Avon BTO

Half way

2009-05-10T08:16:00.000-07:00

Almost as many tetrads have been done as have yet to be done- and three weeks to go.
Its been a bad week- cold and windy, and unsurprisingly most people have not gone out- though I hope the weekend will have been better, and I expect a lot of people will wait until the next bank holiday.

Birds of the week; This is a good time to prove breeding for these species. I list the 10k squares where they dont have proved breeding status.
Mute Swan. Not proved to breed yet in ST45, 65, 68, 75 and not even seen in 77.
Canada Goose. Not proved in ST 35,36,47,57,75,77.
Lapwing- hard to prove, but should have young now; Only proved in ST46, 66, 58, 68. Surely they still nest in 47, perhaps in 36 and 35, perhaps in 56.
Herring and LB Gulls are on their nests. Not proved in ST36, ST47, ST65
Feral Pigeon- look under any bridge and you will find young being fed. Only porved so far in ST 57, 67, 68, 76.
Blackbird- Not yet proved in ST37- Clevedon. Fledglings are about.
Young Rooks are being fed in and out of the enst- but not yet proved in ST47 or 66

Halfway

2009-05-04T06:27:00.000-07:00

51 tetrads done, 84 to go, and just over three weeks for it. A lot of people went out over the bank holiday, and there were some nice results- Cuckoos, Sedge and Garden Warblers, and Canada Geese goslings.
Rookeries are now pretty well concealed by leaves, but if there is one in your tetrad please make an estimate. A lot were missed last year. Some young rooks are already out on the branches- so that is FL for the breeding status. Ravens are just fledging too- they are far more elusive. Starlings are feeding young- and always make a beeline for the nest.
Keep working on the breeding status of the less common species- and put in Roving Records for any species anywhere if it helps to bring the status up a notch.
Richard Bland

99 to go

2009-04-28T06:28:00.000-07:00

36 tetrads done, 99 to go, and five weeks left; no problem.
You will have noticed the nice tips on the Atlas home page about breeding status. Please try to assign a breeding status to every bird you see- not always easy I know, and just pouytting H or S is the easy option. But was the bird singing against another- in which case it is T- or were a male and female present- that is P- or was one bird displaying, or fighting another- that is D. Or is that bird going into its nest site- that could be N, or better still go for the two letter codes- Is that nest occupied- then it is ON. Is that bird collecting food for its young or carrying food in its beak- that is FF. At this time of year that is the best evidence- though there are yoiung in the nests of Ravens- which will fledge in a week or two, and Herons- and there are fledgling Moorhens and Mallard around.
Also please make it clear that when species is not nesting- Curlew should all be U- so should Black-headed Gulls, and all Herons not at a heronry- the sites of which we know- and all Cormorants. And try to distinguish between birds that are clearly Migrants - almosty all Sand Martins at present, Wheatear, Whinchat, Redstartand until the start of May all the migrant warblers too, and Yellow Wagtail.
But wandering Herring Gulls are best left without status, they are just food hunting- but make sure you dont miss the breeding pairs.
Good luck

Watch the map turn yellow

2009-04-20T11:33:00.000-07:00

Take a look at the Breeding tetrad map for Avon (go to latest results, and click on Avon, then Tetrads in the breeding season). It is turning yellow as more and more tetrads have their first survey done. So far, this season and last we have covered 267, and this season we have now done 24 , with 110 to go that are electronic.
More people are putting in breediung evidence for their records, which is excellent- of course it is early days, but it is also importnat to put M for a migrant, U for a non breeding summering bird. If you are sure a species is not breeding in your 10km square, like Cormorant or heron, or in some squares Herring Gull, it is important that this is made clear. leaving breeding status blank because you are not sure is fine during the first survey, but every species ought to have some status in the second. And especially in the second survey try to find Proved breeding evidence, which is hard to get on the first survey for most species. And also in June and July check the list of breeding status I sent you, or check the latest results for your 10k square on the website, and put in a roving record for any species that you can prove breeding. We want to raise the statrus aof as many species as possible this year.
Good birding
Richard Bland

Breeding season on the way

2009-04-17T07:02:00.000-07:00

Well, I still mean to write this up every Monday- but life has been busy.
So far, three weeks in, and 18 tetrads done, 116 to go.
Potential breeding Siskin and Lesser Redpoll have been seen on Mendip, ST55, and it would be very nice to get proved breeding for them.
Proved breeding for Owls is also very difficult- I am hoping for support from hawk and Owl Trust- last year was a poor one for Tawny's. I have plenty of evidence of presence, but little proving breeding. Crepuscular visits are worth making later in the season.
Validation. I am just about in position to validate lots of rartity records that I have queried, so the tedious little reminder on your screens should vanish, provided the Recorder was happy with the description you sent in. I will be in touch with observers whose rarities have yet to be sorted. And please send in descriptions for any rarity seen in 2009 as soon as it is seen.

Summertime

2009-03-25T02:08:00.000-07:00

I hope all is ready for the second breeding season. I am still short of a few observers in the Bath area, but we will I think get most tetards covered.

The key this season is to get breeding status right for every species in every square. I have sent round summaries of the existing situation to many people- please ask if you have not had one - but the best advice is if you see evidence that confirms that a species is breeding, ie Occupied Nest,(ON) Nest and eggs, (NE) nest and Young, (NY), Feeding Young(FF) or a young Fledgling (FL), put in a Roving Record. There should be at least 60 breeding species in every 10km square.

Winter results

2009-03-16T03:16:00.000-07:00

Results from 378 tetrads in, six more paper ones on the way, and six computer ones promised, or 390 of 400 complete- quite a record.
I have calculated the maximum winter counts for each tetrad,and there are a few interesting results, representing minimum population numbers;- Little Egret 81; Buzzard 820; Shelduck 1109; Mute swan 535 ; Canada Geese 836; Rook 9766 ; Crow 9158 ;Raven 250
Average species per tetrad 35.4 Av max total per tetrad 710 Maximum total counted 258,571 ( note this is not the same as all the birds counted. I have yet to calculate that.

Looking ahead There are now 14 tetrads not covered for the breeding season. They are;-
ST35 L S T Y. ST45 Q. ST75 A. ST 76 AFWXY ST 77 ACEK That is S of weston, and the Bath area.
If you can help go to Choose TTV on the website, and type in the appropriate 10k square number- or contact me direct

Finbally i have breeding status lists for every 10k square if anyone who has not had one wants one.
Richard Bland

Breeding Status

2009-03-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

Almost all paper records are in, and chasing up of other records has resulted in a situation where we have probably covered 390 0f 400 tetrads in the winter. The ones missed have been through illness mostly, though there are still four outstanding queries.

There are now 13 tetrads needing cover in the breeding season, and there may be three or four more to come. If you have any spare time in the summer, and I know things are tight, check the website to offer help, or just contact me direct. The tetrads concerned are; ST35 STY; ST55 Q V : ST 56D ; ST 76 FWXY : ST77 ACE:

I have send sheets showing the Breeding status of all species in each 10km square to those involved in that square- anyone who has not had one and would like one please contact me. The aim this summer is to provide lots of Roving records to raise the breeding status to Proved Breeding in every square, as well, of course as covering all the remaining tetrads, which is a big ask.

Richard Bland (richardbland@blueyonder.co.uk)

The breeding season beckons

2009-03-02T04:31:00.000-08:00

To date we have got records for 343 tetrads. In the last week 14 new tetrads have been entered- there are another 28 I am waiting for, and I will be jogging a few observers for their records soon. Paper records are starting to roll in, and I will do a summary of this winter for anyone interested. All being well we will have covered all but a dozen of our 400 tetrads this winter.

I have a number of impressions- how few BH there have been, how very thin MP are spread, how low GR counts are, how amazingly widespread RN and BZ are ( 75% of tetrads in some 10k squares), how few, by contrast, PE are seen. It will be fascinating to see the statistics. I am working on three main figures for each species for each 10k square- % distribution, max number/tetrad and overall rate/hour. Another interesting figure is average species per tetrad, which is running at around 35, and, with 400 tetrads is a fairly powerful figure to play with, and also average maximum numbers per tetrad, which varies between 500 and 1100, averaging around 700; That gives a figure of c280,000 birds counted for the region- how that translates into actual population estimate is another matter!

