The return of the Turtle Dove directly contributes to the Wilder 2030 goals of restoring nature-rich spaces, supporting reintroductions of iconic species, and working with communities and landowners to lead nature recovery in their own neighbourhoods. But what makes Turtle Doves so special, and why should we care about their return to Derbyshire?

The Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) is a delicate, pretty bird that looks a little more exotic than your average pigeon; it’s adorned with salmon-grey plumage on its chest, mottled, ochre-fringed feathers on its wings, and eyes the colour of a blazing orange sunset. Like the Cuckoo and the Swift, these birds are emblems of summer, and people would associate their gentle ‘tur-turring’ calls with the arrival of the season; it was their unique call that earned them their name. 

Turtle Doves have an important place in many European cultures as a symbol of love and fidelity, because they pair for life and raise their young together each year. Yet despite these associations, and even though they are still famously featured as a pair in the 12 Days of Christmas carol, very few people in the late 20th and early 21st centuries have ever seen this elegant bird.

The Turtle Dove is in peril. Between 1960 and 2018, Turtle Dove numbers crashed by 98% and there are currently only 2,100 breeding pairs in the UK.

From mid-April, Turtle Doves should be arriving in southern England in their thousands, migrating from sub-Saharan Africa to raise their chicks where there are longer daylight hours and more opportunities to find food.

But without ideal places to feed, nest and rest, Turtle Doves are unable to find a home here in the UK. Changes in farming practices, habitat degradation and loss, and traditional but unsustainable hunting in the Mediterranean have all contributed to this beautiful bird’s decline.

Turtle Doves prefer to nest in dense patches of thorny, scrubby bushes like Blackthorn and Hawthorn, where they can raise their chicks in safety from predators. The loss of many hedgerows from the British countryside is one contributing factor to their decline.

These birds also rely on seeds and grains for food, foraging on the ground among wild grasses and flowers or cultivated crops like oats and barley. Changes in farming practices since the Second World War have reduced the amount of food available to them, and Turtle Doves are struggling to find enough to sustain them before and during migrations; many juvenile Turtle Doves lack the necessary protein-rich nutrients before their long flight back to Africa for the winter.

Water sources are another vital key to Turtle Dove success. Like other members of the pigeon family, Turtle Doves produce a kind of ‘milk’ in their crops that is used to nourish their newly hatched chicks. Without a nearby freshwater source to help create this ‘milk’, the Turtle Doves can’t feed their young.

Turtle Doves also face the challenge of being hunted as they make their way across southern Europe on their migratory routes. In countries like Spain, France and Italy there have been centuries-long traditions of shooting these birds for sport. Although a ban was enforced in 2021, which did something to help raise the populations of migrating birds like the Turtle Dove, this ban was lifted in 2025. Together with illegal and unsustainable hunting in Greece, Malta and Romania, Turtle Dove numbers are decimated in a matter of weeks before they’ve even reached their breeding grounds.

As the UK’s fastest declining bird species, (the Turtle Dove has been on the Red List of UK endangered species since 1996), widespread efforts are being made to restore its population in this country. Operation Turtle Dove is one of the largest projects, with partnerships between farmers, landowners, communities and the RSPB working to create habitats for the birds in the south and east of England.

Derbyshire Wildlife Trust has recently been investigating how the Turtle Dove might be brought back in greater numbers to the Derbyshire area, after sightings of individual birds were recorded near Chesterfield.

In August this year, a small team from DWT went to Norfolk and Suffolk to speak with people involved with Turtle Dove reintroduction and conservation. They met with Claudia Gooch at Pensthorpe nature reserve, who shared her knowledge and experience of working with these endearing birds. The team learned how Pensthorpe had initiated partnerships with local farmers and landowners to improve habitats around the Norfolk area, resulting in an increase in nesting Turtle Dove pairs locally.

With advice and suggestions from organisations like Pensthorpe who are already helping Turtle Dove numbers to increase, DWT hope to replicate the same methodology in Derbyshire. Plans to create, restore and improve habitats for these birds are being drawn up, as well as the possibility of a breeding programme based in the county.

There is no doubt that without such schemes, the future of the Turtle Dove in the UK (and perhaps across Europe) is grave.

Re-establishing breeding colonies of this culturally significant, beautiful bird in Derbyshire would signal a huge triumph for conservation — and a tangible step forward in delivering the Wilder 2030 strategy. By creating new wild spaces, working in partnership with farmers and local communities, and restoring species that belong in our landscapes, this project embodies Derbyshire Wildlife Trust’s mission to rewild land and water, reverse biodiversity loss, and help wildlife and people flourish side by side.

With Turtle Doves back in our countryside, future generations will be able to enjoy their ‘tur-turring’ as a welcome addition to the summer soundtrack of shrieking Swifts and 'Cuckoo-calls',  a living symbol of a Wilder Derbyshire.