Keen to help monitor North East birds? Discover ornithological citizen science projects taking place in the region.
Eider Aware North East
Found along our coast and estuaries, Eiders are sea ducks with a distinctive ‘a-ooh-e’ call. Eider Aware North East is a project which aims to celebrate and uncover more about the nationally important Eider populations along the Northumberland coast.
Sharing your sightings will help the Berkshire & Northumberland Nature Partnership target future conservation action and uncover more about the local pressures facing these much-loved sea ducks.
Your records can be submitted online, or for Eider mapping on the go, through a dedicated mobile App.
Nature’s Audio
Help scientists at Durham University uncover more about the North East’s songbirds by recording and identifying bird song.
Recording these sounds provides a permanent record for research and can inform us about the distribution, abundance and behaviour of birds.
From the comfort of your home, you can contribute by identifying calls from recordings by other project participants.
North East England Beached Bird Survey
The North East Beached Bird Survey is a voluntary group that records bird species found washed up on the shore.
Once a month, volunteers survey a stretch of coast and record incidences of beached birds, environmental issues such as oil spills and litter, and conditions of the birds they find. Your surveys will help uncover more about the incidence of beached birds along our coastline and what pressures are facing these birds.
Working closely with the Dove Marine Laboratory, some birds are further analysed to identify internal issues.
Wetland Bird Survey (WeBs)
Monitor waterbirds at your local patch by joining the British Trust of Ornithology’s Wetland Bird Survey. Each month during the survey period, volunteers count the number of waterbirds at their local wetland site.
Your records will contribute to a long-term dataset, helping to understand more about non-breeding waterbirds, both locally and nationally.
There are a number of vacant sites in Northumberland and County Durham, both inland and coastal. Find a local survey site near you and contact your local organiser to monitor birds at a vacant site.
Join North East Citizen Science
To protect nature, we need to know as much as we can about it. Conservationists and researchers cannot do this alone.
By taking part in citizen science, you’ll make a difference for nature across the North East.
From birds to botany, discover what projects are happening in the North East.
By Charlotte Rankin, local naturalist