Entry Level Stewardship may enhance bird numbers in boundary habitats

Capsule Hedgerows and margins managed under agri-environment schemes appear to attract greater numbers of some farmland bird species. Aims To examine fine-scale habitat associations of farmland birds to determine whether Entry Level Stewardship, the wider countryside agri-environment scheme for England, provides a mechanism for affecting population changes. Methods Ninety-seven 1-km squares in East Anglia were surveyed to create two-dimensional habitat maps showing the location of all habitat patches and associated stewardship management. Modified territory-mapping techniques were used to produce relative estimates of bird numbers within each discrete habitat patch within each square. The effect of Entry Level Stewardship on species density was then analysed using GLMs. Results Boundaries managed under Entry Level Stewardship appeared to attract higher densities of Blue Tits, Dunnocks, Common Whitethroats and Yellowhammers. Margins managed under the scheme also had higher densities of Yellowhammers. Conclusions Existing boundary habitat management under Entry Level Stewardship may provide a mechanism for increasing the populations of some farmland bird species. Boundary management options should continue to be promoted, although rebalancing the scheme more towards in-field options is likely to be more widely beneficial.