Editing European turtle dove (section)

==Status==
Populations of turtle dove are in rapid decline across Europe and this species has a red-listed global conservation status. In the [[United Kingdom]] its numbers have declined by 93% since 1994 and across Europe numbers fell by 78% 1980–2013.<ref name="bto.org">[https://www.bto.org/about-bto/press-releases/turtle-dove-population-tailspin British Trust for Ornithology - Turtle Dove Population in a Tailspin]</ref>

Environmentalist groups have attributed the decline of turtle doves in Europe partly to changed farming practices which mean that the weed seeds and shoots on which it feeds, especially [[fumitory]], are scarcer, and partly due to shooting of birds in [[Mediterranean]] countries. According to a 2001 study cited by the European Commission, between two and four million birds are shot annually in Malta, Cyprus, France, Italy, Spain and Greece.<ref>{{cite news|title=Scientists warn of impending turtle dove British extinction|url=http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/lifestyle/environment/48705/scientists_warn_of_impending_turtle_dove_british_extinction#.VTT0-md0yUk|access-date=20 April 2015|work=Malta Today}}</ref><ref>Lutz, Marc (2007) [http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/conservation/wildbirds/hunting/docs/turtle_dove.pdf#22 MANAGEMENT PLAN for TURTLE DOVE (''Streptopelia turtur'') 2007–2009]. Technical Report – 007 – 2007. Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. European Commission. p. 22.</ref> Environmentalists have described spring hunting in Malta as particularly problematic as it is the only country with an EU [[derogation]] to shoot birds during their spring migration to breeding grounds.<ref>{{cite news|title=Malta votes in referendum on controversial spring shooting of migrating birds|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/malta/11529741/Malta-votes-in-referendum-on-controversial-spring-shooting-of-migrating-birds.html|access-date=20 April 2015|work=Daily Telegraph|agency=Reuters}}</ref>

According to a 2007 study by the [[European Commission]], four currently identifiable potential threats to the turtle dove are (1) [[habitat loss]]/modification (medium to low impact), (2) [[drought]]s and [[climate change]] (mostly unknown but likely low impact), (3) [[hunting]] (partly unknown but overall medium impact), and (4) competition with the [[collared dove]] (unknown impact).<ref>Lutz, Marc (2007) [http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/conservation/wildbirds/hunting/docs/turtle_dove.pdf#22 MANAGEMENT PLAN for TURTLE DOVE (''Streptopelia turtur'') 2007–2009]. Technical Report – 007 – 2007. Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. European Commission. p. 20.</ref> The [[British Trust for Ornithology]] has also highlighted [[Trichomonosis]] parasites as a threat to the turtle dove.<ref name="bto.org"/>

A hunting ban was introduced in 2021 by the European Commission in the western Mediterranean countries of France, Spain and Portugal, which resulted in the species starting to undergo population recovery; in summer 2024, there was a 25% increase in the western European breeding population, indicating that hunting was indeed a major contributor to the decline.<ref name="OTD">{{cite web |title=Big news – Turtle Dove numbers in Western Europe are on the up! |url=https://www.operationturtledove.org/2024/08/08/big-news-turtle-dove-numbers-in-western-europe-are-on-the-up/ |website=Operation Turtle Dove |publisher=Operation Turtle Dove in partnership with the RSPB, Pensthorpe Conservation Trust and Natural England |access-date=2024-08-11}}</ref>