At this time of year when I'm out birding I really try to make an effort to add breeding evidence to my records. It's really quick and easy in @birdtrack.bsky.social and adds value to my records, especially for @ukrbbp.bsky.social species. Added P for pair in suitable habitat.
#ornithology
This is an excellent app from our partners at the SOC and includes latest sightings from BirdTrack at each site #ukbirding
A Hoopoe on a log, photograph by Edmund Fellowes / BTO
Spring migration is hotting up after the warmer weather this week!
Find out all about which spring specialities to keep your eyes peeled for in our latest blog
➡️ www.bto.org/our-work/new...
and don't forget to submit your sightings to @birdtrack.bsky.social
📷 Hoopoe by Edmund Fellowes / BTO
A Mistle Thrush on the ground shows its brown back, greyish nape and crown and spotted breast and belly. To the left, white wording on a blue background reads: Out now! The latest population trends for breeding birds in the UK. The BBS logo featuring a Goldfinch is top right of the image.
1/ The 2025 BBS Report is out now! It was a record year for volunteers taking part, with 2,800+ visiting 4,058 survey squares across the UK, Channel Islands & Isle of Man. A huge thank you to our volunteers!
@btobirds.bsky.social @jncc.bsky.social @rspbscience.bsky.social #Ornithology
A singing Willow Warbler perched on a hawthorn branch in spring.
Eyes to the skies this Easter weekend! Spring migration is well underway, so learn about the latest arrivals, departures and what to look out for in our latest blog ➡️ www.bto.org/our-work/new...
Don't forget to submit your sightings to @birdtrack.bsky.social
📷 Willow Warbler by Allan Drewitt / BTO
A map shows the migration of tagged Cuckoo Ashok from the UK to Africa and now back again, with the location pin showing him as in Spain. A headshot of Cuckoo Ashok features alongside the wording: First to arrive in Europe and the earliest ever date that one of our satellite-tagged birds has done so!
A new record Sahara crossing 🪶 Ashok is not only the first of our tagged Cuckoos to reach Europe this year but his arrival is also the earliest ever date that one of our satellite-tagged birds has done so! He crossed the Sahara, reached Algeria, then crossed the Med & arrived in Spain on 25 March!
A Blackcap perches on a branch, with blossom on nearby branches, as it opens its bill to sing.
Discover migration highlights from @birdtrack.bsky.social ➡️ bit.ly/3NFG7jL
Over the next two weeks the Blackcap’s flutey song will become a feature of woodlands and scrub, whereas the similar-sounding Garden Warbler won’t start arriving until the second half of April.
📷 Blackcap by Liz Cutting/BTO
A Dipper perches on a rock with its bill open. Wording above reads: BTO & Marsh Awards 2026. Nominations open!
Voting is open for BTO & Marsh Awards! 🎉 Vote now & celebrate an inspiring ornithologist ➡️ www.bto.org/medals-a...
The Marsh Charitable Trust are supported by the Marsh Charitable Trust & presented by BTO at the Society of Wildlife Artists Natural Eye exhibition at London’s Mall Galleries.
Many Scottish Greenshank will have left English estuaries now, soon to be replaced by a pulse of passage birds heading further north.
See @birdtrack.bsky.social graph below and this blog about Greenshank migration:
wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/03/23/m... 🎂6️⃣
#BirdingScotland
A Chiffchaff, a yellow-olive coloured warbler, perches on a branch against a green hued background.
Increasing reports of Chiffchaff to @birdtrack.bsky.social! Read more about spring arrivals in our latest migration blog ➡️ bit.ly/4so4XDX
The weekly reporting rate in BirdTrack for Chiffchaff has risen from 4-6% during the winter to 41% in the most recent week! #Ornithology
📷 Liz Cutting / BTO
However, Wheatear, another traditional early migrant, has been slightly behind schedule. Breeding Bird Survey data show a 26% decline between 2013 and 2023, and this decline appears to be affecting numbers seen on spring passage, with peak reporting rates consistently below average in recent years
There was also a big increase in reports of Little Ringed Plover over the last week. Like many summer migrants, they appear to be arriving earlier in response to climate change. Look out for them around the margins of wetlands such as gravel pits and flooded fields
Sand Martins have continued to arrive into Britain and Ireland in recent days, with 420 records now received. Numbers should continue to rise over the coming weeks, ahead of the peak reporting rate in April. They are often seen hawking for insects over wetlands #ukbirding
With spring migrants starting to arrive, our first migration blog of the spring looks at what's been reported so far and what to look out for in the rest of March #ukbirding
www.bto.org/our-work/new...
Photo: Sand Martin by Liz Cutting / BTO
BirdWatch Ireland CEO Andrew Kelly & BTO CEO Juliet Vickery are sitting at a table outside smiling as they get ready to sign a partnership agreement for the Bird Atlas 2027–31.
RSPB Chief Executive Beccy Speight & BTO CEO Juliet Vickery are sitting together at a table in the David Attenborough Building in Cambridge holding pens ready to sign a partnership agreement for the Bird Atlas 2027–31.