For the breeding season I have prepared a Breeding Status list for each 10KM square, which I will send out to those doing tetrads in them, and to others who did them last season because this is where Roving Records come into their own. We need to ensure confirmed breeding status for every species that is possible, and also to ensure that those species that are non breeing are identified as M (migrant) or U (summering/non-breeders). My lists make it clear what needs to be done, and anyone can contribute information at any time for any area of the region for which they have evidence. Also there is a new facility on the website, Any Square summary- which allows you to see the maximum breeding status of every species in any square you are interested in.

Incidentally Proved breeding records for early nesters for March can be entered and will be used.

Last week

2009-02-23T03:29:00.000-08:00

Well there are on the face of it 43 tetrads still to be covered this week- 13 were done last week, but I suspect many more have been done but not yet entered. It is best to enter results promptly, as it is easy to forget what you saw even if your notebook is excellent. 85 tetards have had their second counts, which is splendid. and 327 out of 400 have been done in the two seasons. 30 are being done on paper and should reach me at the end of the month.

So, a months rest, and then into the breeding season. I will be contacting everyone to check that they can do what I think they have said they will do, and if anyone wants to help more there are ten tetrads still to be covered, and I may find more. They are ST35 T Y; ST 55 Q V; ST56 D ; ST76 X; and ST77 A,B,C,E.

Also I want everyone in the breeding season to put in Roving records of PROVED BREEDING for every species they can. I will be producing lists of species in each 10k square which have yet to be proved. Roving records can be put in for March for early breeders such as owls and Ravens and Mistle Thrush.

Valentines Day is for the birds

2009-02-15T12:50:00.000-08:00

At least ten tetrads have been done this pas week- and probably more that have not been entered. A total of 70 second surveys have been done, and 59 are left to do- and just two weeks to do them. Provided the weather stays kind this should not be a problem.
One or two people have put in breeding status- this should only be done in the case of early nesters, such as owls, Ravens at nest or building, GS Woodpeckers drumming ( D for display).
In March I will produce a list foe each 10k square of the species that need confirmed breeding evidence still. I hope everyone will take on the Roving Recorder role to get proved breeding evidence. Some species are very hard to prove.
There are a few tetrads that still need observers for the summer- ST35 T and Y, ST55 Q and V, ST56D STT76 X and Y and ST77 A,B,C and E. These have been done in the winter , but the observers cant spare the time in the summer. Volunteers welcome. There may well be other gaps that appear as well.

Cold weather

2009-02-08T07:48:00.000-08:00

Not a week for tetrading- but there have been one or two tetrad results input, so we now have 75 to do in three weeks, or 25 a week- possible unless it stays icy.
Quite a lot of interesting observations- dont forget Roving Records of rarities.
Am, still chasing around with validation, and some observers have not responded to e-mails I have sent them- but many have, thanks. In futureI will validate as records come in, and , for rarities, await the Recorder's verdict.
Not everyone gets the Avon Bird Report of course, and hence does not see the list of species for which a description is needed. If in doubt check with me- but on the whole it is a list of the very exceptional.

One month left

2009-02-03T02:25:00.000-08:00

41 tetrads done, 79 to go- Lets hope the weather improves a bit; The cold snap may well cause population changes across the region, because food is pretty hard to come by in many areas. And two points- few species and low numbers is itself important information, but the Atlas will use the maximum number for each species from the two counts. I think we ought to monitor winter populations in the same way as we do summer ones, and have been running a winter bird count to taht end for about ten years, but for the results to be significant it needs more support.

I have completed the tedious validation exercise, and queried some 170 records. Most of these are rarity records that need to be validated by the county recorder, which will take time. In future records will be validated as they come in, which will be much more efficient. If there is a query on your home page please react- and let me know that you have done so. The process of checking will take a while. But if you do see a species requiring a description, ie a rare bird, please send a description in to the county recorder at the same time as submitting the atlas record. This applies to Firecrest, inland Merlin, but not to Hobby. The full list is in the Avon Bird Report. The same applies in the Somerset area of the BTO region.

Third week

2009-01-26T08:35:00.000-08:00

Three weeks in, and 27 tetrads have had their second count, twelve in the past week, and there are 92 to go. Paper returns are also beginning to come in as well. So its looking good, but February is a short monthg, and the weather can be bad, so use all the opportunities that come up.
Ive been beavering away at the very boring validation- and have got 90% done, but that is the easy bit. Checking the things I am bothered about will take time. One person, nameless, put Roving Records in for the wrong 10k square- and there are one or twon Breeding status queries that I have- principally birds that dont breed in the region put down as possible because they were in Habitat where they could. Also one or two July Fledglings who clearly did not breed in the 10km square in which they were recorded- BH is a case in point.
Rareities IDs and descriptions may also take some sorting as they have to be approved by the County recorder.
There will be a lot of chasing up of breeding status to confirm breeding this summer, and I am going to prepare a guide for anyone who wants one.
Good birding

Second winter counts

2009-01-20T07:27:00.000-08:00

Second counts are beginning to roll in- two paper ones now completed, and 13 on-line tetrads. 101 on-line to go. This is a good start, despite the very cold spell, and gales last weekend. Counts have been high as well- though during the freeze up there were some areas that were very empty- birds are forced to concentrate where food is available.
Talking of food, apart from Ivy berries, the hedges are empty of food- its no surprise we have not seen the Waxwings as there are no Rowan or Mountain ash berries left. The Redwings are now out on the fields surviving on in vertebrates- which is fine while temperartures are above freezing.
The average maximum temperature this winter since Dec 1 is still less that 6.0C- a good definition of a cold winter, and we could easily be in for another cold spell. So get the tetrad surveys in when you get a chance!
I have not yet completed the checking process, but have moved on the breeding season records. You may find me asking you to check the breeding status- this may mean that you have put down H for a species that does not actually breed in the area- or that you have failed to do so for one that does!

Second Counts start now

2009-01-05T06:45:00.000-08:00

There are still some 22 First winter counters that I think have been done, but not yet entered; now we have to start turning the map (of Avon tetrads covered in winter) from Yellow to Black.
Three down and 111 to go. The first three counts have all been larger than the first ones for the tetrads concerned- but it is the maximum count for any species that is used.
The Validation exercise is going slowly- I have done about half so far- and have done the easy bits first- there are confusions over Pied/white Wagtail. Lesser Redpoll and Herring Gull which I will be writing to those involved about, and I have sent a list of rareities for checking to the Avon Recorder, and I will be following his recommendtions.
I am also checking and validating records as they come in now.
There are a lot of Bird Track and Roving Record results going in which are all very helpful- Keep them coming.
Rooks I have noticed are already gathering around their nests- keep a note of the sites so that when it comes to the summer you can do a proper Communal nesting count.
Good Atlassing in 2009
Richard Bland

Year end

2008-12-30T02:49:00.001-08:00

I have had reports of a further ten tetrads over the christmas period, so there are now 29 first visits outstanding. I know that many of them have been done, and hope they will be entered soon. I suspect that there will be a few gaps, but we have done very well indeed.
Second Counts begin on thursday Jan 1- on the whole leave a month between first winter counts and second winter counts- and given that weather is often poor, it is wise to use early opportunities.
The Map of Avon showing the coverage so far does not include all the paper results - 34 tetrads are being done on paper, so that coverage is far better than it looks.
Time to think further ahead. If you saw a local rareity the record will be sent to the local recxorder who may ask for s description as part of the validation process. I hope to complete this for winter species in the next two weeks, and take the breeding species after that. I will also be asking some observers to check the breeding status they recorded.
In March Iwill send round details of the confirmed breeding records we need.
Finally if you dont have much to do in the breeding season- please think of taking on a BBS square. I will be e-mailing those who did tetrads last year but are not doing them this. There is a BBS training programme on Sat 21 March at Westbury. If you are interested contact john Tully on johntully4@aol.com
And good birding in 2009 to all my readers
Richard Bland

Ten days and 40 tetrads to go

2008-12-21T13:32:00.000-08:00

Eight new tetrads completed this week, 40 to go by 31st- but I know a number of these have been done and not yet entered, and the most of the rest are promised. With a bit of luck we will get 100% first survey coverage.
Validation. This is now live and I am working on it. Atlas records that are rareities requiring a description are all being sent to the County recorder, in Avon, John Martin. If he has a query about a record this will appear on the home page of your computer with a request that you check it. It is very easy to make a slip- I have made several myself, and if that is what happened with a record just let me know. If you are sure about the record but did not send in a description to the Recorder, please do so- Some of these records go back a long way now I am afraid, and it was not clear to me that this would be the required method of checking rareities. This is important for records for 2008, which may not yet have been seen by John Martin. This also applies to records in the Somerset area of Mendip. I will be working quickly through winter records, and then move on to breeding season ones. For those I may be querying not the ID of the bird but also the breeding status. I may send e-mails direct in cases where there is uncertainty.
John's e-mail is avonbirdrecorder@googlemail.com

On track for 400 tetrads

2008-12-15T06:51:00.000-08:00

What an excellent week- results from 19 new tetrads have been entered on line and I know others have been done and not yet entered. As a result 65 of the on-line tetrads have been done and 48 have yet to be entered- and there is the long Christmas break to complete the first surveys.
Every tetrad now has an observer, so our aim of getting all 400 tetrads done in two years may be achieved- though there will be more pressure in the breeding season because we covered fewer tetrads in the first summer season.
Dont forget the Roving records for rareities Waxwings have been reported in the region for instance, and a Mandarin duck on floodwater. All grist to the Atlas mill!

