Guest blog by Ian Newton, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and RSPB Vice President, on his new paper published in Ibis, detailing how raptors in Britain are still affected by illegal persecution.

Anyone who lives in Britain will be familiar with the frequent reports in the media of raptors being killed on grouse moors, despite all species being ‘protected’ by law. These reports concern instances where the killing was…

Today's blog is by Dr Jen Smart, Head of Species, England.

The RSPB remains neutral on the ethics of shooting, but we are concerned about the environmental impacts of its more intensive forms. During the last year, we have consulted our membership and a wide range of stakeholders on their views of gamebird shooting, and we have also reviewed the evidence relating to the impacts of gamebird shooting and associated land management. Th…

Guest blog by Rebecca Pitman, Senior Project Manager for Project Godwit

Anyone who doesn’t have at least some degree of admiration for the feat of bird migration either isn’t aware of the challenges involved or must lack any sense of wonder and imagination. It’s World Migratory Birds Day this Saturday 10  October and with excellent timing a new wave of sightings of black-tailed godwits from outside the…

Guest blog by Dr Andrew Bladon, University of Cambridge, on his new paper published in the Journal of Animal Ecology.

They say that only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. Perhaps we should add lepidopterists – people who study butterflies – to that list. It was early August, in the peak of the 2018 heatwave, as I netted another small white Pieris rapae on the steep slopes of Pegsdon Hills Wildlife…

Today’s guest blog is by Dr Stuart Butchart, Chief Scientist, BirdLife International on their latest report ‘Birds and Biodiversity Targets’

Amid a slew of recent news stories on plummeting wildlife populations, missed targets and a lost decade for nature, it would be easy to feel despondent. But birds provide plenty of reasons for hope, with positive trends and examples of success for each of the ‘Aichi…

Graham Appleton has been writing blogs about waders for five years, under the WaderTales banner. Twenty-four of his articles have featured projects that RSPB Science researchers have either led or been involved in. We asked him for his highlights:

The conservation of waders is a key study area for RSPB scientists, from dotterel at the top of Scottish mountains to redshank nesting around our coasts. It has been a pleasure…

Guest blog by Dr Lowell Mills – recent PhD graduate from the University of Exeter, in partnership with the RSPB

In a University of Exeter and RSPB study published this month, we improve understanding, using DNA-sequencing and photographs taken by the public, of the range of caterpillars selected as prey by cuckoos, but also find some unexpected other prey items in the diet.  Better understanding the diet of cuckoos…

Today’s guest blog has been written by José Alves, Conservation Ecologist at University of Aveiro, and Maria Dias, Marine Science Coordinator at BirdLife International, over the controversial decision to build a commercial airport in an area important for waterbirds.

In our letter published today in Science, we highlight the contradiction between the recently appointed EU Commission’s intention to shift EU…

A blog by Jonathan Morley, a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh in partnership with RSPB detailing a new paper that looks at how recent changes in World Bank policy might impact biodiversity conservation.

The World Bank provides loans and grants to low income countries to finance development projects. These can be a wide range of projects including building infrastructure such as roads or suppling teaching materials…

The recently published pharmacy survey paper has further serious implications. This second blog post by Senior Conservation Scientist, John Mallord, explains why this is important both in Asia and worldwide

A recently-published paper detailing the results of undercover pharmacy surveys highlighted the ongoing risk to South Asia’s vultures of the continued availability of diclofenac. Yet equally significant was the…

Today’s blog is by Conservation Scientist, Tom Bradfer-Lawrence, on a new paper which will help our understanding of a long-distance migratory bird.

The spoon-billed sandpiper, or spoonies as they’re affectionately called, are a Critically Endangered shorebird species. The best recent estimate, from 2014, was that there were only about 440 adults left in the world. With such a low population, continued urgent conservation…

Today’s blog has been written by Senior Conservation Scientist, Steffen Oppel, for Vulture Awareness Day

Vultures are large birds that eat dead animals. No carcass is too disgusting for them, and by removing rotting animal flesh from the landscape they reduce the substrate on which pathogens can thrive, or the pool of viruses that may have initially killed that now dead animal. With vultures cleaning up carcasses…

Today’s blog is by Senior Conservation Scientist, John Mallord, on a new paper detailing an undercover investigation into diclofenac.

