What is a Bird Atlas?

Bird atlases provide a fascinating periodic insight into the status of all of the bird species of an area. Their scope varies from small counties up to entire continents, but what they all have in common is a series of maps that depict patterns of distribution of every bird species present, whether it be breeding, wintering, or even year-round. For the casual birdwatcher they provide indications of what can be seen where - indeed they are the basis of distribution maps in bird books. For the scientist they provide a means of understanding the processes shaping bird communities and the factors limiting bird distributions. And for the conservationist they provide indications of changes in distribution that might be indicative of wider issues.

Why do we need a new Atlas?

The great value of atlases is their complete coverage - the British and Irish atlases have covered all parts of the countries and all species. Such a mammoth effort can only be undertaken periodically, and the 2007-11 Atlas will be 20 years since the last breeding atlas (40 years since the first) and 25 years since the last winter atlas. It is a perfect time for a stock take.

The Atlas will neatly complement existing surveys. Existing schemes that monitor the population levels of Britain and Ireland's birds rely on volunteers visiting randomly selected squares on an annual basis. These are invaluable in their own right, producing population trends and warning 'alerts', but atlas projects complement them by providing comprehensive information, covering far more squares and more species than the sample schemes can achieve. Taken together, the complete range and range change maps of the atlases and the population trends of the monitoring schemes, provide powerful tools of the trade for scientists and conservationists.

What will Bird Atlas 2007-11 tell us?