Validation looms

2008-12-09T12:41:00.000-08:00

At the BTO conference over the weekend, and now the Website is down for 48 hours for major revamp , so I have no idea how many more tetrads have been done recently. The latest I had was that 46 had been done and 72 were left to do; probably half have now been done, half left.
I will send out a reminder to those who still have to do them- though I can well understand people leaving it until the chrismas break when travel is easier.
Also good news there are I think just four tetrads left to be covered.
Validation means that I will be checking all entries, and If I feel uncertain I will send you an e-mail asking you to confirm the record. It is easy to make slips- I have been guilty of several. As for rareities I will not be asking for descriptions, and my standards will be lower than those of the County Recorder. I just have to be convinced you are certain that you saw enough of the bird to be certain of its identity. The golden rule is "if in doubt leave it out".
But I will also be asking about Breeding Status- many people omitted breeding status when it clearly was a possible breeding bird- and some put in breeding status for birds that were clearly still migrants, or, in July, juvenile birds that had dispersed from their nesting colonies. It is very important for this survey that we very clearly differentiate if possible between species that are breeding and those that are definitely not. Also be clear that breeding status only matters at Ten-km square level, not at tetrad level. I am interested in it at that level, but, because it would be impossible to get the same degree of effort in every tetrad to check status, I do not intend to seek the information.
Please be clear the decision is yours, not mine. I cannot alter what you have entered.
Editing your records is quite easy, though at first a bit daunting.
Richard Bland

First Survey, four more weeks

2008-11-30T06:55:00.000-08:00

An excellent week. Go to Recent results, click on Avon, scroll down to tetrad cover and click on W for Winter, and the Black squares are what we dit last winter, the yellow ones are the first survey this season. The map is turning yellower every day- 41 tetrads have had their first survey this month, and that leaves just 80 to go (and another 24 paper surveys). Even better there are just six tetrads that still do not have observers, thanks to several generous offers of help this past week. The ones left ( One in ST45, Cheddar gorge, two in ST 55- around Green Ore on Mendip, two in ST75 around Norton ST Phillip, and one in ST76 on the southern edge of Bath) are not instantly enticing, but that is the fun of tetrading- you never know what you are going to meet in places you have never visited. Any offers gratefully received.
The idea of target species is having some effect- certainly missing species have been recorded in several squares. Tree Creeper and Marsh Tit are worth putting in a Roving record for wherever found- they tend not to get seen in the standard two hours. And I have seen reports of rareities that I hope are being sent in as Roving Records- I cant do it for you.

Progress report

2008-11-23T07:22:00.000-08:00

Not a brilliant week to birdwatch, but 26 tetrads have now reported and there are 98 to go, and five weeks left, so the rate per week needs to pick up sharply. There are also now only 11 tetrads that have no observer, and I am still getting offers of help. I will be doing several of them, but they are all fairly distant from Bristol, so any other offers of help would be much appreciated.
No sign of Waxwings yet- and they wont find much to eat either, as it is a poor autumn, which may well affect the totals, though so far there have been some large flocks of Starlings and Wood Pigeons and Common Gulls.
Dont forget Roving Records of any unusual species- only ST 55 and ST56 have a full house of expected species.
I did one very dull tetrad this week- 19 species and, apart from a large flock of Starlings, just 250 birds; but what is not present is as important as what is present, because its ays something about the habitat as well as the birds. I was surprised to find a large field of unharvested maize, and not a bird in sight, though the cobs were apparently easily accessible; but perhaps birds dont like them, or dont recognise them as food
Validation still has not begun- everyone will soon have forgotten what they saw last year!

Richard Bland

Grey November

2008-11-17T12:53:00.000-08:00

17 days and 18 tetrads done on line, and of course more, probably, on paper. 105 to go.
And my advice is, get the first survey done before the Christmas rush sets in. A lot of observers last year left everything to the post Christmas holiday, then had trouble in February, leaving a month between counts, finding the time. Incidentally remember that the figure used for each species is the maximum of the two counts; so dont be too concerned if you feel November counts are rather low- the January one can always boost them.
Initial impressions are a lot of LT, and rather few BT and GT; a lot of FF and rather few RE.
Fewer WP than last year, and perhaps fewer CD; a lot of SG- but its all very early days. Also there will be no easy way to compare the two winters, as the results will simply be summed by 10km square. This is rather different from the last winter Atlas, which had three very different winters, and for some species produced strongly different results.
Feral species. Please count anything that is free-winged- I have had three lots of Helmeted Guinea Fowl, I am pleased to say. It is worth trying to distinguish between wild Mallard and various odd mallards that have crossed with farm ducks, or whatever. And put in Roving records for any Parakeets, Egyptian Geese etc. Because we cannot know what species may take off in the next twenty years it is important not to ignore anything- not even Feral pigeon- and they have not been proved to breed in every 10k square yet.
I keep saying it, but verification is due to start any day, and you may get a note asking whether you are sure it was a lesser crested whatsit, and you are certain it bred in the tetrad. And please note I cant change any of your records. I have your username but not your password- only you can do that via "Edit my records"
Richard Bland

New season starts

2008-11-11T07:41:00.000-08:00

Some time since I put pen to paper, and a busy time too. Eleven days gone and ten tetrads have had their first survey- well done to start early. 102 computer entry tetrads to go, if my files are right, as there are still 15 tetrads without an observer.
It is a very good idea to go the first winter survey in November- it prevents last minute panic in bad weather. The figure that will be used for the tetrad is the maximum for each species of the two counts, so that things missed in November should be spotted in January.
Almost all the breeding season results are in- still waiting for one or two!- with these overall results. 234 tetrads have been received, 132 076 birds were counted in 900 hours of observation at an average of 147 birds/hour. 157 species recorded of which 111 were breeding and 46 were migrants, summerers, or vagrants. Average species per tetrad was 38 and average maximum count per tetrad was 356.
Six species were breeding in all 19 10-km squares, another 23 in 18 squares, and a further 12 in 17 squares- ie 41 species were in effect universal. However there will be a lot of work to do in the summer upgrading species in every square to proved breeding status.

This winter I can see as records come in- expect a note of thanks.
I will try to update the blog weekly on a Monday in future.
Fairly soon "validation" of all previous records will start- so If I have a query about a record you will get an e-mail- please respond fast! There are very few I am worried about, but there will be some changes to breedings status.

Almost there

2008-07-28T04:41:00.000-07:00

The end of the first season approaches, and I have had the results from 160 tetrads to date- and there are plenty more to come, boith paper and on the web.
lessons learnt?- A lot of people only do things at the last minute- and it is probably better to do things early- certainly in the breeding season.
Identifying juveniles, and providing breeding status generally, has been a novelty for some and is trickier than might at first appear. Luckily someone doing a 10k square usually comes up with proof of confirmed breeding- though there are some slightly embarrasing blanks. But no odds- targetting species next year will fill the gaps.
Overall change in the breeding population since 1992 is also pretty clear; 27 have a significantly (ie more than 10 points increase) wider distribution now than they did; 17, mostly uncommon, species have decline further or gone. 11 new species have appeared, mostly in very small numbers. Quite how much of the wider distribution is caused by the change in methods has yet to be calculated.
There are no surprises, but it is good to have precision about the processes of change, which are, of course, continuous, complex, and driven by a mass of interacting causes. (For those who believe climate might be relevant, the four years 1988-91 of the previous survey had an average annual temperature of 13.9C .The last twelve months have an average of 14.2C).

