Guidance and support for Winter Bird Survey data entry, including how to use BBS Online.
Submit your data online
We encourage volunteers to enter their own counts using the BBS Online web application. Please consider using our online data entry system if possible – we have lots of help and guidance to support you with this.
- Before you can enter data online, you will need to have a MyBTO account and have registered for the survey.
How to log in
To log in to BBS Online, you need to have been allocated a Winter Bird Survey square and registered for the survey.
- If you have a username and password, and your RO has allocated the square to you online, but you still can’t log in, email winterbirds@bto.org for help.
Guidance document
Our guidance document provides information about BBS Online for entering data.
BBS Online video tutorials
View our tutorials on mapping your route and entering data. These will be available to view in September.
Submit your data on paper forms
If you wish to submit your data on paper, you can:
- Send your Field Recording Sheet and habitat forms to Winter Bird Survey, British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, IP24 2PU
- Take a good-quality scan or image of your Field Recording Sheet and habitat forms and email these to winterbirds@bto.org.
When submitting paper forms, please ensure that you:
- Use the standard two-letter BTO species codes for birds. These are available to view and download from the survey Recording page.
- Full names or unequivocal abbreviations for mammals (some suggested three-letter codes are provided).
Please also ensure that all of your observations are legible and attributed to a single distance band.