# Common Buzzard — Facts, Threats & Conservation

*Buteo buteo*

> A common buzzard (Buteo buteo) is a medium-large, broad-winged bird of prey and Britain's most common and widespread raptor. It soars in slow circles, gives a distinctive cat-like mewing call, and hunts small mammals, earthworms and carrion across farmland, woodland and moorland.

**IUCN status:** Least Concern (IUCN)  ·  **WARN range:** United Kingdom, Europe, Western Asia, North Africa, Southern Africa (wintering)

## Quick facts
| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Common name | Common buzzard |
| Scientific name | Buteo buteo |
| Type | Bird of prey (raptor) |
| Wingspan | 109-140 cm |
| Body length | 40-58 cm |
| Diet | Small mammals, birds, earthworms, carrion |
| Call | Cat-like mewing 'pee-yow' |
| Distribution | Europe and western/central Asia; UK resident |
| UK status | Most common and widespread bird of prey |
| IUCN status | Least Concern |

## Scientific classification
- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Chordata
- **Class:** Aves
- **Order:** Accipitriformes
- **Family:** Accipitridae
- **Genus:** Buteo
- **Species:** Buteo buteo

## Conservation status
- **Status:** Least Concern (IUCN Red List). The common buzzard has an extremely large global range and population, assessed as stable or increasing, and is not currently considered at risk of extinction. In the UK it has recovered strongly from historical persecution to become the most common and widespread bird of prey, though local threats such as illegal poisoning, vehicle and powerline collisions, and persecution persist.
- **Population:** Very large; global population estimated in the millions of mature individuals (IUCN), with a substantial and widespread breeding population in the UK.
- **Trend:** Stable to increasing
- **Assessed:** 2021
- **CITES:** Appendix II
- Listed on CITES Appendix II, which covers all birds of prey (Accipitriformes) and regulates international trade. Fully protected under UK wildlife law.

## Key facts: Common Buzzard
- The common buzzard is Britain's most common and widespread bird of prey, found in nearly every county.
- It is a broad-winged, stocky raptor best known for soaring in slow circles and giving a cat-like mewing call.
- Plumage is highly variable, from dark brown to pale cream, often with a paler chest band.
- It is a generalist predator, taking small mammals, birds, earthworms and carrion, with over 300 prey species recorded.
- Once heavily persecuted and reduced to the west and north, it has recovered to recolonise most of Britain since the late 20th century.
- Globally it is classified as Least Concern, with a large and stable to increasing population.

## What does a common buzzard look like?
The common buzzard is a medium-large raptor with a compact body, broad rounded wings and a relatively short, fanned tail. Adults typically measure 40-58 cm from bill to tail, with a wingspan of roughly 109-140 cm, and females are noticeably larger and heavier than males. The most striking feature is the variability of its plumage: individuals range from very dark, almost uniform chocolate-brown to pale, creamy birds with extensive white, and many show a paler band or 'necklace' across the breast. In flight the wings are held in a shallow V, the tips slightly upturned, and the tail is often spread into a fan. The underwing usually shows pale patches contrasting with darker margins, and the flight feathers are barred. The bill is hooked and dark-tipped with a yellow base, the legs and feet are yellow, and the eyes are dark. This combination of broad wings, short neck and rounded silhouette helps separate the buzzard from larger eagles and from the more angular, long-tailed kites and harriers.

## What does a buzzard eat and how does it hunt?
The common buzzard is a true generalist predator, and more than 300 prey species have been recorded across its range. The bulk of its diet is small mammals, especially voles, mice, rabbits and young hares, and in many regions vole abundance directly influences how many chicks a pair can raise. It also takes small and medium birds, reptiles, amphibians, large insects and, importantly, earthworms, which it gathers by walking over damp pasture. Carrion is a significant food source, particularly in winter, and buzzards are frequently seen feeding on roadkill and dead livestock. Hunting is typically unspectacular: the bird perches patiently on a post, pole or bare branch and drops onto prey it has spotted below, or quarters slowly over open ground. It will also soar and, less often, hover briefly in a headwind. This flexible, low-energy approach allows the buzzard to thrive in farmland, woodland edge, moorland and even the fringes of towns, wherever there is a mix of open hunting ground and trees or crags for nesting.