BTO CEO Juliet Vickery & Scottish Ornithologists Club President Ruth Briggs are sitting at a table smiling and holding pens ready to sign a partnership agreement for the Bird Atlas 2027–31.
BTO CEO Juliet Vickery & Welsh Ornithological Society Chair Anne Brenchley are sitting at a table together looking down and holding pens as they get ready to sign a partnership agreement for the Bird Atlas 2027–31. Wildlife and nature themed artwork hangs on the wall behind them.
1/ Five leading charities forge partnership for bird conservation for the Bird Atlas 2027–31! 🐦 But what is the Bird Atlas? ⬇️🧵 #Ornithology
@btobirds.bsky.social @birdwatchireland.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social @rspbscience.bsky.social @scottishbirding.bsky.social @birdsinwales.bsky.social
Brimstone... 163! Mostly on 24-25 Feb
Spring has begun... over the last week we have received 35 reports of Sand Martins, seven of Swallow, four each of Wheatear and House Martin, and two Red-rumped Swallows! #ukbirding
Now and the next 4 weeks are the very best time of year to find Willow Tits, which are paired and defending territories. They're at their most vocal and obvious until the leaves come out. Report all certain sightings to county recorder and @birdtrack.bsky.social to help monitor remaining populations
A collage of photos showing BTO Bird Camp activities, including a group of young people looking at plants, a young person drawing at a table, a young person looking through binoculars and a close-up of a caterpillar. In the middle is an orange circle with white wording that reads: Bird Camps 2026. The BTO Youth logo is above this. Wording in a box at the bottom reads: Swanage. Southern England. 17-19 July. In collaboration with Birds of Poole Harbour.
There's still time to apply for BTO Bird Camps if you're aged between 11-17 ➡️ www.bto.org/birdcamps
This year our Southern England Bird Camp is run in collaboration with @harbourbirds.bsky.social. We are delighted to be working alongside them to make this year's camp an unforgettable experience!
Maps of Wales show all sites for which records were submitted to BirdTrack and eBird in 2024 (left) and 2025 (right), using the central grid reference of each user's site
Taking a dive into the wealth of data produced by users of @birdtrack.bsky.social and @birdsoftheworld.bsky.social eBird in Wales in 2025 for @birdsinwales.bsky.social Report.
Number of users, records and time spent were up almost 20% on 2024. Thank you @btobirds.bsky.social for the data pack.
The importance of recording using @birdtrack.bsky.social is fascinating for personal records but highly important for UK recording and data collection on species distribution and populations. #birds #science
The largest flocks of European White-fronted Geese in #NorthWales since the 1980s were driven west by heavy snow in northern Germany last week. These and other sightings in @northwaleslive.bsky.social BirdNotes.
📷 @zoobirder.bsky.social #BirdingWales
www.birdnotes.wales/blog/a-gande...
Always enjoy getting these summaries of my @birdtrack.bsky.social year. Recorded more additional taxa last year and plan to add even more this year as well as adding more breeding evidence to my records.
Our article, a birder’s guide to HPAI, was published today in @britishbirds.bsky.social - it’s open access this month.
We explain how bird-flu infected seabirds in 2021/22 and the importance of citizen science to montoring future outbreaks in the wild. 🪶🧪
britishbirds.co.uk/journal/arti...
You can also report dead birds for possible testing for avian influenza:
📌In England, Wales & Scotland: gov.uk/guidance/rep...
📌In Northern Ireland: daera-ni.gov.uk/services/dae...
📌In Republic of Ireland: aviancheck.apps.services.agriculture.gov.ie/report
We are receiving increased reports of dead auks, including Puffins, particularly in North East Scotland. It's quick and easy to report any dead or sick birds you find through the 'Deceased bird' function on the home page of the BirdTrack app
Photo: Puffin by Richard Selman / BTO
#ukbirding
Screengrab of my BirdTrack app stats for my January 2026 Westray Birding. It shows 90 species seen. 75 places visited around the isle. 305 submissions. 64 complete lists. A graph compares January 2026 activity to January 2025.
I only took to the @birdtrack.bsky.social app mid last year and the more I use it the more I get out of it. The stats function is great and as can be seen by the graph here, 2026 effort is much reduced cf to 2025 cos we've had utterly shite weather for a month! #WestrayBirding #PWC2026
BLOG: Ian Woodward, senior research ecologist at @btobirds.bsky.social, describes how combining data from the RBBP and the BTO’s Heronries Census has improved our knowledge on the UK’s Little Egret population, as in new @britishbirds.bsky.social paper #birds #ornithology rbbp.org.uk/2026/01/30/l...
Good morning, yes we will! That should be with you shortly
Two Brent Geese walk along a shoreline.
Our latest BirdTrack migration blog is out ➡️ www.bto.org/our-work...
From the influx into Britain of White-fronted Geese to the importance of Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland for Light-bellied Brent Geese, there's lots to discover! #Winterwatch
📷 Edmund Fellowes / BTO