High human-caused mortality in GPS-tracked red kites across Europe

<title>Abstract</title> <p> Wildlife faces increasing pressure from human activities worldwide, yet the main threats and how they differ across borders remain unclear, hampering effective conservation. Using GPS tracking of 2,346 red kites ( <italic>Milvus milvus</italic> ) across continental Europe, we detected 979 mortality events between 2013–2022. For 624 adults and subadults with confirmed causes of death, 69% were anthropogenic - more than twice the number from natural causes. The most common human-related factors were poisoning (25.2%), vehicle collisions (10.9%), power line electrocution or collision (9.9%), illegal shooting/trapping (8.7%), rail collisions (5.4%), and wind turbines (3.8%). These findings highlight the dominant human footprint on this scavenging raptor, an important ecosystem indicator. Mortality patterns varied between countries, suggesting that targeted measures have reduced threats in some regions. Extending successful practices and strengthening legislation through coordinated international action could provide major benefits for red kite conservation and, more broadly, European wildlife. </p>