## Why has the buzzard become so common again?
For much of the 19th and early 20th centuries the buzzard was heavily persecuted across Britain, shot and poisoned on game estates and squeezed back into the wilder west and north. Numbers fell further in the 1950s when myxomatosis devastated the rabbit, a key prey, and when agricultural pesticides affected many birds of prey. From the late 20th century, however, the picture reversed dramatically. Legal protection, a decline in illegal persecution in many areas, the recovery of rabbit populations and the buzzard's own dietary flexibility allowed it to spread back eastwards across England. It is now found in nearly every part of the country and is widely regarded as the UK's most numerous bird of prey. The species' adaptability, its willingness to eat carrion and earthworms, and its tolerance of farmed landscapes have all helped. This recovery is a genuine conservation success story, though buzzards can still fall victim to illegal poisoning, collisions with vehicles and overhead lines, and localised persecution.

## Buzzard vs Red Kite: how to tell them apart
| Feature | Common Buzzard | Red Kite |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wing shape | Broad, rounded; held in shallow V when soaring | Long, narrow, angled; flexed in flight |
| Tail | Short, fanned, rounded | Long, deeply forked, twisted in flight |
| Plumage | Variable brown, often with pale chest band | Rich rufous body, pale head, bold white wing patches |
| Flight style | Slow soaring and patient perching | Buoyant, agile, constantly steering with tail |
| Call | Cat-like mewing 'pee-yow' | Thinner, wavering whistle |
| Main food | Small mammals, earthworms, carrion | Largely carrion and scraps, some small prey |

## What WARN does
WARN does not run field projects dedicated specifically to the common buzzard, which is widespread and secure across Britain and Europe and largely outside the five countries where WARN's partners work. This guide is part of WARN's free educational library, written to help people understand and value the wildlife around them. The threats that shaped the buzzard's story, habitat loss, poisoning and persecution, are the same pressures that endanger the raptors and other animals WARN's partners do protect on the ground.

If this guide deepened your appreciation of birds of prey, a small gift helps keep WARN's wildlife education free and supports the animals our partners protect.

## Frequently asked questions: Common Buzzard
### Is a buzzard the same as a hawk?
In British usage a buzzard is a particular kind of broad-winged hawk in the genus Buteo, so it is a hawk in the broad sense but distinct from sparrowhawks and goshawks. Confusingly, in North America birds of the same genus are called 'hawks' (such as the red-tailed hawk), while 'buzzard' there usually refers to a vulture. The British 'buzzard' is a soaring raptor, not a vulture.

### What sound does a buzzard make?
The common buzzard's signature call is a loud, plaintive, cat-like mewing, often written as 'pee-yow' or 'peee-oo'. It carries a long way and is frequently heard from birds soaring high overhead, sometimes before the bird itself is spotted. Buzzards use the call in display, to keep contact with a mate, and when defending their territory, making it one of the most recognisable sounds of open countryside.

### How big is a common buzzard?
A common buzzard is a medium-large raptor, typically 40-58 cm long with a wingspan of about 109-140 cm. It is considerably smaller than an eagle but clearly larger and bulkier than a kestrel or sparrowhawk. As with most birds of prey, females are noticeably larger and heavier than males. Body weight varies widely by region and season, generally falling somewhere between roughly 0.4 and 1.4 kg.

### Do buzzards attack pets, livestock or people?
Buzzards very rarely pose any threat to people, and attacks on humans are exceptional, usually limited to a bird defending its nest from someone who has come too close. They mainly take small mammals, earthworms and carrion, so healthy cats, dogs and adult livestock are not realistic prey. Very small pets left unsupervised carry a tiny theoretical risk, but in practice buzzards avoid people and large animals.

### Where do buzzards live and nest?
Common buzzards live across most of Europe and into western and central Asia, with British birds present year-round in nearly every county. They favour a mix of open country for hunting, farmland, moorland, rough pasture, and woodland or scattered trees for nesting. Pairs build a bulky stick nest, often lined with green foliage, in a tall tree or occasionally on a crag, and frequently reuse and enlarge it over several years.

### Are buzzards protected and is their population safe?
Yes. The common buzzard is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN, with a very large global population that is stable or increasing. In the UK it is fully protected by law, and after recovering from heavy historical persecution it is now the country's most common bird of prey. It is also listed on CITES Appendix II, which regulates international trade in the species and its parts.

## Sources
- [Wikipedia - Common buzzard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_buzzard)
- [IUCN Red List - Buteo buteo](https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22695903/155522281)
- [CITES - Appendices](https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica - Buzzard](https://www.britannica.com/animal/buzzard-bird)
- [Wikidata - Buteo buteo](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q25334)

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Full guide: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/wildlife-guides/buzzard