Thursday, August 29, 2013 at 8:14AM Buteo buteo buteo
Probably not less than 120 pairs breeding in the county, on the coast, islands, and inland. In Mathew's day there were believed to be only half a dozen pairs, of which one pair was found by Howard Saunders on the north side of Dinas Head.
R.M.Lockley, G.C.S.Ingram, H.M.Salmon, 1949, The Birds of Pembrokeshire, The West Wales Field Society
Monday, May 7, 2012 at 4:47PM The distribution of Buzzards recorded during the two atlas survey periods is almost identical and the number of registrations 398 (405) is also very similar. Estimating the number of breeding pairs of Buzzards is fraught with problems. Many of the birds which are seen displaying and even lining a nest are non-breeding birds and studies indicate that only 25% of the population actually breed. Also a pair may frequently line more than one nest.
In their prime habitat of fairly well-wooded undulating countryside they can reach densities of up to 0.88 pairs per km2 (Simms et al 2001). Much of the east of the county can be considered to be perfect habitat, but in the more open and exposed west, breeding density is likely to be lower. If an average density is assumed of two to three pairs per tetrad over 250 tetrads in the east and one pair per tetrad over 150 in the West, then a population range of 650 to 900 pairs breed within the county, a considerable increase from the 1984-88 estimate of 250. Increases of this order have been recorded at a UK level but the Welsh population has remained stable since 1994 (BTO website).
Given that the range has remained unchanged between the two survey periods then at least some of this increase may be explained by variation in the methods used to make the estimate.
Paddy Jenks
Fieldwork 2003-07 (based on 490 tetrads)
Red = breeding confirmed = 124
Orange = breeding probable = 167
Yellow = breeding possible = 107
Total tetrads in which registered = 398 (81.2%)
PBBA 2003-7, PJ in Buzzard Thursday, December 15, 2011 at 12:04PM Breeding resident
Only half a dozen pairs were known to Mathew (1894) but Lockley et al. (1949) estimated "probably not less than 120 pairs" were breeding, an increase that occurred throughout the Buzzard's range in the post 1914-1918 War period (Moore 1957). They have continued to increase since and in 1954 Skomer, with seven or eight pairs on 722 acres, had the greatest numbers of Buzzards per square mile recorded in Britain (Moore 1957). It is estimated that 250 pairs were breeding in the county during the Breeding Birds Survey of 1984-1988.
In Pembrokeshire, Buzzards nest mainly in trees; in the most open terrain nests can be as little as 1.5 metres from the ground in low hawthorns. Cliff ledges are used around the outer coast and on the larger islands. The breeding distribution is broadly uniform across the county but there are concentrations in heavily wooded valleys such as the Gwaun and Treffgame.
The reduction in rabbit numbers caused by the introduction of myxomatosis from 1952 to 1954 initially caused widespread breeding failure among Buzzards. For example, they almost disappeared from the south-west peninsula in 1955 when along 30 km of coastline on the St David's peninsula, including Ramsey, there were no successful nests. The Skomer population declined to two pairs but quickly recovered to four or five pairs (Davis and Saunders 1965) and has remained largely at that level subsequently. Clutch size has also reduced with one, occasionally two, eggs now being normal whereas three was not uncommon formerly.
Fieldwork 1984-88 (based on 478 tetrads)
Red = breeding confirmed = 156
Orange = breeding probable = 79
Yellow = breeding possible = 170
Total tetrads in which registered = 405 (84.7%)
Friday, November 11, 2011 at 10:20AM 
Red = breeding confirmed
Orange = breeding probable
Yellow = breeding possible
Friday, September 16, 2011 at 11:53AM 
The BTO winter atlas showed that Buzzards were present in most 10km squares during the winters of 1981-82, 1982-82 and 1983-84.
The darkest blue represents over 7 birds recorded in a day, the next lightest 3-6 birds, suggesting fairly even distribution.
Graham Rees
Sunday, December 19, 2010 at 2:19PM Species account from M Mathew, 1894, "The Birds of Pembrokeshire and its islands"
