Publications

Publications

BTO create and publish a variety of important articles, papers, journals and other publications, independently and with our partners, for organisations, government and the private sector. Some of our publications (books, guides and atlases) are also available to buy in our online shop.

Annual report of the Seabird Monitoring Programme

Seabird Population Trends and Causes of Change: 1986–2023

This report presents the latest seabird population trends in breeding abundance and productivity using data from the Seabird Monitoring Programme (SMP). 

The report documents changes in the abundance and productivity of breeding seabird species in Britain and Ireland from 1986 to 2023, and provides a detailed account of the 2021, 2022 and 2023 breeding seasons.

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Annual report of the Seabird Monitoring Programme

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Breeding ground temperature rises, more than habitat change, are associated with spatially variable population trends in two species of migratory bird

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Published: 2022

BTO research has examined the effects of climate change and habitat loss on the population trends of Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff. These closely related songbirds, tricky to distinguish by eye, share breeding grounds across the UK but migrate to different wintering grounds. While Chiffchaffs mainly migrate to south-west Europe and north-west Africa, with a small number remaining in the UK, Willow Warblers head across the Sahara to the humid zone in central Africa.

03.07.22

Papers

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Relative roles of static and dynamic abiotic conditions as drivers of foraging behaviour in breeding Sandwich Terns

Author:

Published: 2022

New research involving BTO used GPS tagging to examine Sandwich Tern foraging behaviour during the breeding season. Like other seabirds, Sandwich Terns are so-called ‘central place foragers’ while they are incubating eggs and feeding chicks, shuttling to and from their nest site in search of food. However, successfully finding food on each trip away from the nest requires navigating a continually changing marine environment and relocating moving prey.

30.06.22

Papers

A 30,000-km journey by Apus apus pekinensis tracks arid lands between northern China and south-western Africa

Author:

Published: 2022

The Swift is widely distributed with a cross-continental breeding range spanning Europe and large parts of Asia and north Africa. Until recently, Swift migration research has focused on populations which breed in Europe and north-western Africa (the apus subspecies), leaving the migration of birds breeding throughout Asia (the pekinensis subspecies) shrouded in mystery.

29.06.22

Papers

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Timing is critical: consequences of asynchronous migration for the performance and destination of a long-distance migrant

Author:

Published: 2022

There is growing evidence that climate change is shifting the timing of migration for migrant birds, but we have surprisingly little information on what these changes mean for them. The timing and duration of a migratory flight is likely to determine the environmental conditions that an individual will encounter on its journey, and this may have important consequences. It may encounter unfavourable weather conditions or discover that a traditional stopover site doesn’t hold the expected resources, because the bird has arrived too early or too late.

20.06.22

Papers

WeBS News 2020/21 Special Edition

Author:

Published: 2022

20.06.22

Newsletters Waterbird News

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