Now north-south divide extends to the bird world, too

The wildlife charity said a study of bird numbers in nine English regions showed that while populations were declining markedly across southern areas, species were either on the increase or experiencing far smaller falls in numbers in the north.

The results, which looked at birds found on farmland, woodland and a series of other habitats such as wetlands, towns and moorlands, revealed that all groups were doing worst in the South East.

Farmland bird numbers fell 28% in south-east England between 1994 and 2009, with a drop of 23% in the South West, the figures compiled by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) showed.

But in the North West the reduction in numbers over the 15-year period was just 3% and in the North East farmland bird populations increased by 3%.

Bucking the north-south divide was London, where farmland bird numbers increased by 7%. The RSPB said the figures for the capital were likely to be an anomaly as not all farmland birds species were found there.

However the wood pigeon is doing well in London and greenfinches, which have seen populations decline in the face of a fatal disease, are faring better in the capital than outside it.

A similar divide between the north and south of England is seen among woodland birds, the figures show, with the greatest declines experienced in the South East (19%) and the South West (13%).

At the same time, woodland birds in Yorkshire and Humber have increased numbers by 11% since 1994 and in the North West by almost a third (31%).

Across a wide range of species found in other habitats the South East has seen numbers fall by 12% and the South West has experienced declines of a tenth, while Yorkshire and the Humber has seen numbers increase by 13% and the North West by 16%.

London again fares better than the rest of the South East for woodland birds and species from other habitats.

Martin Harper, conservation director at the RSPB, said: “The divide between northern and southern England is intriguing.

“There could be many reasons to explain this, including different forms of land use in parts of northern England.

“But other factors like development, climate change, altitude and water scarcity all vary from south to north and could all be playing a part in these staggering regional differences.

“What is shocking is when you look beyond the graphs, you realise these figures are about the lives of birds and the figures chart the ability of birds to survive in our countryside; the place where we go for walks and grow our food.

“If some of these birds are struggling to survive, that may say a lot about the quality of our countryside and our own quality of life.”

He added that if the Government wanted to restore wildlife, as it has pledged to do, it would be vital to address issues such as helping farmers to do more for the wildlife on their land.