Recording: Why?

Keeping a record of birds you see and hear is one of the most rewarding and useful aspects of birding.  Keeping a note of what you observe is personally rewarding but, when combined with other birders’ notes, our individual records can provide a valuable historical record.

A great deal of useful information can be obtained from the records collected by birders during their regular birding activities.  Over time, the information can be compared and changes in patterns of distribution and abundance identified. Even national policy documents, such as the State of Nature reports, rely on volunteer recording.

Recording birds regularly from the same site can contribute to a greater understanding of the value of a site and may provide important information to safeguard or enhance the site. At a personal level it can answer questions like “are house martins early or late?” and “does this look like a good year for nesting?”.

There is a real conservation value to your records.  By submitting your records you will be increasing their value as they are pooled with records from other observers across the county to create the wider picture of the distribution, abundance and movements of our local birds.

All you need to start is a notebook or app. So…