Whitethroats are one of Britains most common warblers but suffered a 77% crash in 1969 due to Sahel drought and remain sensitive to African climate.
Whitethroat welfare demonstrates the international dimension of migratory bird conservation. Population crashes driven by Sahel drought events show that welfare of individual British breeding birds depends on conditions thousands of kilometres away during winter. Individual birds surviving the crossing to winter quarters in drought years face starvation with associated severe suffering. Conservation addressing both UK breeding habitat and Sahel conditions through international partnerships provides welfare benefits to both current and future individual whitethroats.