An amazing opportunity
Undertaking bird surveying with BTO is a great way of learning more about the birds and other wildlife in your local area. Surveying often takes you to areas that you would not normally visit, creating excellent opportunities to expand your knowledge. Volunteering also provides you with a range of opportunities to develop other skills such as map reading and habitat identification.
Volunteer for a project
From monitoring raptors and recording the birds in your garden to helping us track bird migration throughout Britain and Ireland, there's something to suit everyone's interest and level of skill.
Volunteer stories
Find out what other people value about volunteering for our bird monitoring surveys: read Anne Reid's story about taking part in Atlas recording and the memorable moments it left her with.
Volunteer as a Regional Rep
Regional Rep volunteers are the first point of contact for local volunteer surveyors. They help organise regional conferences where volunteers come together to share experiences and chat to BTO staff.
Volunteer resources
Whether you're already taking part in a survey or want to find out a bit more detail about what's involved with volunteering, this list gives you quick access to the surveys, Regional Reps and tools.
Training courses
BTO run regular training courses to help inexperienced volunteers develop their bird ID skills, knowledge and confidence so that they may participate in more challenging surveys.
Survey essentials
If you're new to birding or volunteering for a survey, we understand you might have lots of questions. To help you get started, we've created some guidance that will help build your confidence and skills.