AS ARCTIC weather threatens the survival of millions of British garden birds (see News, yesterday) another threat has emerged to teir farmland cousins thanks to research on the effects of spring ploughing.

Scientists at the4 British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), studying the survival rates amongst small farmland birds for the environmnt department Defra, have identified a “hungry gap” for species like yellow hammers and reed buntings covering the last two weeks in February – just when they are entering the breeding season.

And it occurs because under present Environmental Stewardship schemes, farmers are allowed to start spring ploughing now, after agreeing to leave their fields under seed-rich stubble from last year’s harvest over winter.

When these schemes were introduced, they were heralded as a major advance because small birds depend on gleaning food and insects from amongst the stubble over winter. But the BTO scientists are recommending that farmers receiving stewardship grants should be asked to delay ploughing until March 1.

Populations of yellow hammers are down a massive 55%, dunnocks by 34% and reed buntings by 21%.