Once the final figures are in i can look at the breeding season density compared with the winter, and the changes in density since 1994,

Statistical snippets

2008-07-21T01:59:00.000-07:00

Results from 130 tetrads (33% sample) in the breeding season show some pretty clear changes.

The bad news;- Lapwing down from 17% to 8%, Cuckoo from 26% to 3%, Willow Warbler from 67% to 35% , Marsh Tit from 10% to 3%, and Yellowhammer from 47% to 37% (though much of its key habitat has yet to be explored).

The good news; MS up from 11%-24%, CG from 2% -11%, SH from 16% to 24% , BZ 18% to 72%, PE 0%-5%, even K 30%-38%, MH 29%-52%, LB 21%-55%, HG 105-45%, CD 53%-81%, GS 19%-50%, BC 59%-85% ,GC 20%-51%, RN 0%-15% ,GR 66%-92% ,and GO 55%-87%.

These figures will change a bit with further results, especially as both cotswold and mendip areas are underrepresented, and urban and suburban areas over-represented- 60 of the tetrads are from ST57, ST58, ST67, ST68. But there are few surprises. However more difficult is to puzzle out the causes.

Ten days to go

2008-07-20T06:54:00.000-07:00

Just back from a weeks holiday in kent- few birds, lits of houses and gardens.
Back to find a lot of activity has produced a total of 174 tetrads with one second visit and 118 with two. So 52 second visits to go, and I hope some more with both visits, as we clocked up 203 winter computer visits.
One thought- a lot of visits have not recorded confirmned breeding for House Martin- but they are all busily feeding young in the nest now. If your 10km square has not recorded confirmed breeding for House Martin a quick check on your nearest nest would give a Roving record.
Good luckj for the last few days- then we can all relax until November!

A century of tetrads

2008-07-08T04:50:00.000-07:00

I have the breedingseason results from 102 tetrads, a quarter of the region, and the comparison between the distribution of species in 1992 and today is becoming clear. 108 species have ben recorded in tetrad surveys, and of those 65% are within 10 percentage points either way of their distribution in 1992- ie no significant change in distribtion. Only five species show a significant (ie more than 10 points) change, and they are CK, GW, WW, RO and Y. By contrast 33 show a positive change. In part this is because the time allocated for observation is double that in 1992, which has allowed elusive species to be seen more often. Thus Sparrowhawk has increased from 16% to 26%, Goldcrest from 20% to 47%. But The increase of MS from 11% to 24%, CG from 2% to 17%, MA from 39% to 72%, BZ from 18 to 71%, LB from 21 to 57% and HG from 10 to 47%, CD from 53 to 83%, GS from 19 to 49%, BC from 59 to 87%, Lt from 27 to 58%, Jay from 24 to 55% and GR from 66 to 91% all represent real change.
Because there were no counts in 1992 it is not possible from this data to assess changes in density, but because BBS began in 1994 we have useful figures for density measured as a rate/hour which will give a measure of density change; and it will be interesting to compare winter and breeding season densities directly as well.

Independence Day

2008-07-04T08:04:00.000-07:00

I have both breeding season results for 82 tetrads, which gives an opportunity to compare distribution with 1992. The comparison is not exact because that survey asked observers to spend one hour in a tetrad twice; so that this time, with double the observation time, less common species are more likely to be observed. 62% of 98 species show a distribution within 10 points of that in 1992, implying no real change in distribution (though this may not be the case for a few species whose distribution was less that 10% previously). Of those that show a greater change, all but five have a positive change; of course additional information may alter that. The five that show a significant distribution decline, of between 11 points (GW) and 33 points(WW) are Y. RO and CK; There are no surprises there.
Rooks are interesting, because we know how many there were in 2005; we counted 6000 nests, hence the breeding population was 12,000 birds- and there would be an additional say 2000 non breeding juveniles. This was a 20% decline on the 2000 rookery count figure of 7400 nests. This year the 82 tetrads have counted (taking the maximum of the two surveys), 1700 rooks, which, if true for all tetrads, would give an estimated population of 8500 birds, or about 4000 nesting pairs, a 30% drop on the 2005 figure. I have not yet added up the number of rooks nests recorded by observers.
The winter rook maximum total was 7623 from 248 tetrads which would imply a winter total of 12,400 birds, very much closer to the results of the 2005 Rookery count. The question is are we undercounting in the breeding season, which is probable for early counts, or do we have birds here in winter that dont nest here. BBS results have shown a clear decline in rook numbers in recent years, and it will be interesting to see this year's results- because as they compare like with like they are a much more precise measure of change than is possible from the Atlas survey.
Watch this space; And, as song is falling off by the day the more second surveys that can be completed soon the better.

One month to go

2008-06-29T02:55:00.000-07:00

Im glad to see the number of second breedings eason visits picking up- 64 to date which means 140 to go; on the whole the later these are done the fewere birds will be seen, as song declines very rapidly in july; the upside to later visits is the number of juveniles that wiull be encountered and the chance of maximiising breeding status by entering fledgling. I also hope that the 164 first visits that have so far been entered will increase to the full 200 when observers enter both sets of results.
I am doing a full analysis of the winter tetrad results, and will make it available to anyone interested, as a comparison of both density and distribution with the 1981-84 winter atlas is possible, and there are many changes.
Now is also a good time to think about the second Atlas season. I hope that we will be able to complete the full 400 tetrads; several observers have alredy booked their tetrads for next season but there are still 100 left to be covered. The earlier tetrads are booked the sooner I will know where there are problems. In particular ST77 on the Cotswolds, and ST 47, have been poorly covered so far.
Finally if you go off on holiday anywhere in july keep a close note of Juveniles of any species and send in Roving Records of them- the local Atlas organiser may be very grateful.

House Martin survey

2008-06-18T09:26:00.001-07:00

The BTO has just launched a national house martin survey with the help of Radio 4. Breeding is now in full swing. Go to the bto website and follow the House Martin link.
So far rather few tetrads have recorded breeding House Martin, and they are not on the list of colony nesters; please make a note of any sites in the region and put them in as Roving records at the least.

Mid summer

2008-06-18T09:17:00.000-07:00

All the paper records for the winter have been loaded on to the system and you can see the excellent start we made. 249 tetrads received both counts. So Far 160 have had first counts in the breeding season and 40 have had second. It is interesting to compare distribution recorded so far with that in the last breeding atlas. Of course comparing 40 tetrads with the 394 we surveyed in full last time does not give accurate results, but on first indications most species (77%) have an increased distribution, which is caused in part by the fact that the period of observation is double what it was last time, ensuring that the less common species are more likely to be recorded, and giving thus a more realistic impression of distribution.
As there are lots of fledglings around, please make sure that you record any that you see on the second visit with the status as FL. Some 10-km squares still have rather low proportion of confirmed breeding records. It is also a good time of year to make a Nocturnal visit- for Nightjars or Owls; every 10km square opught to have one, and we will do more on this next year when we know what has been missed. They should be entered as Roving Records, and if a nocturnal; visit is made and records nothing this should be noted as well.

Breeding season so far

2008-05-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

A brief summary of the tetrad and Roving records inpout so far . There are some 50 paper forms not included.
There are returns for 17 10km squares ( not ST37), and the number of species reflects the number of tetrads surveyed. 146 species have been seen, with an average of 68. 99 of them were possible breeding species (of which 58 have been confirmed as breeding in at least one square).ST57 has 70 btreeding species, ST58 69. 12 species have been proved in every square, a further 10 in 16/17, and 19 in only one square. It is important that birds that are not yet breeding (?Little Egret ? Siskin) or that have ceased to breed (? Redshank, ?Snipe ? Wheatear ?Redstart) are not put in the possible breeders (ie observed in possible breeding habitat) unless you are pretty sure that are breeding.

One point checking through the records. Occasionally observers say they have recorded for Two hours, but only enter totals for a single hour. This creates problems, because this survey is designed to be compararble fwith the last breeding survey which only asked for ONE hour to be spent in a tetrad twice- but the recording was presence absence not counting. Because the total species seen increases with time spent, and the requirement to count increases the time needed, the First hour species list will be compared with the last breeding Atlas- but the two hours together can be compared with this winter Atlas.

