Data Zone
Taxonomic note
Circus cyaneus and C. hudsonius (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) were previously lumped as C. cyaneus following Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993).
Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.
del Hoyo, J.; Collar, N. J.; Christie, D. A.; Elliott, A.; Fishpool, L. D. C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International.
| Critically Endangered | Endangered | Vulnerable |
|---|---|---|
| - | - | - |
| Year | Category | Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Least Concern | |
| 2014 | Least Concern |
| Migratory status | full migrant | Forest dependency | Low |
| Land mass type | Average mass | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | |
|---|---|---|
| Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2) | 34,800,000 | medium |
| Extent of Occurrence non-breeding (km2) | 52,200,000 | medium |
| Number of locations | - | |
| Fragmentation | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | Derivation | Year of estimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of mature individuals | 100000-499999 | 2012 | ||
| Population trend | Decreasing | estimated | - | |
| Decline (3 years/1 generation past) | - | - | - | |
| Decline (5 years/1 generation past) | - | - | - | |
| Decline (10 years/1 generation past) | - | - | - | |
| Decline (10 years/3 generation future) | - | - | - | |
| Decline (10 years/3 generation past and future) | - | - | - | |
| Number of subpopulations | - | - | - | |
| Largest subpopulations | - | - | - | |
| Generation length (yrs) | 7.8 | - | - | - |
Population justification: The European population is estimated at 30,000-54,400 breeding females, which equates to 60,000-109,000 mature individuals (BirdLife International 2015). Europe forms approximately 34% of the global range, so a very preliminary estimate of the global population size is 176,000-321,000 mature individuals, although further validation of this estimate is needed. It is placed in the band 100,000 to 499,999 mature individuals.
Trend justification: The population trend is difficult to determine because of uncertainty over the impacts of habitat modification on population sizes. However in Europe the population size is estimated and projected to be decreasing at a rate approaching 30% over the period from 2000, when the decline is estimated to have started in Russia, which holds 70% of the European population, to 2024 (three generations) (BirdLife International 2015).
| Country/Territory | Occurrence status | Presence | Resident | Breeding | Non-breeding | Passage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Albania | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Algeria | N | Extant | ||||
| Andorra | V | Extant | ||||
| Armenia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Austria | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Azerbaijan | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Bahrain | V | Extant | Yes | |||
| Bangladesh | N | Extant | ||||
| Belarus | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Belgium | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Bhutan | N | Extant | ||||
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | N | Extant | ||||
| Bulgaria | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Cambodia | N | Extant | ||||
| China (mainland) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Croatia | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Cyprus | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Czechia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Denmark | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Egypt | N | Extant | ||||
| Estonia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Finland | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| France | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Georgia | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Germany | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Gibraltar (to UK) | N | Extant | ||||
| Greece | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Hong Kong (China) | N | Extant | ||||
| Hungary | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Iceland | V | Extant | ||||
| India | N | Extant | ||||
| Iran, Islamic Republic of | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Iraq | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Ireland | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Israel | N | Extant | ||||
| Italy | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Japan | N | Extant | ||||
| Jordan | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Kazakhstan | N | Extant | ||||
| Kuwait | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Kyrgyzstan | N | Extant | ||||
| Laos | N | Extant | ||||
| Latvia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Lebanon | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Libya | N | Extant | ||||
| Liechtenstein | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Lithuania | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Luxembourg | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Malaysia | V | Extant | ||||
| Malta | N | Extant | ||||
| Moldova | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Mongolia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Montenegro | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Morocco | N | Extant | ||||
| Myanmar | N | Extant | ||||
| Nepal | N | Extant | ||||
| Netherlands | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| North Korea | N | Extant | ||||
| North Macedonia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Norway | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Oman | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Pakistan | N | Extant | ||||
| Palestinian Authority Territories | N | Extant | ||||
| Poland | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Portugal | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Qatar | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Romania | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Russia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Russia (Asian) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Russia (Central Asian) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Russia (European) | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Saudi Arabia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Senegal | V | Extant | ||||
| Serbia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Singapore | V | Extant | ||||
| Slovakia | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Slovenia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| South Korea | N | Extant | ||||
| Spain | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Sudan | V | Extant | Yes | |||
| Sweden | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Switzerland | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Syria | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Taiwan, China | N | Extant | ||||
| Tajikistan | N | Extant | ||||
| Thailand | N | Extant | ||||
| Tunisia | N | Extant | ||||
| Turkey | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Turkmenistan | N | Extant | ||||
| Ukraine | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| United Arab Emirates | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| United Kingdom | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Uzbekistan | N | Extant | ||||
| Vietnam | N | Extant | ||||
| Yemen | V | Extant | Yes |
| Habitat (level 1) | Habitat (level 2) | Importance | Occurrence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Pastureland | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Pastureland | suitable | breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Plantations | suitable | breeding |
| Forest | Boreal | suitable | breeding |
| Grassland | Subtropical/Tropical Dry | suitable | non-breeding |
| Grassland | Temperate | suitable | non-breeding |
| Grassland | Temperate | suitable | breeding |
| Shrubland | Boreal | suitable | breeding |
| Shrubland | Temperate | suitable | non-breeding |
| Shrubland | Temperate | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands | suitable | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands | suitable | breeding |
| Altitude | 0 - 3000 m | Occasional altitudinal limits | (max) 5000 m |
| Threat (level 1) | Threat (level 2) | Impact and Stresses | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture & aquaculture | Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Agro-industry farming | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Majority (50-90%) | Slow, Significant Declines | Medium Impact: 6 | ||||||
|
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| Agriculture & aquaculture | Wood & pulp plantations - Agro-industry plantations | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Majority (50-90%) | Slow, Significant Declines | Medium Impact: 6 | ||||||
|
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| Biological resource use | Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Persecution/control | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Slow, Significant Declines | Low Impact: 5 | ||||||
|
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| Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases | Problematic native species/diseases | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Minority (<50%) | Slow, Significant Declines | Low Impact: 5 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Natural system modifications | Dams & water management/use - Abstraction of surface water (unknown use) | Timing | Scope | Severity | Impact | ||||
| Ongoing | Majority (50-90%) | Slow, Significant Declines | Medium Impact: 6 | ||||||
|
|||||||||
| Purpose | Primary form used | Life stage used | Source | Scale | Level | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pets/display animals, horticulture | - | - | - | Non-trivial | Recent | |
| Pets/display animals, horticulture | - | - | - | Non-trivial | Recent | |
| Sport hunting/specimen collecting | - | - | - | Non-trivial | Recent | |
| Sport hunting/specimen collecting | - | - | - | Non-trivial | Recent |
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2021) Species factsheet: Circus cyaneus. Downloaded from
http://www.birdlife.org on 26/01/2021.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2021) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
http://www.birdlife.org on 26/01/2021.
