I’ve been following the fortunes of the birds in a garden in Kent since I was quite young. Alright – actually I’ve been doing more than following their fortunes, I’ve been keeping records since the early 1970s. I hope I’ve put my lists to good use as they are all tucked away safely on the BTO computer as part of BirdTrack – a joint BTO, RSPB, Scottish Bird Club, BirdWatch Ireland project.
This news story prompted me to go back and look at records for two species in particular, lesser-spotted woodpecker and willow tit. The woodpecker last made an appearance in 1991, and willow tit a solitary record back in 1978.
Lesser spotted woodpecker - picture credit Steve Round
These two birds have slipped below the threshold that makes it necessary that monitoring of their population now falls to the Rare Breeding Birds Panel to assess numbers. If you are lucky – or persistent – enough to encounter these birds it’s really important to make the most of your record and BirdTrack is a great way of contributing to our knowledge.
If you have records of our rarest breeding birds you can submit them directly to the Panel – here’s where you find out more.
Follow me in twitter.