Wildlife

Wild Pied Flycatcher Woodland Welfare

Pied flycatchers are declining summer visitors dependent on oak woodland with appropriate nest holes and insect prey abundance.

Key Facts

Pied flycatcher populations in Wales have declined by 60 percent over 25 years
They depend on caterpillar peaks in May to feed chicks, but climate change has shifted caterpillar timing
Oak woodland with nest holes and boxes provides essential breeding habitat
Nestbox provision has partially offset loss of natural tree holes in managed woodland
Poor caterpillar years cause high chick starvation rates even in good nest site conditions

Welfare Considerations

Pied flycatcher chicks in years when caterpillar peaks do not align with breeding timing die from starvation. Climate change is creating increasingly frequent mismatches that cause population-wide breeding failures.

What You Can Do

Install nest boxes in oak woodland to support pied flycatcher breeding
Support ancient oak woodland management that maintains caterpillar-supporting biodiversity
Donate to research programs studying climate mismatch effects on woodland bird breeding