It has been over a decade since the Governments of India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh banned the veterinary use of diclofenac, which was commonly used to treat cattle. This was in response to the proven role of this non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) in the catastrophic…

Blog by Dr Mark Bolton, Principal Conservation Scientist on his new paper published today. 

The sparrow-sized European storm petrel is the smallest seabird in the Atlantic, nesting only on the most remote islands, around the coasts of north-west Europe. Over the last century, seabird biologists working in these far flung and beautiful places have pieced together the details of the storm petrels’ breeding behaviour on land…

Today’s guest blog is by visual artist and wildlife biologist, Elaine Ford. Elaine has been working with Project Puffin tracking data to create works of art for a new exhibition.

The Space and Satellite Artists’ Residency kicked off in May as part of the launch of the University of Edinburgh’s new InSpace Gallery. I was commissioned to explore the rapidly-evolving world of space and satellites, alongside…

Today’s guest blog is by the British Ecological Society (BES) announced today the winners of its annual awards and prizes. Eleven distinguished ecologists have been recognised where their work has benefited the scientific community and society in general, including RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Professor Juliet Vickery. Below, BES explains why Juliet was nominated for the award and looks back some of her…

What's the latest on the Liben Lark? Simon Wootton, Senior Conservation Scientist, gives us an update on what's happening next on the plains. 

In 2009, a BBC headline spoke of an “African lark soon to be extinct”. The bird in question, the Liben Lark, is one of the oldest species of lark in the world, but is now found in just two small areas of degraded grasslands in Ethiopia, over 600km apart. Without intervention…

Today’s blog is by Christopher Jones, Senior Field Assistant living on Gough Island and unravelling the mysteries of an intrepid bird.

Despite the current global travel restrictions, a young Southern Giant Petrel was spotted by fishermen near the French Overseas Territory of Amsterdam Island in the southern Indian Ocean in April.

After some investigation work, the bird was discovered to have been ringed as a chick…

Today's blog is by Simon Wotton, Senior Conservation Scientist, giving the latest update on the willow tit survey.

Between 1995 and 2018, numbers of Britain's endemic subspecies of willow tit have declined by 82%, making it the second fastest declining UK bird after turtle dove. If considering resident birds only, it is in fact the fastest declining. These plummeting numbers have meant the species is now red-lis…

Today’s blog is by puffineer and photographer, Oli Prince, giving guidance on getting the best puffin photographs.

It might be a bit late in the year now to be getting puffin photos as the breeding season is almost over but it’s a great time to start planning for your summer 2021 visit. We have some top tips for you on how you can make the most of your puffin photography experience.

Patience is essential…

Over the last decade, deploying small tracking devices on seabirds has been able to provide us with astonishing insights into their offshore life. Today’s blog has been written by Conservation Scientist, Saskia Wischnewski, on some recent findings which take us straight to the West coast of Ireland, where Manx shearwaters ended up breaking records and proving that location matters.

There is something weirdly fascinating…

Today’s guest blog has been written by Dr Paul Gaffney, former PhD student and hydrochemist at the Environmental Research Institute, on his work with RSPB centre for conservation science at Forsinard Flows.

Although peatlands cover just three percent of the Earth’s surface, they provide an important range of ecosystem services to society, include nature conservation, water regulation and carbon storage. Crucially…

Today’s blog is by puffineer, Katie Horton, on her changed plans to work on Puffarazzi and the learning curve involved.

My first experience working with the RSPB began last year as a Volunteer Reserves Intern at Loch of Strahbeg where I lived and worked for a year. I was due to start work at Geltsdale on the Curlew Trial Management Project this summer, however like many other people, my plans changed.

I had always…

Today's guest blog is written by Senior Policy Officer, Stephanie Morren, covering two new papers on the effects of neonicotinoids on birds and what this means for pesticide policy in the UK. 

Neonicotinoids (NNs) are the largest group of systemic insecticides used around the world to protect a wide variety of crops from agricultural pests. Systemic pesticides are chemicals that are absorbed by the plant when applied…

Today’s blog has been written by one of our volunteer puffineers, Antaia Christou, working on Project Puffin from her home in Cyprus.

One of the reasons Project Puffin has been so successful is down to the hard work of the team. We're mostly volunteers; identifying and measuring the fish in Puffarazzi photos; gathering our own puffin images; working on the science of studying puffin diet; sourcing photos from online…