The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has announced today that it is forging a long-term partnership with family-run Lincolnshire-based bird-care business Vine House Farm. It is estimated that more than half of all households in the UK engage in feeding birds in their gardens. BTO has long been at the forefront of monitoring and researching the effects of food provision on wild birds. This work has yielded fascinating insights into how the UK public’s bird feeding habits have impacted wild bird populations, and helped to produce best practice guidance for feeding birds safely. The new partnership between BTO and Vine House Farm will provide an opportunity to engage many more people in the enjoyable habit of feeding garden birds and to help them learn how to do this in the best ways for their birds. Vine House Farm is a conservation-award-winning farm, managed with wildlife in mind and environmental responsibility to the fore. The family behind this business has been associated with BTO since 1960, with Nicholas Watts MBE contributing to many BTO surveys and monitoring schemes. Professor Juliet Vickery, BTO Chief Executive Officer, said, “BTO is delighted to be joining Vine House Farm in a partnership that recognises the joy that feeding birds in gardens brings to thousands of people and the need to ensure that this food is high quality and sustainably sourced. Their support of BTO will help us to engage more people in discovering birds and help to conserve and understand them on our doorstep and further afield.” Lucy Taylor, Nicholas’ daughter, and General Manager of Vine House Farm Bird Foods, said, “BTO is a natural partner for Vine House Farm and this partnership will help our customers understand more about the birds they feed and enable us to contribute even more to bird conservation.”

Thousands of threatened seabirds suspected to have died from Avian Influenza are once again washing up on UK beaches. Members of the public are urged to report all dead birds to BirdTrack and to Defra (or DAERA in Northern Ireland). This unprecedented outbreak of Avian Influenza began in 2021 and has had a devastating impact on birds in the UK and beyond. Hopes have been dashed that this summer’s wave of Avian Influenza might be less severe than in 2022, say researchers from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). The disease is once again having a devastating impact, with threatened seabirds washing up on beaches across the UK. Experts are calling for the public to report all dead birds to BirdTrack and Defra in Great Britain and DAERA in Northern Ireland to help them understand more about the disease’s spread. Birds are dying from suspected cases of the Avian Influenza the length and breadth of the UK. Recent weeks have seen hundreds of dead Guillemots washed up on beaches in Wales and thousands of terns and gulls – including Kittiwakes, which were already on the UK Birds on Conservation Concern Red List because of population declines before avian influenza hit, dead at colonies in eastern Scotland and England. Black-headed Gulls remain the worst affected birds in Northern Ireland. Just last week, NatureScot recorded 1,443 Guillemots, 1,570 Kittiwakes and 236 Herring Gulls suspected to have died from Avian Influenza, but the true scale of the losses will not be clear for some time. Earlier in the season, major outbreaks of Avian Influenza were mostly restricted to inland colonies of Black-headed Gulls, though the disease quickly spread to the coast and into colonies of Common Terns. Many thousands of each species are now known to have been killed. Reports suggest that as many as 20,000 Black-headed Gulls (adults and young) may have died at one Lancashire site alone. More than 10% of the total UK breeding population may have been lost. This unprecedented UK outbreak of Avian Influenza began in 2021. Estimates of the total number of birds killed vary but more than 70 species are known to have been affected. Many colonies are being hit this year for the first time; others, sadly, are experiencing a second summer of disease. Alongside the annual surveillance of some seabird colonies through the BTO/JNCC Seabird Monitoring Programme, there is additional work underway this year to assess the situation of species, such as Great Skua and Gannet, that were worst hit last year but are not usually monitored annually. All dead and sick birds of any species should be reported to BirdTrack and to Defra/DAERA. BirdTrack allows researchers to follow the geographical spread of Avian Influenza and rapidly assess its potential impact. Defra/DAERA will decide whether to collect the dead birds and test them for the disease. Members of the public are reminded not to touch dead or sick birds and to keep dogs on leads to prevent the further spread of disease. BTO Head of Surveys, Dawn Balmer, said: “As our beaches get busier over the summer holidays, do look out for dead birds, report them and keep your dogs on leads and away from carcasses. It’s devastating to see the impact of Avian Influenza again this year. You can help us monitor the situation by continuing to report dead birds to Defra (GB) and DAERA (NI), and also to BirdTrack.” RSPB Senior Policy Officer for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, Claire Smith, said: “It’s heart-breaking to see Avian Influenza sweep through seabirds again this year. The disease is one of several threats impacting the UK’s internationally important seabird populations. These long-lived and slow-breeding birds cannot simply bounce back. We need to do all we can to remove other human-induced pressures, such as by reducing bycatch and closing sandeel fisheries. We must also carefully consider the location of coastal developments and step up measures to tackle climate change.” Natural England Principal Advisor for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, Nik Ward, said: “Avian Influenza has again had a big impact on many of our important seabird colonies in England affecting chicks and adults in different proportions. Future monitoring will be crucial for assessing the lasting effects of these mortality events.”

