Press releases
Want to attract Goldfinches? Sunflower hearts are the answer!
June 2016
Goldfinches are being seen at garden bird feeders in ever-greater numbers, and the key attraction for them is sunflower hearts, according to an investigation into the increase of this colourful garden visitor...
The sad demise of Stanley
June 2016
In May 2014, Stanley the Cuckoo had a satellite tag fitted by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), joining a cohort of birds that would hopefully provide information to help to slow down, or reverse the dramatic decline the species is experiencing...
Unusual number of birds in gardens during April cold snap
May 2016
At this time of year most birds are starting to think about raising young, and many head out of gardens for that purpose...
Great Cuckoo Expectations
April 2016
Seven satellite-tagged Cuckoos have started to make their way home, having spent the winter in Africa...
Poor weather hits garden birds
March 2016
With the British Trust for Ornithology's (BTO) Garden BirdWatch results now published for 2015, we can see the full impact last year’s wet spring had on our garden birds...
Help needed for House Martins
March 2016
The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is calling on members of the public to follow and record the nesting activity of House Martins this summer, to help understand why it is in trouble...
Cheating Cuckoo scoops book award
March 2016
‘Cuckoo: Cheating by Nature’, written by Professor Nick Davies FRS and published by Bloomsbury Publishing, has just been announced as the winner of the BB/BTO Best Bird Book of the Year 2015...
People in southern Scotland asked to go batty
March 2016
Very little is known about some of the bats to be found in southern Scotland but all that is about to change, thanks to an ambitious project that will enlist the help of people in the area...
Schoolchildren unearth interesting playing field results
March 2016
Since the summer of 2015 1,606 schools across the UK have taken part in a survey to find out what is living under their feet, and how this affects the birds that depend on the wildlife that lives in our soil...
Shoppers vote for local charities to get bags of help
February 2016
Three local charities are to benefit from the 5p charge on carrier bags, but shoppers are to decide who gets what...
Britain needs more nest boxes
February 2016
National Nest Box Week 2016 - February 14th-21st Many of the UK’s birds will struggle to find a suitable nesting site for the breeding season...
Don't miss the Garden and Urban Wildlife Conference in Durham
January 2016
Featuring talks by experts from leading wildlife organisations including the British Trust for Ornithology, Durham Wildlife Trust and Butterfly Conservation, the Garden and Urban Wildlife Conference will be an exciting day, exploring the importance of gardens for nature...
Tawny Owls missing from gardens
January 2016
This is the time of the year when Tawny Owls can be frequently heard, and even seen, in gardens...
Sudden freezing weather drove birds into gardens
January 2016
The unusually warm end to 2015 has resulted in quiet bird tables this winter, according to the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO)...
RAF Honington personnel help clear the way for a new woodland
January 2016
New recruits to RAF Honington were out and about this weekend helping to clear part of the British Trust for Ornithology’s (BTO) Nunnery Lakes nature reserve, in preparation of the planting of 200 new trees...
Are sunflower hearts the secret to attracting garden Goldfinches?
January 2016
With record numbers of Goldfinches being seen in gardens this winter, the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) wants to know what it is about our gardens that they are attracted to...
Fifty years counting ducks
January 2016
January 16th is the 50th anniversary of the International Waterbirds Census (IWC) in which volunteers from over one hundred countries will get out in search of their waterbirds...
British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) become Migration Festival Partner
January 2016
BTO are delighted to be able to report that they have signed a 'Friendship Agreement' with Spurn Bird Observatory Trust Ltd to deliver future migration festivals at Spurn...
Curlews and other upland birds are in decline
December 2015
The latest official statistics for Scotland’s terrestrial birds show significant declines for upland birds, such as the Curlew, but more positive trends elsewhere...
The north bears the brunt of a bad breeding season
December 2015
Information collected by British Trust for Ornithology volunteers shows that numbers of many resident bird species, and some migrants, increased in 2015...
Want to be Young Bird Photographer of the Year?
November 2015
Bird Photographer of the Year (BPOTY) is a new competition that aims to set the gold standard for wildlife photography...
Cambridgeshire scientist wins prestigious national award
November 2015
Stuart Butchart of BirdLife International, based in Cambridge, scooped the British Trust for Ornithology BTO/ Marsh Award for Ornithology at a glittering ceremony in London...
Marsh Award for Local Ornithology - Devon man receives prestigious national award
November 2015
Malcolm Burgess, who founded PiedFly...
UK bird populations benefitting from innovative partnerships
November 2015
New report reveals conservation organisations partnered with farmers, supermarkets and even the brewing industry has positive impacts on bird populations...
Budding birder bags brilliant ornithology award.
November 2015
Thirteen year old Findlay Wilde from Cheshire was presented with the Marsh Award for Young Ornithologist of the Year in London last Wednesday, after proving to be truly ‘Wilde About Birds’...
Calling all gardens with Goldfinches
November 2015
If you have Goldfinches in your garden, you’re probably aware that they’re becoming increasingly common...
Poole-based organisation wins prestigious national award
November 2015
The Sound Approach has been awarded the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) Marsh Award for innovative Ornithology...
Britain just got bigger - for some of our birds
October 2015
New research, just published in the scientific journal Bird Study, shows that many of our birds have expanded their geographic range in response to climate change...
Sparrow numbers rise at garden feeders
October 2015
With significant declines in both House Sparrow and Tree Sparrow populations, things could not have looked worse for UK sparrows...
Watch out for Nuthatches; new online tool reveals the garden birds to look out for
September 2015
Autumn is always an interesting time of year for garden birdwatchers and up-to-date movements of birds into gardens can now be tracked, for the first time, using the new interactive Garden BirdWatch results pages...
