The pattern of the decline and the present situation

Abstract

The continuous decline of the European birds of prey over a period of two hundred years reached its nadir at the beginning of the twentieth century. The recovery seen in many countries during the Second World War, which lasted into the early Fifties, was followed by a decline starting in the middle of the decade. As a result of the introduction of pesticides, this decline has accelerated to such a degree that the survival of several species on the Continent seems unlikely. For the evaluation of this trend, counts made at places where the raptors from large parts of Europe collect during the migration periods are of great importance. These places include Gibraltar (Nisbet et al. 1961), the Bosphorus region, and Falsterbö at the southern tip of Sweden.