Members and supporters of the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) came together this weekend to celebrate the leading bird research and monitoring charity’s 90th birthday at its headquarters in Thetford, Norfolk. BTO president and BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner joined BTO Chief Executive Professor Juliet Vickery, staff from across the organisation and around 200 guests – many of whom have made huge contributions to its work as volunteers – on Saturday 1 July. Visitors enjoyed a day of talks, guided walks and lots of birthday cake, 90 years to the day since a letter in The Times called for people to support establishing a new organisation to monitor UK bird populations. Staff from the organisation presented updates on its vital conservation work and helped to showcase the varied wildlife of the BTO Nunnery Lakes reserve. Visitors enjoyed talking to like-minded people from across the UK and seeing a variety of species up close at bird ringing and moth trapping demonstrations. On hand to help cut the BTO’s birthday cake was longstanding BTO member Rose Newsom, also celebrating her 90th birthday this year. At the other end of the spectrum, members of the BTO Youth Advisory Panel spoke about their work to engage more young people with birds and conservation. BTO has been based in Thetford since 1991, when it moved to its current home at The Nunnery, just outside the town centre. BTO Chief Executive Professor Juliet Vickery said, “We were delighted to celebrate our 90th birthday with so many of our wonderful supporters. It’s thanks to their dedication and expertise that we have such an extraordinary understanding of the UK’s birds. Together, we will continue to play a vital role in conserving our birds and other wildlife for other generations to enjoy.”

The recent spread of Avian Influenza among threatened gulls and terns is gathering pace, say experts from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). At least 10,000 Black-headed Gulls, 4% of the total UK population, are feared to have died since the end of March. Hundreds of Common Terns have also died, with signs of severe losses for this species still to come. BTO researchers want members of the public to help track the spread of Avian Influenza by reporting all dead birds through both the BirdTrack app and to Defra. In Northern Ireland, dead birds should be reported both through BirdTrack and DAERA. Black-headed Gull mortalities from suspected Avian Influenza have more than doubled in the past month, with reports indicating that the new wave has spread across England and into Northern Ireland. Since the beginning of June, more than 200 Black-headed Gulls and a number of Common Terns are thought to have died from Avian Influenza at RSPB Window on Wildlife at Belfast harbour. The reserve has been temporarily closed to the public. Black-headed Gulls often nest alongside other colonial birds, including Common Terns, with this species now also impacted at sites from Norfolk to County Antrim. 40% of the 800 breeding Common Terns at Shotton Steelworks in North Wales are thought to have died from Avian Influenza, along with half of the 400 that breed at nearby Seaforth Nature Reserve. Both Black-headed Gull and Common Tern feature on the Amber List of Birds of Conservation Concern. The long-term impact of Avian Influenza on these threatened populations will not be known for some time yet. Although only a relatively small number of dead birds are tested for Avian Influenza, current sampling suggests very large numbers of Black-headed Gulls are already affected. All dead and sick birds of any species should be reported to BirdTrack, which allows researchers to follow the disease’s geographical spread and rapidly assess potential impacts on populations, and to Defra/DAERA, so that if needed, dead birds can be collected for testing. Members of the public are reminded not to touch dead or sick birds and to keep dogs on leads to prevent the further spread of disease. Professor James Pearce-Higgins, BTO Director of Science, said, “The spread of Avian Influenza through these inland breeding colonies of Black-headed Gulls and Common Terns is continuing. It represents the next phase of the battle against this virus that devastated so many of our coastal and offshore seabird colonies last year. We are only able to track the spread of Avian Influenza with the help of birdwatchers who submit their sightings to BirdTrack and Defra/DAERA, supporting the efforts of site managers and reserve wardens.” Dawn Balmer, BTO Head of Surveys, said, “Thank you to everyone who has submitted records of dead birds to BirdTrack which allows us to monitor the spread of Avian Influenza, and also to Defra/DAERA, which may collect the birds for testing. Black-headed Gulls breeding at upland reservoirs appear to be badly affected at the moment, so we urge birdwatchers to check out breeding sites they may know of and report any deaths.” Peter Coffey, Merseyside Ringing Group volunteer, said, “It is devastating to see Avian Influenza affect so many Black-headed Gulls and Common Terns at Shotton Steelworks, an important location for both species. Over a third of our adult Common Terns have already died.”