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LC
European Turtle-dove Streptopelia turtur

IUCN Red List history

Year Category
2012 Least Concern
2009 Least Concern
2008 Least Concern
2004 Least Concern
2000 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1994 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988 Lower Risk/Least Concern

Species attributes

Migratory status full migrant Forest dependency Medium
Land mass type   Average mass -

Distribution

  Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2) 4,510,000 medium
Extent of Occurrence non-breeding (km2) 4,510,000 medium
Number of locations -
Fragmentation -

Population & trend

  Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
No. of mature individuals poor Estimated 2009
Population trend Decreasing -
Number of subpopulations - - -
Largest subpopulation - - -
Generation length (yrs) 5.3 - - -
Population justification: In Europe, the breeding population is estimated to number 3,500,000-7,200,000 breeding pairs, equating to 10,500,000-21,600,000 individuals (BirdLife International 2004). Europe forms 25-49% of the global range, so a very preliminary estimate of the global population size is 20,000,000-100,000,000 individuals, although further validation of this estimate is needed.
Trend justification: The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and unsustainable levels of exploitation. In Europe, trends since 1980 show that populations have undergone a moderate decline (p<0.01), based on provisional data for 21 countries from the Pan-European Common Bird Monitoring Scheme (EBCC/RSPB/BirdLife/Statistics Netherlands; P. Vorisek in litt. 2008).

Country/Territory distribution

Country/Territory Occurrence status Extinct Breeding Non-breeding Passage
Afghanistan Native No Yes    
Albania Native No Yes    
Algeria Native No      
Andorra Native No Yes    
Armenia Native No Yes    
Austria Native No Yes    
Azerbaijan Native No Yes    
Bahrain Native No Yes   Yes
Belarus Native No Yes    
Belgium Native No Yes    
Bosnia and Herzegovina Native No Yes    
Botswana Vagrant No      
Bulgaria Native No Yes   Yes
Burkina Faso Native No      
Cameroon Native No      
Cape Verde Native No      
Côte d'Ivoire Vagrant No      
Chad Native No      
China (mainland) Native No Yes    
Comoros Vagrant No      
Congo, The Democratic Republic of the Vagrant No      
Croatia Native No Yes    
Cyprus Native No Yes    
Czech Republic Native No Yes    
Denmark Native No Yes   Yes
Djibouti Vagrant No      
Egypt Native No      
Eritrea Native No      
Estonia Native No Yes    
Ethiopia Native No      
Faroe Islands (to Denmark) Native No      
Finland Native No Yes    
France Native No Yes   Yes
Gabon Native No      
Gambia Native No      
Georgia Native No Yes    
Germany Native No Yes   Yes
Ghana Native No      
Gibraltar (to UK) Native No      
Greece Native No Yes   Yes
Guinea Native No      
Guinea-Bissau Native No      
Hungary Native No Yes    
Iceland Vagrant No      
Iran, Islamic Republic of Native No Yes   Yes
Iraq Native No Yes   Yes
Ireland Native No Yes    
Israel Native No Yes    
Italy Native No Yes   Yes
Jordan Native No Yes   Yes
Kazakhstan Native No Yes    
Kenya Vagrant No      
Kuwait Native No     Yes
Kyrgyzstan Native No Yes    
Latvia Native No Yes    
Lebanon Native No Yes   Yes
Liberia Vagrant No      
Libya Native No      
Liechtenstein Native No Yes    
Lithuania Native No Yes    
Luxembourg Native No Yes    
Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Native No Yes    
Maldives Vagrant No      
Mali Native No      
Malta Native No Yes    
Mauritania Native No      
Moldova Native No Yes    
Mongolia Native No Yes    
Montenegro Native No Yes    
Morocco Native No      
Namibia Vagrant No      
Netherlands Native No Yes    
Niger Native No      
Nigeria Native No      
Norway Vagrant No      
Oman Native No Yes   Yes
Pakistan Vagrant No      
Palestinian Authority Territories Native No Yes   Yes
Poland Native No Yes    
Portugal Native No Yes    
Qatar Native No     Yes
Romania Native No Yes    
Russia (Central Asian) Native No Yes    
Russia (European) Native No Yes   Yes
Saudi Arabia Native No Yes   Yes
Senegal Native No      
Serbia Native No Yes    
Seychelles Vagrant No      
Sierra Leone Native No      
Slovakia Native No      
Slovenia Native No Yes    
Somalia Native No      
South Africa Vagrant No      
South Sudan Native No   Yes  
Spain Native No Yes    
Sudan Native No      
Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands (to Norway) Vagrant No      
Sweden Native No Yes    
Switzerland Native No Yes    
Syria Native No Yes   Yes
Tajikistan Native No Yes    
Togo Native No      
Tunisia Native No      
Turkey Native No Yes    
Turkmenistan Native No Yes    
Uganda Vagrant No      
Ukraine Native No Yes   Yes
United Arab Emirates Native No Yes   Yes
United Kingdom Native No Yes    
Uzbekistan Native No Yes    
Western Sahara Native No      
Yemen Native No     Yes

Important Bird Areas where this species has triggered the IBA criteria

Country/Territory IBA Name IBA link
Bulgaria Kresna Gorge site factsheet
Bulgaria Provadiysko-Royaksko plateau site factsheet
Bulgaria Sakar site factsheet
Czech Republic Krivoklatsko (Krivoklatsko region) site factsheet
Spain Mountains of Barcelona site factsheet
Ukraine Samars'kyj forest site factsheet

Habitats & altitude

Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Artificial/Terrestrial Arable Land suitable breeding
Artificial/Terrestrial Arable Land suitable non-breeding
Artificial/Terrestrial Rural Gardens suitable breeding
Artificial/Terrestrial Rural Gardens suitable non-breeding
Artificial/Terrestrial Subtropical/Tropical Heavily Degraded Former Forest suitable breeding
Artificial/Terrestrial Subtropical/Tropical Heavily Degraded Former Forest suitable non-breeding
Forest Boreal major breeding
Forest Boreal major non-breeding
Forest Temperate major breeding
Forest Temperate major non-breeding
Shrubland Mediterranean-type Shrubby Vegetation major non-breeding
Shrubland Mediterranean-type Shrubby Vegetation major breeding
Shrubland Temperate major non-breeding
Shrubland Temperate major breeding
Altitude 0 - 1300 m Occasional altitudinal limits  

Threats & impact

Threat (level 1) Threat (level 2) Impact and Stresses
Climate change & severe weather Temperature extremes Timing Scope Severity Impact
Ongoing Unknown Unknown Unknown
Stresses
Reduced reproductive success

Utilisation

Purpose Primary form used Life stage used Source Scale Level Timing
Pets Whole Adults and juveniles Wild International Non-trivial Recent
Food (human) Whole Adults and juveniles Wild Subsistence, National Non-trivial Recent
Sport Whole Adults and juveniles Wild Subsistence, National Non-trivial Recent

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2013) Species factsheet: Streptopelia turtur. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 22/05/2013. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2013) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 22/05/2013.

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

To provide new information to update this factsheet or to correct any errors, please email BirdLife

To contribute to discussions on the evaluation of the IUCN Red List status of Globally Threatened Birds, please visit BirdLife's Globally Threatened Bird Forums.

Key facts
Current IUCN Red List category Least Concern
Family Columbidae (Doves and pigeons)
Species name author (Linnaeus, 1758)
Population size mature individuals
Population trend Decreasing
Distribution size (breeding/resident) 4,510,000 km2
Country endemic? No
Links to further information
- Summary information on this species