Providing supplementary food as a conservation initiative for twite Carduelis flavirostris breeding in the South Pennines near Worsthorne, Lancashire, England

Abstract

The twite Carduelis flavirostris, is a small finch which has undergone serious declines in the UK. In the Pennine Hills, northern England, feeding stations were established as a stop-gap prior to instatement of 'twite-friendly' meadow-management to try and bolster breeding twite populations. Despite presence of a nearby source of seed supplied at a feeding station, breeding twite utilised seeds of wild plants to feed there chicks. However creation of the feeding station adjacent to a twite breeding colony, judging by the number of visiting birds, appears to benefit them by providing pre- and post-breeding food sources. Birds from other breeding colonies in a 20 km radius were also recorded using the feeding station.