GREY PARTRIDGE

Grey Partridge were once one of the most common birds in Britain, but no longer.  

They mainly inhabit farmland with hedges.  The male has an orange-chestnut face, grey breast with a chestnut, inverted “u” shaped, patch, and grey brown upper parts.  The female is more pale and dull, with a smaller breast patch. All adults have a short rufous tail, which is conspicuous when they fly away with their whirring low flight, gliding on bowed wings.  They are about the same size as farmyard chickens.

The breeding season usually starts in April.  The nest is on the ground, often at the base of a hedge.  The clutch size is large (usually 9-20), and incubation starts on completion of the clutch, and takes 23-25 days.  The young leave the nest, and feed themselves, assisted by their parents, virtually as soon as they hatch.  They can fly after about 16 days, and the whole family party (“covey”) stay together until the following spring.

Grey Partridge have suffered a massive decline, estimated at 86% between 1970 and 1999, resulting in the species being on the Red List of the Population Status of Birds in the UK – Birds of Conservation Concern: 2002-2007. The decline has continued – an estimated 30% between 1994 and 2004.  The decline has also led to a contraction of range, and it has now disappeared from many of its former breeding areas, particularly in western and northern Britain .  A considerable amount of research has been done on this species, particularly by the Game Conservancy, and the decline is attributed to use of herbicides in cereal crops.  The Grey Partridge chicks eat insects, which themselves live on plants that are removed by the herbicides.  Consequently the chicks starve to death.

The map from The Atlas (1992) on the previous page shows that Grey Partridge was widely distributed in Shropshire , mainly absent from farms with large fields where hedgerows have been removed, and the uplands in the south-west.  It may have been under-recorded, because of its good camouflage, crepuscular habits, and infrequent visits to this type of habitat by birdwatchers. The recent map shows a similar distribution, but lower density, consistent with the continuing population decline.

This species has not been the subject of any recent special surveys by the Shropshire Ornithological Society, and its habitat does not attract casual bird watchers, so it is likely to be even more under-recorded on the current map than the earlier one.  As Grey Partridges are highly sedentary, they are likely to breed in the same areas where they are seen outside the breeding season.  Most records from other times of the year have corresponding breeding season records, but a few do not. Such records are shown on the 2000 – 04 Map as small green dots.

The necessary conservation measures on farms to reverse the population decline of Grey Partridge include

Planting set aside with quinoia will also provide insect rich feeding areas, which will also benefit any nearby Lapwing, as long as there are no agricultural operations in the quinoia area until the middle of July, to give the chicks time to fledge and avoid the danger of being ploughed up.

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