Please enter all first counts that have been recorded, and good luck with the second ones.

Bad weather

2008-05-27T09:00:00.001-07:00

What a dreadful bank holiday- and from the records it looks as if some 60 tetrads were going to be done. Please try to complete them by May 31st, but records made on Sunday June 1st would count for the first survey- better do it then than wreck this year's breeding season.

Breeding status. At present rather a small proportion of species seen have had evidence that confirms breeding. It is not easy to do this during tetrad a tetrad survey, and it would help if everyone remembered to put in Roving Records for any recent fledglings, or other good evidence- Feeding young (FF) visiting a nest site (ON) etc.- Starlings have just fledged for instance, but are started to move around rapidly. House Sparrow entering nest holes counts as ON (occupied nest). Swifts screaming around a building is D for Display.

And when you do second visit try to improve on the evidence you got from the first.

Winter totals

2008-05-23T03:04:00.000-07:00

At last I have some provisional totals for the winter survey.
844 hours were spent in 237 tetrads (some paper forms have yet to be entered) and 227941 birds counted at a rate of 270 an hour. 176 species were recorded, the largest number, 119 in ST58. ST55 had the highest density of birds, at 491/hr, but mainly because only 8 tetrads were surveyed ( the figure for ST77 with 3 tetrads was even higher). The most frequent species were Starling (rate 38/hr) Wood Pigeon (22/hr) Black-headed Gull (21/hr), then Redwing (17/hr)
The biggest changes since the last winter Atlas (25 years ago) were increases of over 200% for GO, LT, Li, PH and R and falls of more than 50% for FP, RO, BH, L. and SD. SG came close with 48% fall.
45 Little Egrets were counted as were 128 Ravens, and 27 Peregrines, and just five Dippers.
When Ive done a write up I will make it available to anyone interested.
Meanwhile Last chance for the first breeding season survey!

Ten days to go

2008-05-21T12:57:00.000-07:00

There are 73 tetrads that need to be covered in the next ten days, unless some observers have done the first breeding season survey but not sent the records down the line.
I just hope the weather is good.
At long last I am able to access the records from last winter, but checking them is a slow process, and I will send round a note to all as soon as I have got all the tetrad data checked. The process of checking the Roving records and material from birdtrack will probably take more time. The ovwerwhelming mass of records that I have seen so far follow a very clear and consistent pattern, but i will be checking one or two records that surprised me.
Now that birds are fledging Roving records of recently fledged birds are a key to proving breeding, and it is important to keep notes of any that you see and send them in. It is worth checking the Square Summaries list to see what the highest breeding status recorded is.

Summer at last

2008-05-03T03:35:00.000-07:00

April was a normal month (unlike last year) and leafing has been late. Some 50 tetrads have been recorded on line so far, so most people are opting for a May survey. Two points have come up recently; Do record a breeding status for every species you see, even if its just preence in suitable breeding habitat. If you are sure a species is NOT breeding, either because its a migrant or because it is summering, say so. Only leave the breeding status blank if the species is feeding in the square but not breeding ( Like Cormorant, or in most cases Heron).

Secondly always fill in the final page five colonial species count, even when there are NONE. I have left gulls off my April tetrad visits because though present there has been for the most part no sign of nests. Roof nests are impossible to count as part of a tetrad survey, but if you are clear that Gulls are nesting in your tetrad then put in an estimate of the numbers, either after the first visit or the second.
Counts of Rooks nests should go in the first visit.

BBS and Atlas

2008-04-15T06:10:00.001-07:00

The question has recently been asked, how will BBS records contribute to the Atlas? The answer is that they will be used as top up information if necessary for the species record at the 10km square level. As BBS records do not include any breeding status information it would be helpful if you happen to get evidence of breeding on a BBS survey to put the details in as a Roving Record.

Most people are clearly waiting for warmer weather before doing tetrad surveys, and also hoping for a bigger species list if they wait until the migrants are in and settled. The start of the breeding season surevy both locally and nationally has thus been slower than the winter survey. It is worth stressing again that when doing a tetrad survey you should note the best breeding evidence you can for every species you see. Looking at bird behaviour rather than just counting , and making a note of it, is a habit we have rather lost!

Atlas on TV

2008-04-10T03:18:00.000-07:00

On Inside Out West this Friday 7.30 Mike Dilger will be shown doing ST47 tetrad G for the Atlas (Gordano valley). Filming was last autumn.

One or two questions have been raised about Breeding status definitions. This mainly concerns the difference between T for teritory and P for pair in nesting habitat. Both these give probable breeder status, and are better than simply S for singing male. Two males singing against each other can also count as T, and N , for visiting probable nest site can be used for Jackdaws investigating Chimneys for instance. D is any sort of courtship or display, and either D or T would cover fighting males. But the object is to get confirmed breeding status for as many species as possible, which will be easier once birds start feeding their young.

Breeding season records

2008-04-05T03:26:00.000-07:00

I had not realised that the BTO would map breeding status at tetrad level- but if you go to the local results you can see the status in different colours. Thus please record the breeding status of each species in your tetrads. At this stage this is mostly H for seen in possible habitat, S for singing male, D for display and B for building. But ON for occupied nest is also possible.

Secondly I was muddled about the breeding status entry on the computer. You type in the relevant letter, and then up pops the definition for that letter and you click on it to confirm

Thirdly Swifts. To prove breeding is very difficult, but if you come a cross a party of screaming swifts at rooftop level ( Not high in the sky) that should be listed as D for display, as these parties are always closely associated with nest sites. John Tully and I are running a Screaming Swift survey this summer as part of a wider scheme to try to find a good monitoring method. So please make a note of every party- Date, time of day, the road or building or Grid ref, and the number of birds in the party, and send it to me or John. It is also worth sending in a Roving Record for every such party you come across

Breeding Season entries

2008-04-02T06:18:00.000-07:00

A couple of points about entering breeding season tetrad visits. Firstly there are now FIVE pages to fill in, four with counts and the fifth for any colonial nesting species. If there are none in your tetrad you must still go to page five and confirm it as zero- if you dont no-one will know whether you have checked or not. With Gulls I am not yet entering a colonial count because they are all just hanging around- there are almost no neste yet.
When entering breeding code- and please do this for all species you are clear are breeding species, you seem to have to press the Enter button to get the entry to register. This is irritating, and may be improved. S for singing male (which is just means possible breeder, and has the same satus as H for present in suitable habitat) and D for display, which is Probable breeder, as is B for nest building, are the obvious ones to enter at present- though before the leaves come out it is easy to get ON (occupied nest) for some species. Also note that it is easy to mistake D and DD (Distraction Display) and you need to check carefully.
Incidentally 249 was our final total for fullycomplete tetrads during the winter as far as I can see- Excellent.

Ready for the breeding season?

2008-03-28T02:19:00.000-07:00

A few days to go before the Breeding season formally starts. A few points worth making.
a) The first count must be bnetween April 1 and may 31st- so I expect many people will go for a may visit. The second count lies between June 1 and July 31, and I expect most people will opt for June. There should be a months gap between the two.
b) Many observers doing Atlas are also doing BBS, and BBS splits its two surveys on May 15th. Dont get confused!
c) Dont muddle any BBS counts with any Atlas counts. The Atlas tetrad survey is a time limited survey to all habitats within the tetrad. The BBS survey is a double transect across a one-km square.
d) Colony Counts. The Atlas breeding season surevy asks on its last page for counts of apparently occupied nests of colonial species. For us this means Heron, LB and HG, and Rook. If you come across any of these stop the clock and count. I have sent details of known Rookeries in tetrads being covered to observers because it is legitimate to count the colony quite separately from the timed count, and as rooks cant be accurately counted once leaves are out it is best to count them early. But you may of course come across a Rookery or Heronry during a timed count.
Finally as far as I can see 242 tetrads were fully covered during the winter season. One or two observers have had to drop out for various reasons, and a number have reserved tetrads for the second atlas season, so of 400 tetrads to cover, 297 have observers. If you want to book yourself a tetrad for the second season, go to the website and see what is available. And also you might consider looking at the needs of Wiltshire or Somerset, or even look across the estuary.

Good luck this summer.

