More than a quarter of Britain’s birds are now on a "red list" of threatened species after the addition of the curlew, nightingale, puffin and others, according to a new report.

The State of the UK’s Birds report by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the British Trust for Ornithology and other conservation groups said the number of species on a red list of ‘Birds of Conservation Concern’ had risen from 52 in 2009 to 67 in 2015.

Three species, Temminck’s stints, wrynecks and serins, are now no longer classed as British breeding birds.

However there was some good news.

The golden eagle population has gone up by 15 per cent since 2003 and there are now more than 1,000 pairs of cirl buntings after 25 years of conservation work to save them from disappearing.

And 22 species on the conservation list were moved from “amber” to “green” status. Bitterns and nightjars, also the subject of much conservation work, were moved from red to amber.

"The latest Birds of Conservation Concern assessment used the latest monitoring data to assign species to red, amber and green lists of conservation concern," the report said.

"The red list grew substantially, with a net increase of 15, from 52 species in 2009 to 67 in 2015. More than a quarter of the species assessed are now red-listed."

The decline of the curlew is causing particular concern.

Geoff Hilton, head of conservation science at conservation group WWT, said: “The call of the curlew is one of the really magical elements of British nature, celebrated in poetry and song.

“Now we know that we are losing them; fewer and fewer people are getting to experience their song.

“But the curlew has one big thing in its favour: it is loved by many, many people. I’ve seen the enthusiasm and determination to turn their fortunes around – from farmers, conservationists and the public – and this convinces me that we can do so.”

Animals in decline Show all 8 1 /8 Animals in decline Animals in decline Harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) Where: Orkney Islands. What: Between 2001-2006, numbers in Orkney declined by 40 per cent. Why: epidemics of the phocine distemper virus are thought to have caused major declines, but the killing of seals in the Moray Firth to protect salmon farms may have an impact. Alamy Animals in decline African lion (Panthera leo) Where: Ghana. What: In Ghana’s Mole National Park, lion numbers have declined by more than 90 per cent in 40 years. Why: local conflicts are thought to have contributed to the slaughter of lions and are a worrying example of the status of the animal in Western and Central Africa. Animals in decline Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) Where: Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Costa Rica. What: Numbers are down in both the Atlantic and Pacific. It declined by 95 per cent between 1989-2002 in Costa Rica. Why: mainly due to them being caught as bycatch, but they’ve also been affected by local developments. Alamy Animals in decline Wandering albatross (Diomedea exulans) Where: South Atlantic. What: A rapid decline. One population, from Bird Island, South Georgia, declined by 50 per cent between 1972-2010, according to the British Antarctic Survey. Why: being caught in various commercial longline fisheries. Alamy Animals in decline Saiga Antelope (Saiga tatarica) Where: Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan. What: fall in populations has been dramatic. In the early 1990s numbers were over a million, but are now estimated to be around 50,000. Why: the break up of the former USSR led to uncontrolled hunting. Increased rural poverty means the species is hunted for its meat Animals in decline Swordfish (Xiphias gladius) Where: found worldwide in tropical, subtropical and temperate seas. Why: at risk from overfishing and as a target in recreational fishing. A significant number of swordfish are also caught by illegal driftnet fisheries in the Mediterranean Animals in decline Argali Sheep (Ovis mammon) Where: Central and Southern Asian mountains,usually at 3,000-5,000 metres altitude. Why: domesticated herds of sheep competing for grazing grounds. Over-hunting and poaching. Animals in decline Humphead Wrasse (Cheilinus undulatus) Where: the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea to South Africa and to the Tuamoto Islands (Polynesia), north to the Ryukyu Islands (south-west Japan), and south to New Caledonia. Why: Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) fishing and trading of the species

The reported said the plight of farmland birds was a “serious concern”.

“Twelve farmland species are red-listed and the majority of these, including turtle doves and corn buntings, continue to decline,” it said.

“No new farmland birds joined the red list in 2015, but that simply reflects that those likely to be impacted adversely by modern farming practices are red-listed already.”

But woodland birds made up more red-listed species than any other group with a total of 16, including nightingales, woodcocks and pied flycatchers.

And marine species are also in trouble.

“Colonies of breeding seabirds provide one of the UK’s greatest wildlife spectacles and are, arguably, our most important ornithological feature in international terms,” the report said.

“But many seabirds are in decline: shags, kittiwakes and puffins take the number of Red-listed seabird species to seven.”

The loss of the wryneck is of historic significance.

"This is not the loss of a transient visitor, but the extinction as a breeding bird of a species that was once widespread across the country," the report said.

"In the late 19th century, this bird of open woodland, heathland, parks and large gardens was recorded breeding in 54 counties across England and Wales, and was sufficiently common that in 1912 the RSPB was advertising bird boxes specifically for wrynecks.

"But by this point, wrynecks were actually in decline and already lost from Wales. By the 1950s the species had contracted further, with few found away from southeast England.

"This decline continued until regular breeding ceased in England by the 1970s. At the same time there were signs of hope for wrynecks as a small population established and grew in the pine forests of northern Scotland.

"But mirroring the tales of Temminck’s stints and serins, this colonisation faltered. Although occasional sightings are still reported, the last known breeding in Scotland was in 2002, and 1985 in England.