The species is found in a variety of habitats, ranging from parkland, orchards and cultivated fields with hedges to rocky, semi-desert regions and steppes (Mikkola 1983). It is monogamous and breeds from March to August. The nest is built in a cavity and the hole is cleaned and scraped but will also use nest boxes. Clutches are usually three to six eggs (Holt et al. 2014). It feeds on insects, small rodents and plant matter. Birds and frogs are an important food source during the nesting season (Mikkola 1983). The species is sedentary although large displacements do occur (Hagemeijer and Blair 1997).

Conservation Actions Underway
CITES Appendix II. Bern Convention Appendix II. The species is listed as ‘endangered’ on the Dutch national Red List (Hustings et al. 2004). The provision of nest boxes and pollarding of old nesting trees has been successful in Belgium and Germany at offsetting declines (Holt et al. 2014).

Conservation Actions Proposed
Measures should address conservation at the wider countryside scale. The preservation of the species’s habitat, including old trees and hedges, as well as the reduction in the use of pesticides are important. Organochloride pesticides should be replaced with less aggressive products or biological pest control methods. The provision of nest boxes should continue. The maintenance of perches near roads (2 m high, 10–15 m apart and 5 m from the road), is advisable to help reduce car-collisions. Further research into habitat requirements, population size and trends and threats is required (Tucker and Heath 1994).