New figures show a worrying decline in populations of one of the Isle of Man’s most iconic bird species.

Manx BirdLife carried out its Chough Census 2025 which has revealed a 24% decline in the island’s Chough population.

Surveys carried out between April and June this year across the whole Island, recorded 121 breeding pairs compared to 160 in the previous 2014/15 census.

The island is renowned for being a stronghold for choughs and is home to almost a third of the British Isles population.

Manx Birdlife says that, until recently, the population had been stable or increasing, peaking at 160 pairs in 2014/15 and that this downturn makes clear the importance of continued monitoring and research.

The results also show regional changes with serious declines recorded in the east and west, dropping 39% and 48% respectively since 2015.

The South coast remains the island’s stronghold with over a third of all breeding pairs. Inland nesting continues to grow, with choughs increasingly making use of farm buildings, tholtans, and other man-made structures. The number of pairs on the northern plains remained stable.

Richard Seed, Manx BirdLife’s chough census field worker, believes more information is needed to understand exactly what is causing the decline in chough populations.

He said: ‘The Chough is an iconic Manx bird, and while the population here remains substantial, the declines we’ve recorded are a real concern.

‘A decadal census provides a useful pulse check, but the scale of this downturn shows that we need more regular data if we are to fully understand what is happening.’

In light of the results, Manx BirdLife is calling for closer population monitoring, with a focus on survival and movements of the Manx population.

Research into the impacts of land use change, grazing intensity and increasingly unpredictable weather, as well as closer collaboration with landowners and conservation partners, is urgently needed if the decline is to be reversed, the wildlife groups says.

David Bellamy, head of conservation at Manx Wildlife Trust believes farmers should be incentivised to ensure their methods are chough-friendly.

He said: ‘The chough is an important Manx farmland bird species. This important research also helps us to understand how Manx Chough are faring and provides useful data for the future development of our Island's Agri-Environment Scheme.

‘We can help secure the future of Manx Chough by adequately rewarding farmers for reducing and better targeting the amount of worming treatments given to livestock, which we know results in fewer insects within the dung and soil fauna that are so important for this iconic species.

For more information or to read the full report, you can visit: https://manxbirdlife.im/conservation-project/isle-of-man-chough-census-2025

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