Skylark - 2003-07

The 1984-88 tetrad survey revealed that the Skylark was one of the most widespread breeding species in Pembrokeshire, being absent from only ca. 35 tetrads. During the  1988-91 National Atlas it was also found to be one of the most widespread breeding species in the UK. The breeding population in Pembrokeshire, based on an average of 15 pairs per tetrad, was estimated to be around 8,000 pairs. 

Data from the 2003-07 Pembrokeshire tetrad survey indicates that the Skylark, as a breeding species, has disappeared from ca. 33% of the tetrads in which it was previously recorded.  This represents a significant decline, which may be happening at a faster rate in Pembrokeshire than in the UK as a whole, as BBS data indicate that between 1994 and 2007 the UK Skylark population decreased by 13%. The breeding population in Pembrokeshire is now probably nearer to 5,000 pairs.  The tetrad map indicates that large gaps in the distribution of breeding skylarks have opened up in the area to the north of the Nevern Valley, towards Poppit and Cemaes; in the area between the Eastern Cleddau and the Carmarthenshire border, and in mid-Pembrokeshire, away from the coastal strip and Preseli Hills.

The Skylark is a ground-nesting species, with a strong preference for open countryside, with rough pasture, heathland and moorland.  In the winter, Skylarks utilise winter stubbles, ungrazed grassland, fallow land and coastal habitats such as sand dunes and saltmarsh.  Reasons for the disappearance of Skylarks from parts of Pembrokeshire are likely to include changes in farming practices, such as from mixed farming to intensive dairy farming and cultivation of grass for silage, a trend that was alluded to in Donovan and Rees, (1994). 

Winter foraging habitats may also have been lost due do the trend towards autumn-sown rather than spring-sown cereals, in which valuable winter stubbles have disappeared, thus affecting winter survival of the breeding population.  The islands and peninsulas, such as Pencaer, St Davids, Marloes and Castlemartin, and the Preseli Hills are likely to become increasingly important as strongholds for Skylarks. Inland, old airfields such as Templeton, St Davids and Brawdy are hotspots for Skylarks, supporting relatively high densities of breeding pairs.

Jane Hodges

 

Fieldwork 2003-07 (based on 490 tetrads)

Red = breeding confirmed = 41

Orange = breeding probable = 227

Yellow = breeding possible = 15

Total tetrads in which registered = 283 (57.8%)