Winter summary

2008-03-21T04:50:00.001-07:00

I have now had most of the paper surveys in, and a number of people have added in entries on to the website; as far as I can see 237 tetrads have had their full winter survey, which is a magnificent start.
I have the details of both counts for 58 of these tetrads. Though this looks like a large sample, it is biassed in some ways, and hence comparisons with the past must be tantative.
I have just put the results of the first winter tetrad atlas on to my database. The method was not the same- observers were simply asked to identify all the species in the tetrad during a winter, with no time limit, so that elusive birds were much more frequently observed than they would be in the four hour limit of this survey.
However of 103 species 68 were recorded this time within 10% either way of their distribution 25 years ago. Ignoring seven elusive species, 15 species show a decline in distribution and 13 an increase. The most dramatic declines in percentages were L. 51, Y.49, M.49, SD 42, S. 37, K. 34, RO 30, CM 24. The most dramatic increases were BZ 41, GO 34, HG 30, LT 26, RN 26, CD 30 and MA 18.
Some of these results are surprising, RN did not feature in the last winter atlas, and LT had sufferred severely during the 81/82 winter. The results for Y. and MA may well alter when the full results become clear, but I suspect that the others are about right.
One striking results is that Starling has sufferred a 58% fall in numbers, but only 2% in distribution, while Sparrow has fallen by 9% only in numbers, but by 12% in distribution- this reflects its sedentary nature, and I suspect the Sparrow numbers will show a further fall when the full results are in.
I hope everyone is all set for the breeding season surveys, and that everyone will make an effort to obtain Proof of breeding for as many species as possible.

Counting Rooks nests

2008-03-08T06:17:00.000-08:00

One of the objectives of the Atlas is to get a good estimate of the number of nests of colonial species, and for us this primarily means Rooks. I have been looking at the total of Rooks nests in each of the tetrads that we will be covering this summer, and am about to send out a list of sites in their tetrad to each observer. The data comes from 2005, and on average there is a turn-over of about 15 rookeries a year, so it may well be that somes of the sites will have been deserted, and that others will have been created, and certainly the number of nests will have changed.
Rooks can only be counted before leafing, which means that those observers ought to do an early April count. This can be done separately from the normal tetrad count, and sent in as a Roving record, or as part of a tetrad count, stopping the clock while the count is made. Counts can often be done with reasonable accuracy from a distance. Some tetrads have only a single rookery, some have up to eight.
To give an idea of the scale, in 2005 we counted 6000 nests, which was 2000 fewer than in 2000, and this did not include any Mendip rookeries.
Casual records of Rookeries will also be of value, simply as a check, and should be sent in as Roving records. The total nests in a rookery inceases over time, as young birds join on the periphery-older birds take the best positions and have laid by the beginning of April, so that counts made in late March will give a very good idea of totals.

Some early figures

2008-03-05T04:25:00.000-08:00

I now have details of the winter counts in 43 tetrads, or just over 10% of the total, and of 180 hours of recording, and can offer some tentative figures about distribution and population change since 1980.
Only 7 species have been found in every tetrad so far, WP WR D. R. B. MG C. Another nine are in 90% plus tetrads BH PW ST BT GT JD SG CH GR.
To compare with the populations in 1980 I have used the rate at which they were observed then an now. There were 3000 hours of observation in the three winters of the Winter Atlas, and I calculated the rates for each species. This winter I have only 180 hours of recording from a limited range of tetrads, so the comparison is very tentative. The major winners, in percentage change from then to now (ie 25 years) are Buzzrad, up 429% Linnet up 364%, Goldfinch up 285, Robin up 280, Herring Gull up 173, Collared dove up 164 Long-tailed Tit up 126 Gt Spotted Wd up 117, Dunnock up 107 and Green Wd up 100.
The losers, using only species whose numbers were large are Lapwing ( down from 22/hr to 0.3, 98% loss) Common gull down from 9/hr to 2/hr 78%, BH Gull down from 62/hr to 21 and Starling fdwon from 73 to 21 Interestingly Sparrow rates are almost identical.

Winter ends, roll on Summer

2008-03-01T04:29:00.000-08:00

I expect you will have seen the neat colours on the Latest Results, Avon, map, showing those tetrads that have only had one visit in the winter, those that are not booked for both winter and summer, and those that have just ahd a second visit. If you have not yer put your records in on line, please do so promptly. If you were unable to do a second visit the tetrad should be redone next winter with two visits.
The Challenge of the breeding season is a month away- and it is not too early either to book additional tetrads either to start next winter and the following summer, or to start this summer and be completed next winter.
The aim of the breeding season survey, apart form tetrad surveys and a species list for each 10km square, is to get the Proved Breeding evidence for every breeding species in every 10k square- and this will not be easy.
Good Luck

Just two more winter weeks

2008-02-17T06:46:00.000-08:00

Two weeks to go, and 80 tetrads to cover- no problem if the weather holds like this.
Paper Tetrads results are trickling in, and I now have both winter surveys for 29 tetrads. 11 species still have a 100% record, BH, WP, Wr, D., R., B., BT, GT, MG, C. and CH. Including them, 39 species are in 50% or more tetrads. SH makes 45%, SK 41% and KF 28%. MT so far has only been seen in one of the 29- but many are from urban areas.
Provisional changes in the rate per hour compared with the Winter Atlas figures are also interesting, though they were derived from 3000 hours of observation, and so far I have 130 hours. Losses include Stockdove, -96%, Common Gull -85% and Skylark -69%, and gains Buzzard up 332%, Goldfinch up 317%, Robin up 239%, Herring Gull up 198% and Collared Dove up 195%. Raven, of course, did not feature at all in that survey.
It is not too early to think about next winter; some people have alreday booked their tetrads for that, and I want to get all tetrads not done this Atlas session (ie 2007/08) done in the 2008/09 session. This means looking at empty tetrads in ST 35, 45, 55, 65, 75 (ie mendips) 47, 66, 76, 77.
There are about 110 tetrads left to be covered in these areas, so send in your request for them in the usual way.
Finally in the breeding season we want to get the best breeding season evidence for every breeding species in each 10km square (But NOT in each tetrad). So please familiarise yourself with the Breeding Codes. Tetrad visits do not leave time to hunt for evidence (though I hope all rookeries will be countyed in tetrad visits), but Roving Records with breeding evidence- from your own garden, or anywhere that you visit between April and July will be important.

Three weeks left

2008-02-08T08:10:00.000-08:00

We are very much on course- 198 tetrads have now been filled in for first survey- and there are 60 more doing it on paper, and 88 so far have done the second survey- not surprising given the poor weather in January. The way February is going there will be a lot of breeding records before the month is out! Drumming woodpeckers counts as D for display- a magpie carrying a twig is B for building. I dont think it is worth putting in S for singing- even for Mistle Thrush- as wee should get better evidence in April.
One or two recent decisions- Any free-winged exotic should be counted-as the Guinea Fowl in ST68 or the Peacock in ST67- "funny" ducks, especially in parks, should technically go down as hybrid duck rather than mallard.
It is not yet at all clear when I will have sight of all the hard work everyone has done, but they are working hard on it. There may well be verification problems, and I will be in touch with anyone whose record I feel uncertain about. The species lists for 10km squares will include bird-track records, but may miss birds that have been sent in as records, but not put in for the Atlas, and I may have to enter them myself for completeness.
It is clearly going to be a poor Fieldfare year, and all tit species are down on last year as are Song Thrush, and Greenfinch. Blackbird are running at double last year.

Bad weather

2008-01-22T13:31:00.000-08:00

The past two weeks have been pretty impossible for all of us. There is now a nice sentence on the website under Headlines and Regional headines, which states how many tetrads have been entered on line. So far 190 have had the first winter survey and 31 the second, which considering the weather is not bad. There has been guidance on the time between surveys- this should not be less that two weeks and ideally at least a month.

On the whole second winter surveys have greater numbers that the first ones- at least ones done originally in November, but it is surprising, and perhaps encouraging, how few new species an additional two hours provides.

Overall totals in tetrads vary considerably. I have received details of 37 so far that they species vary from 16 to 43 and the totals from 137 to 885, average 28 and 222.
Where I have had details of both counts the total species list per tetrad varies from 29 to 51. These figures are more or less as expected from the trial atlas work we did two winters ago.

HQ have been installing a new server to make things faster. So far it is not working well I found it impossible to download my most recent tetrad, so patience is needed.

