Garden BirdWatch (GBW)

Garden BirdWatch monitors the changing fortunes of birds and other garden wildlife through its network of 'citizen scientists'. Observations collected by BTO Garden BirdWatchers are analysed by BTO researchers and published in leading journals. BTO Garden BirdWatchers have charted the decline of the House Sparrow, the rise of the Woodpigeon, have discovered that urban birds get up later than their rural counterparts and have alerted conservationists to the impact of an emerging disease in Greenfinches.Find out more about the project here

Latest News 

Help share the results of Garden BirdWatch

 

Thanks to BTO Garden BirdWatchers we already know a lot about the birds and other wildlife using our gardens but some key questions remain unanswered. With your help we can tackle them. The Garden BirdWatch Appeal aims to raise £40,000 to fund a young scientist, over the next couple of years, to explore the wealth of information collected through Garden BirdWatch and to provide the answers that we need to support conservation action.

Read about the questions we hope to answer and how you can help.

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Hedgehogs emerge late from hibernation

 

The latest results from the BTO Garden BirdWatch survey have revealed that British Hedgehogs are emerging from hibernation very late this spring. This weekly survey, which covers mammals as well as birds, shows that Hedgehog emergence is roughly a month behind what was seen in 2011 and 2012. The long winter may also have led to increased levels of overwinter mortality.

Find out more about Hedgehogs and UK gardens.

 

Reports of avian pox in Great Tits are a recent phenomenon and have shown a marked increase since 2006, with many individuals showing particularly large and unpleasant looking lesions. The emergence of avian pox in British tits has been investigated by researchers at the Institute of Zoology, the Edward Grey Institute, the BTO and RSPB, working together to unravel the reasons behind the recent spread of cases. A series of three papers on the topic have just been published in the journal PLOS One, one of which uses data collected by BTO Garden BirdWatchers.

Find out more.

Keep telling us about your unusual-looking garden birds

 

The BTO Abnormal Plumage Survey and Big Garden Beak Watch projects are still on-going. If you see a bird with unusual-coloured plumage or a deformed beak in your garden, please let us know so that we can keep a record of these individuals. We are particularly interested in knowing where these birds are seen, the kinds of abnormalities that they experience and whether their behaviour differs from 'normal' individuals.

Give the gift of Garden BirdWatch

 

Our smart new presentation pack means that you can now give the gift of BTO Garden BirdWatch to a friend or relative. The pack, which retails at £19.95, contains all that is needed to get started recording garden wildlife. Once the activation card is returned, the recipient will be sent a free copy of the acclaimed Garden Birds & Wildlife and four quarterly issues of Bird Table magazine. Order your copy today.

The pack contains: an annual sunscription to GBW, a welcome letter, an activation card, a quick start guide, instructions, advice on feeding and attracting garden birds and a car sticker. Return the activation card to receive a free copy of Garden Birds and Wildlife, four quarterly issues of Bird Table magazine, access to BTO experts, access to GBW Online.