From time-to-time the Bedfordshire Bird Club invites birdwatchers to participate in projects and surveys on various bird species in the county. Contact details of whom to report sightings to are given, and, where possible, feedback on any findings will be provided so that you can see the value of your sightings.
SUMMER GARDEN BIRD FEEDING SURVEY 2021 – starts 7th March. Form for download, please click preferred format PDF XLS
Winter Garden Bird Survey 2020/21 – starts Sunday 4th October – please participate using the downloadable form XLS PDF
Lockdown bird race 2nd/3rd May – what is in our gardens and found on our permissive exercise (walk and cycle only – no driving from home) – species reported are listed HERE
Summer Garden Bird Feeding Survey – starts 8th March 2020, recording form for download PDF
BTO Survey Breeding Waders of Wet Meadows 2020 - click for dedicated page
BTO Survey – Heronries – click for dedicated page
The Great Duck Hunt - an annual survey of waterbirds on all of the counties waterbodies undertaken in January to coincide with the weekend of the BTO WEBS survey. To choose your sites and updated your counts for the 2020 activity there is a dedicated page listing sites and observers at The Great Duck Hunt
The Christmas Bird Hunt 2019. Take part and find out how we got on dedicated page
Garden Bird Feeding Survey - click for dedicated page
Full report of the Summer Garden Bird Feeding Survey 2019
Full report of the Winter Garden Bird Feeding Survey 2018-2019
Waterways Breeding Bird Suvey 2017 - click for dedicated page
Quick download of Survey Methodology and Recording Form as pdf HERE
Swift and House Martin Survey data – click for dedicated page
Roger Hicks Rookeries Survey. Roger has been surveying rookeries since 2013 in the county and a dedicated page on the website covers recent studies here
Roger has more recently created a separate website covering this work which can be found at www.rookeries.uk You can view most of the data without logging in. You need to register in order to get a log-in, this produces an activation email (sent to your email address). Clicking on the link in this email activates your log-in.
WILDLIFE SITE BIRD CRITERIA DOCUMENTS
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION
In all cases, it must be proven that a site has reached at least one of the threshold values within the last five years. Species should be present on more than one occasion and in at least two of the years under review. Conditions at the site must be conducive (provided there is no intentional effort to destroy part or whole of the site) to this value being typical or consistently reached.
The following appendices should be used to identify Wildlife Sites that are important for birds:
- Qualifying levels for winter and passage birds. Sites supporting the required number of species or individual birds, as defined in Appendix 8a.
- Breeding bird indices by habitat. Sites that support a range of breeding birds with a value equal to or exceeding the indices, as defined in Appendix 8b.
- Colonial breeding species; this criteria can operate separately or in conjunction with Appendix 8b. Thresholds are for the number of pairs or nests. Grey Heron (3 or more), Common Tern (5 or more), Sand Martin (5 or more), Black-headed Gull (10 or more).
The criteria are supported by two documents:
- Appendix 8A Qualifying Thresholds for Winter and Passage Birds _January 2016_
- App 8B Breeding Bird Indices by Habitat (revised Feb 2020)
The criteria are supported by two further documents: