,
while ongoing nest robbing for falconry had
important negative effects on already declining
populations [8, 9, 27, 38] . Agricultural intensification
has also had negative impacts on Saker falcons,
resulting in habitat loss for the species’ prey
(Suslik) [8, 9, 30, 38] . However, it is important to note that
intensive agricultural areas currently hold some of
the highest Saker falcon breeding pair densities in
Hungary [8] , indicating that the species can utilise
such habitats given adequate prey and (artificial)
nest site availability.
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