British Trust for Ornithology (BTO)

Calling all nature lovers in cities, towns and villages! 🐦🦆 Have you signed up to our Birds in Greenspaces pilot survey yet? We’re asking people of all birding experience levels across the UK to count birds they see in greenspaces, such as parks, cemeteries and playing fields, to help us gain an understanding of their populations. 📊 Survey methods are flexible too. Find out more and sign up ➡️ https://lnkd.in/d3qC_U_F

The race is on! 📢 Six BTO Cuckoos have touched down in Europe! 🌍 So where are our frontrunners? 👇 📍 Joe is now in Spain having charged his way north on 10th April covering around 2,800 miles from his previous location in Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), West Africa! 📍 Originally not too far from Joe in West Africa, Cleeve has made his way through Morocco, crossed the Mediterranean and is in a remote area in the province of Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha in Spain, approximately 62 miles north-west of Valencia. 📍 Sayaan is now in Italy, and is the only one of our current crop of tagged Cuckoos to take an easterly route! But who will be the first to reach the UK or Ireland? Follow BTO Cuckoo migrations and sponsor a bird on our website 👉 https://lnkd.in/dmyRsmYQ

Do you have any birding equipment that is in need of a new home? Donate it to BTO and we'll help to redistribute it to a young person, school or university across the UK. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/ddvbCtYe The Equipment Donation Scheme is kindly supported by Opticron.

⚠️ Blackbirds are in trouble & we need your help! Threatened by the Usutu virus, we need you to submit your garden Blackbird sightings so scientists can better understand the virus’ spread & potential impacts on these songbirds. Sign up ➡️ www.bto.org/blackbirds So what’s happening to our Blackbirds? 🤔 A decline in Blackbirds was noticed in gardens, especially in the Greater London area since 2020. This population fall was linked to the recent appearance of the mosquito-borne Usutu virus in England. How can a survey help? 📝 Launched in 2024, this pioneering survey aims to map the rate of decline in Blackbirds. Results so far show Blackbirds are struggling most in London, but faring better in northern England, Scotland and Wales. We need more records this year, especially from in and around towns and cities, to help BTO scientists better understand the spread of Usutu virus and what the potential impacts might be on the UK’s Blackbirds. Have a garden? Sign up to help on our website ➡️ www.bto.org/blackbirds Thank you! This BTO survey is part of a wider partnership project involving the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The project, Vector-Borne RADAR, is funded by UK Research and Innovation and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to understand the emergence and transmission of mosquito-borne viruses of wild birds in the UK.

The Big Bird Race is back! 😀 Bring your friends and family together for a fun day of birding with BTO's Big Bird Race! 🐦 Just choose any 4-hour time slot from Saturday 24 May to midday on Monday 26 May ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dpp98kFK This FREE event is organised by our BTO Youth Volunteers to share and celebrate our love of birds, with the aim of bringing people together across generations to share the joy of birding. There are prizes to be won and amazing memories to be made. And the best bit: you can take part anywhere in the UK! 😀

BTO Cuckoo update 📣 Cuach Cores is back! 😀 November was the last time we received a signal from him before he suddenly re-appeared on 8 April in western Algeria! He is now crossing the Sahara in earnest! 🌞 This time last year, he was still in Nigeria, not arriving in Europe until the end of April, when he touched down in Montpelier, France. Which route will he take this spring? Hafren powered on and crossed the Mediterranean overnight on 5 April. He headed straight inland, passing over Granada and on into central Spain. He is currently feeding up at the Puente Nuevo Reservoir in the province of Córdoba, not too far from Cuckoo Wilfrid! 🌍 Meanwhile Sayaan remains in Ghana, with the last signal received from his tag on 1 April. Follow BTO Cuckoo migrations and sponsor a bird on our website ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dmyRsmYQ

🎤 Resource Spotlight: Acoustic monitoring and Automated Identification Many species—especially nocturnal and elusive ones—are difficult to monitor using traditional survey methods. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) offers a scalable, low-cost solution, and a recent project supported by the Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme has advanced its application in restoration. 🔍 New tools for restoration projects With support from the Programme, the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has expanded its Acoustic Pipeline, integrating automated classifiers for bats, owls, curlew, bush-crickets, and small mammals across Europe. These tools allow: • Automated species identification from uploaded recordings • Robust and transparent biodiversity data analysis • Support for researchers & citizen scientists to validate findings 🌍 Real-world impact The project has already processed 500,000+ recordings from five Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme restoration sites, helping projects understand how wildlife responds to restoration efforts. 📊 What’s next? The next phase will: • Make acoustic monitoring more accessible—so restoration projects can conduct long-term biodiversity surveys without specialist expertise. • Develop meaningful biodiversity metrics—helping projects assess how species respond to restoration over time. • Create an online tool for data processing—allowing projects to generate biodiversity metrics from classified acoustic data. • Introduce a semi-automated reporting template—so projects can easily interpret and share results. • Provide tailored guidelines—offering survey design recommendations and case studies from Cairngorms Connect, Greater Côa Valley, and the Carpathian Mountains. 🔗 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/dNPt6MyG 📸 Chris Damant

New project alert! 📢 Can you help us count Birds in Greenspaces? 🐦🌳 Sign up ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dht3ju82 This pilot survey is for people who enjoy watching birds, whether experienced birders or new to nature! It’s flexible too so you can take part anywhere in the UK. 📝 What do we mean by greenspaces? These are public-access spaces in and around built-up areas, such as parks, playing fields and cemeteries. By helping us monitor bird populations that use these areas, we hope to show their importance nationally for nature and people. 🦆🦋

Remember to join us on 10th April to discover more about our Together Through Nature project. The panel discussion will be online from 1pm - 2:30pm where we'll share learnings from the project. 🐦🌱 Book a place ➡️ https://lnkd.in/diXGdAab Civil Society Consulting CIC

Learn to recognise widespread UK songbirds in summer by their songs and calls in our Bird Sound ID in Summer sessions. Book now ➡️ https://lnkd.in/dekyRNxb