Though a ubiquitous resident throughout the country, the House Sparrow has declined dramatically since the '80s in Portugal. In the south there have been two main reasons, firstly the switch from an agriculture largely animal-powered to one powered by the internal combustion engine, and secondly the adoption of EU laws on agricultural practices. The decline mirrors that of northern European countries, though this has been more noticeable as the decline in the north was spread out over 50 years while that in Portugal has largely been telescoped into half that time. As populations have declined so the Allee effect has further increased the drop in numbers and the species is increasingly uncommon.
This trend is noticeable even here at the Quinta; sadly I no longer see House Sparrows in the garden here whereas we used to have a roosting colony over 2,000 strong every evening. However, in 2020 we had a few pairs nesting in the garden here so we'll be keeping a hopeful eye open for them in the coming years.
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