A few Changes

2008-01-10T06:47:00.000-08:00

The website has had one or two changes recently. You can now enter Population Estimates for a species that you have not seen, but "know" is present. You should only do so if you know the bird was present during the winter period- November 2007-Feb 2008, but not if you have often seen it in the past and think it "must" still be around. You do this via the Edit my lists button. I am not very clear how the Population estimates will be used, except as a broad scale check on estimates produced in other ways. The Purpose of the tetrad survey is to get a feel for local density of each species, but of course most species that are not seen in two two hour surveys will of necessity probably only be present at a very low density anyway- though obviously Owls may well be ovberlooked in winter.
The first winter surveys went very well- it looks as if at least 85% of those who signed up have done them, and there may well be others who have done them but not entered them yet for whatever reason. But if first surveys have not been done, then the tetrad will have to have its winter survey during the 2008/09 winter- but it can of course have its breeding season survey this summer.
The maps on the Avon Recent Results charts look a bit thin, but this is because there are some 62 tetrads being done by paper and not computer- and they will only reach me when second surveys have been done, and then they will be sent to BTO for entering.
Incidentally a Great Bustard was present in ST66 yesterday, and I had a Peacock in Fishponds- whatever next.

We have done well

2008-01-01T08:03:00.000-08:00

Happy new year.
Congratulations to everyone who has completed their first winter survey in time. 280 tetrads have been signed up for, but 60 of them are being done on paper, especially in ST 35, ST36 and ST46, and their results dont appear on the website results. Of the 220 registered for computer returns 180 have so far put results in, which is 80%. Some of the remaining may have been done, but not yet input, some may have been registered for a future year ( I know of several) and some may have hoped to get out in time before Dec 31st, and not made it. In that case their winter survey will need to be done in 2008/09 winter, but their breeding season surveys can be done in 2008. Of course that does not prevent you from visiting them and putting in Roving Records for them.
Second winter visits can be made now, but try to leave a month between first and second. If we get the cold weather forecast there may be some interesting population changes between visits.

Robins in the snow

2007-12-24T03:57:00.001-08:00

Well, on your mantlepiece anyway. Happy Christmas everyone, and good birding up to 31st for all tetrads that have not yet had their first survey. A sponsored New year bird count is a good way to generate early second winter visits, but these should be limited to tetrads visited in November.
If you go to the Recent results on the website, and click on Regional Results, and click on Avon you can now see tetrad distribution of a selection of common species, based on tetrad results both from tetrad surveys and roving records. Some of the obvious gaps are from those who are putting in paper returns, not online ones, so that things are better than they look, and second visits will fill in a lot of the common species that are missing.
Incidentally if you put records on to Bird-track you can are asked to identify your site down to 1k, tetrad or 10k level so that the records can be used for the national atlas. I find I have identified my sites in a rather chaotic manner in the past.
279 tetrads ( of our 400) now have observers; future volunteers will do the breeding season followed by the winter season.
Early breeding. Some species- Owls, Raven, nest early, and if the weather is warm enough many otehrs can be stimulated into nesting activity, so that if there is clear evidence (nest building particularly) a breeding code letter can be entered on a winter visit form. It is also worth noting Rookery numbers and sites because a breeding season count is asked for. This is best done in early April before leafing, so that tetrads with rookeries shoudl be surveyed early in the breeding season if possible

Last two weeks for first visits

2007-12-18T07:03:00.000-08:00

A few updates. We now have 277 of 400 tetrads covered, and at least 145 have had first visits; I say at least, because 59 are being done on paper, and I wont get the results until after the second visit. If a tetrad fails to get a first visit before Dec 31 it will be converted to the next winter season, 2008/9, as it is important that both visits are in the same winter. Of course the breeding season visits can still be done in summer 2008.
ST36, 57, 58, 67 and 68 are now fully covered, but there has been only one visit to ST77. Those who love the Cotswolds might like to take a Roving Recorder trip there during the Christmas break!

There will be a newsletter coming out for HQ in late January, which will be available on the website, but I will have paper copies to send to those who cant access the system.
More and more Blackcap records are trickling in- please send a Roving record in if you come across them or Chiffchaff or Siskin.

Species totals

2007-12-13T09:06:00.000-08:00

I have full details of the species so far seen in seven of the 17 10-km squares in the region. In total 140 species have been recorded, and the leader is st 58 with 105; Then ST56 with 89;ST57 with 82; ST47 with 77; ST66 with 61; St 68 with 59; and ST67 with 54

Some species have been missed- LG in ST66,67 SD in 47 and 67 KF in 57 and 66 SC in 57 and 67; NH in 58, 66, and 67 RN in 66, 67, 68.

I will try to get a more complete list of what to search for in the new year.
As far as tetrad coverage goes at the last count 134 tetrads of 217 logged on to the website, ( and 273 covered in total) or 67 % have been done. Those doing them on paper I wont learn about until the forms come in to me when the second count is done. I hope for a lot more if this weekend's weather is reasonable, and the rest will come over the Christmas break. If a first count is not done, the winter survey for a tetrad will have to be done next winter, but of course it can be surveyed in the summer.
From individual tetrad counts the commonest species so far is BH Gull, followed by Starling and Feral Pigeon (most of the counts I have details of have been urban) then Wood Pigeon. This may well change a lot in the new year, and when rural flocks are counted in. The average is slmost 400 birds in a two hour survey.

Dont forget the New Years Day sponsored Bird count. The BTO are half way there with the appeal, and confident, but if you can get someone to sponsor you per species get out on New Years Day, raise some money, and find a few species to put in as Roving records- or even second Tetrad counts if you got the first one in in November.

Richard Bland

BTO Conference

2007-12-10T09:01:00.000-08:00

I have just got back from the BTO annual conference, themed on Putting birds on the Map. It was inspiring to meet many other Atlas organisers who have had the same experience of immense enthusiasm as I have had here. The maps that Dawn Balmer put up showing the reuslkts from the first month's work were astonishing, especially for birds such as Buzzard and Littlke Egret.
There are now just three weeks to go to do all the remaining first visits for this winter's survey, and the weather so far in December has prevented many people getting out. The Christmas break should offer enough opportunity to ensure that every tetrad is covered, but please remember that if the first count in a tetrad is not done by Dec 31st, then any later count would only be used as a set of Roving records, because it is important to the survey that both winter counts, and both breeding season counts, are done in the same winter or breeding season.
We now have 272 of 400 tetrads covered- and if you have done a tetrad and feel you could take on another in time this year, please check the availability on the website. There are a lot of interesting tetrads on the Mendips and Cotswolds still up for grabs.
Richard Bland

Some Recent Decisions

2007-12-04T02:17:00.000-08:00

First a milestone- There are now 8 tetrads in ST77 with observers, and Flat Holm in ST26 will also be survyed, so that every 10km square in the region now has minimum coverage. If you go to Recent Results and Regional on the Atlas website you can see the pattern of coverage, and there are maps showing the 10km distribution of some common species. You will see blanks for ST37, part of Clevedon, which is being covered, but no-one has sent in any records from it yet. At the last breeding Atlas it had the longest species lits of any 10km square!
Secondly some Decisions form HQ. The system for allowing local organisers to view and validate results will not be up and running until the end of the first season- it has proved more complex that originally thought. As the Species maps in the Recent Results section are getting boring they are going to put in a different new species every day, especially of ones showing striking change. A count column will be added at some point to Roving Records by popular demand. The tetrad population estimate, which about 12% of people are doing, is being re-examined. (There is an obvious issue here in winter when flocks of many species change location during the winter) The issue of surveying coastal tetrads whose centres are offshore ( we have quite a few of these) will also be revisited. At present records from them are treated as Roving Records, but we surveyed a number last time, and hope to do so again. And dead birds, droppings, footprints, feathers, will not be counted in the national Atlas, (though of course eggshells are breeding evidence). So the Peregrine prey from St John's church Bath will not count, alas.
Richard Bland

Half way for first winter walks

2007-12-02T04:22:00.000-08:00

To summarise where we are. 264 of 400 tetrads have an observer, and at least 120 of the 264 have had their first visits. I say at least because a number of surveys are being done on paper, and I will not know thewir details until the end of the winter wehnt he forms are returned to me. If, having done one tetrad, you feel up to doing a second one, please check what is still available. The more we can cover in the first winter the better.
ST68 is leading the race with 19 of 25 tetards covered already, followed by ST57 and ST58 each with 14
Note that if a tetrad does not get its first survey by Dec 31st it will have to be surveyed next winter, as HQ does not want the two winter walks done in separate winters.
Total species lists for the 10km squares are building up well. If you want to check your own square follow Bird Atlas Home > Your Atlas Options > Square Summaries. This will show you the species you have entered and all others that others have seen. In the second half of the winter I will try to pick out the species in each 10km square that would be expected but are missing, so that we can create as full a list in the first season as possible.

Three weeks in

2007-11-25T04:22:00.000-08:00

Of the 400 local tetrads 252 now have an observer responsible for them, and at least 72 (28%) have had their first walk. Those who do BBS on-line know that John always thanks you for your survey as soon as you send it, which is encouraging. Because of the Atlas system I do not get an alert when you enter tetrad results, and have rather tediously to hunt through each 10k square to find out which have been done, but I am delighted that so many have already been surveyed. There are just under six weeks left, and i would like to encourage those who have yet to carry out their first survey to do so before christmas, when in my experience life gets busy.
I have logged 128 species so far in the region, but dont yet have accurate 10km square lists. When I do I will be listing the species not yet seen which need hunting for in each 10km square.
Incidentally there are 133 observers in total so far , of whom 73 are BTO, BBS or GBW, and a number RSPB.

The first quarter

2007-11-20T02:16:00.001-08:00

Ive just checked through, and 25% of the 251 tetrads that now have observesr for this year have had their first visit. There are six weeks to go to complete the first winter walks, so we are well on track. ST58 and ST68 with ten and nine tetrads having been walked are the current leaders. ST36 is the first 10k square to have every tetrad covered by an observer.
I am not yet able to see the results you have sent in on line, and can only judge the species count from bird track records, which come from a limited number of squares. But I have records of 120 species in the region, and ST58 leading the field with 60 species. When we did the trial fieldwork in ST 46 and ST68 we had around 70 species in each of those inland squares, and those on the coast and round the reservoirs will be higher than that.
Colder and wilder weather will probably bring more species in- certainly my garden feeder has abruptly become active.

Atlas First Fortnight

2007-11-16T13:33:00.000-08:00

Nationally 2.3 million birds and over 1900 tetrad visits
Locally 242 tetrads now covered, over 60% of the 399 we will cover. 43 have received their first visit, or 18%, about double the national figure.
The initial impression is that many species especially Tits and finches are thin on the ground, and this is probably the result of the poor breeding season. But also they are easier to see once the leaves are all off the trees, and the second visit in the new year may well produce higher figures. The excellent weather so far has been a very good reason for getting out.
Also if you have done a tetrad and feel that you could fit a second one in it would make reaching our target even closer. Only ST36 so far has every tetrad covered.

Atlas-The First week

2007-11-08T02:09:00.000-08:00

The Atlas has had an amazing start, both nationally and locally. Nationally they have had 770 tetrads visited, and 1500 on line participants, who have sent in records of over 1 million birds. If you go to the results section of the website you can see maps of a number of species.
In the Bristol region we have 231 of 399 tetrads covered, and effectively total coverage of ST36 and ST58, which is almost 60%. 23 tetrads have received their first visit for the winter, which is good going. Several people have said that numbers are very low, and are waiting until things get a bit more interesting and the leaves are off the trees, but it has been very nice being out in clear calm weather. It is a good idea to get the first visit done in November as December often gets busy, there is very little light, and the weather can be nasty. If, having done one tetrad you realise how easy it is and want to volunteer for another please do so-I have set the target of coveraing all tetrads in two years, but it would be nice to almost complete it in one! And dont forget in many regions of the country each observer is responsible for a whole ten km square, and covering the minmum eight tetrads in it himself.
I dont yet have access to the records of other observers- that is being worked on, but it is clear from my own records that the number of Blue Tits and Great Tits is well down on recent winters. In the last winter Atlas, around 1980, over three years there were 3000 hours of observation, and I calculated the rate at which each species was seen overall which gives a good oveall feel for observed density. Blue Tits were observed at an average of 5.4 an hour and Great Tits at 3.0 per hour. This winter over twelve hours of observation I have had rates of 3.3 and 0.8 respectively. This is the consequence of the terrible breeding season which the CES figures just released have revealed.

Atlas day 1

2007-11-02T07:19:00.000-07:00

What a splendid start. Some 6400 records counting over 60,000 birds were received by the BTO on the first day. The system that will allow me to review the local records is not yet in place, so I dont know how many Roving Recorder records have gone in. But every sighting of a species in a 10-km square can be logged in. I have recorded 33 species in ST57 so far.

I have done my first tetrad, and had young Feral Pigeons in a nest, so I hope that is the first breeding record in the Atlas! There are other species that breed through the year, Collared Dove and Wood Pigeon, and Owls start breeding very early- as do Ravens. In the past when it has been warm we have had Blackbirds nesting in late December. The system will accept breeding records during the winter, but will always flag them up and ask you to check you haven't made an error.

Three days to go

2007-10-28T04:01:00.000-07:00

The Atlas goes live next Thursday, November 1. If you haven't yet booked yourself a tetrad to survey, do so promptly. So far 100 observers have volunteered to cover 197 tetrads, so we are within an ace of covering more than 50% of the tetrads in the region this winter, and I am sure that the figure will grow. There is as yet no ten-km square in which every tetrad has an observer, and there are particular gaps in the Portishead-Clevedon area and the whole of ST77 the Cotswolds.
Doing a tetrad is not difficult. It requires a two hour walk done twice in winter and twice in summer- but the first walk has to be done between Nov1 and Dec 31st. If you have booked one, and find you have time on your hands, pick a second one this winter- if everyone so-far involved did that we would cover the whole region.
And all casual records can be put in as well; we are aiming to maximise the species list for each ten-km square. I will use this blog through the survey to try to keep everyone in touch.

Nearly there

2007-10-25T08:26:00.000-07:00

One week to the start, and so far 96 observers have opted to survey 183 tetrads in the Bristol region. We have 399 to cover, so we are not quite half way, and I would like to ensure that we cover half in the first year, as I want to cover all tetrads in the first two years. That will leave everyone free to help out in Somerset and Wiltshire that are looking a bit thin at present, or to take long birding holidays in Ireland and Scotland. So further offers of help- or when you have done one and see how easy it is an offer to take another, will be welcome. First tetrad surveys must be done before Dec 31st, and are best done in November, as it gets a bit hectic in December with very short days, and various celebrations.
Data entry will be possible from Nov 1, and apart from the tetrad surveys, we need to create for every 10km square as long a list of species as we can- on presence/absence basis only. All these can be input on line, and everything put in on Gardenm Birdwatch or Bird Track will be included as well.

Nearly half-way

2007-10-22T02:41:00.000-07:00

170 tetrads now have observers allocated- but there are still 220 more to do. We want to cover the whole region in two years if possible, so if you can help out by covering another tetrad in your area, please do. The Maps on the website at www.birdatlas.net can be found by typing in the 10km square you are interested in; they show the tetrads that are still uncovered.
The winning square at present is ST68 with 22/25 tetrads covered.

Data entry after nov 1

2007-10-19T03:54:00.000-07:00

It will be possible for all counts and casual records to be enteerd directly on to the computer when the full system goes live on Nov 1 This part of the website is not yet activated- and is still being tested which is why you cant see it at present. Everyone should enter on-line if they can; you dont need to download the forms. If you want to use paper forms I will send them
Richard Bland

Picking a tetrad

2007-10-15T05:57:00.000-07:00

Warning
If you want to find a tetrad type in the 10km square in the box and click Go. That brings up the 10km square in full detail, showing which tetrads are still available.
If you click on Avon it gives a general map, and does not show the specific tetrads.

Two weeks to go

2007-10-14T04:19:00.001-07:00

Atlas starts on Nov 1. To date 152 of the 399 local tetrads we will cover have observers, so if you dont yet have one go to the atlaswebsite www.birdatlas.net, and choose one, or two, or three.
The tetrad survey is simple; two two-hour walks Nov 1-Feb 29th and two April 1-July 31, counting everything you see and hear and in the summer recording breeding evidence. You input this direct.
At the same time every species recorded in a 10-km square goes towards the total species list for the square. You can put these in on-line yourself, and I will add all I learn of from other sources. BTO Garden birdwatch birds will also count.
This Blog will try to keep everyone informed how things are going, and direct effort where it is needed. The results you input on-line will be summarised on-line, so you will be able to see how we are doing.