R4 Farming today: Farmland birds down *down 11%* in last five years 2019-24 (05:20 in). RSPB prof: "rapid nosedive.. no research for period to hand yet.. can only speculate.. is it land use/farming practice changes or is it additional emerging climate change factors, just don't know at this stage" 🤔

UK is well on course for losing Willow Tit, Spotted Flycatcher & Wood Warbler as breeding species in our lifetime. Wood Warbler already virtually gone from England. I think Willow Tit would be first extinction of a resident bird since Capercaillie in 1700s or White-tailed Eagle in 1918. #ornithology

Very cool new #seabird paper showing no difference in breeding success between healthy and black-eyed gannets, but a worrying overall decline in productivity following the #avianflu outbreak. 🦠🐣 Read the paper here 👉 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... #seabirds #ornithology

Productivity 🐣 of gannets that have survived #avianflu does not differ from those that have never been infected - BUT productivity since the 2022 HPAI outbreak is worryingly low. New paper in IBIS @bou.org.uk 👇 #seabirds #hpai #wildlifedisease @rspbscience.bsky.social @rspbengland.bsky.social

I’m really excited to have some of my cards on sale at Kingfisher’s Bridge, a beautiful nature reserve between Cambridge and Ely. They do lovely coffee and cake, too! ☕️

Not good. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

"Alarmingly, the new data show an accelerating pattern of decline in our bird populations, whether on our farmland, wetlands, uplands or seas, as they are pushed past their limits" - @richgreg3.bsky.social

Latest government stats show a continued decline in many bird species across the UK 🪶🧪 www.gov.uk/government/s... These data are made possible by the dedication of expert volunteers, allowing us to track common bird populations for >50 years

The Wild Bird Indicators, using BTO data, have been updated today. It’s not good news. 😔 The ‘all bird species’ index shows an overall shallow decline of 16% since 1970. Find out more ➡️ www.gov.uk/government/s...

1/ The Wild Bird Indicators, using BTO data, have been updated today by Defra! ⬇️ Sadly, the ‘all bird species’ index, comprising the population trends of 130 species, has been in a slow continuous decline in the UK since the 1970s, down by 18% and by 4% in the last five years. 📉 #Ornithology

Wild bird numbers continue to fall in UK with some species in ‘dramatic freefall’

North American bird declines are driven by reductions in common species | www.science.org/doi/... | Science Advances | #ornithology 🪶

🗒️Great new paper ↘️ 'Beyond Species Richness for Biological Conservation' The Society for Conservation Biology conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @rspbscience.bsky.social

EARLY VIEW in IBIS Wetland location and captive breeding influence trans-Mediterranean movements in the endangered Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris) | onlinelibrary.wiley.... Irene Pacheco-Guardiola et al | #ornithology 🪶

#OECD highlights rising interest in #BiodiversityCredits and mobilise private finance. Clear rules, robust monitoring & govn. oversight are vital to avoid greenwashing & ensure integrity. Benefits exist, but risks must be weighed. #NatureFinance #Conservation 🌍 www.oecd.org/en/publicati...

New Zealand aims for Predator Free 2050 - eradication of #InvasiveAlienSpecies which harm native species (especially birds like the kiwi). It will be one of the biggest #conservation programs worldwide 🌍 #BiodiversityAction #IAS #PredatorFree2050 #EndangeredSpecies www.npr.org/2025/09/08/n...

Biodiversity Credits: Does the world need a new credit market place or are we all being conned? 🌍 dialogue.earth/en/nature/th...

Highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 reaches Gough Island, where it is associated with mortality in three Tristan skuas. This is worrying because Gough Island is an important breeding site for seabirds, including several species of global conservation concern. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

⬇️ @wclnews.bsky.social @britishecologicalsociety.org UK target to protect 30% of land & sea for nature by 2030. But just ~6% of land across the UK is properly protected with just 5 years to go...." Here's how to fix this: www.wcl.org.uk/assets/uploa... @rspb.bsky.social @rspbscience.bsky.social

🦋 New UKCEH research with @naturalengland.bsky.social and @btobirds.bsky.social shows the positive impacts of agri-environment schemes (AES) on butterflies. Paper: besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @jappliedecology.bsky.social 🧵🧪 1/

Jerdon's Courser rediscovered (again) #Ornithology

Super excited about this post and to welcoming someone new to our friendly team. Just a week left to apply!

Not long to go to submit your @bbs-birds.bsky.social data! Thanks to all the brilliant volunteer surveyors!

Our review 'Recent evidence on the effectiveness of European PAs for species conservation in the face of climate change' shows understanding is patchy - but their value to conservation under climate warming indisputable🐦 link.springer.com/article/10.1... @rspbscience.bsky.social @uclcber.bsky.social

New review: Recent evidence on the effectiveness of European protected areas for species conservation in the face of climate change 🧪🌍 Read on for summary highlights and find the full paper here: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

New meta-analysis underlines that Grey Squirrels are really a very minor nest predator in UK, despite once considered probably very important in woodland bird declines. Good example of evidence overturning dogma, allowing focus on real issues. #ornithology onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Are you interested in Biodiversity Credits? Read the inaugral Georgina Mace Review in @royalsociety.org: 'What is a unit of nature? Measurement challenges in the emerging biodiversity credit market' out today. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Great news for biodiversity!

Biodiversity credits need credibility - more transparency and regulation required 🌍 #BiodiversityCredits #Nature #Conservation #EcologyRestoration phys.org/news/2025-08...

New job alert: Would you like to help analyse our Big Garden Birdwatch dataset? 🪶🧪 Our monitoring science team are hiring for a new 2yr position to develop the ecological analysis and visualisation of BGBW data Interested? Full details here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...

Great to see an impressive indicator update to 2024 from @ukbms.bsky.social on the state of butterfly populations in UK & England - but it makes for a depressing read as numbers continue to flatline or tumble....... @rspbscience.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social 📉🦋

The result of a huge amount of effort (by my co-authors) – "a comprehensive global assessment of the status and trends of alien species for major taxonomic groups (including Bacteria, Protozoa, fungi, plants, and animals) for IPBES regions." #BioInvasions onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Yikes - the land surrounding the Cerne Abbas Giant is up for sale! Lot 1 is top-quality chalk downland bursting with wildflowers & butterflies - orchids, skippers… going for £950k. It absolutely needs to be preserved. Hope the NT or similar can buy wdcdn.co/media/pdf/0f... wdcdn.co/media/pdf/0f...

Humans outperform Merlin Sound ID in field-based point-count surveys | doi.org/10.1093/orni... | Ornithological Applications | #ornithology 🪶

Great conservation news from Natural England - “We know we can turn round species decline & improve ecosystems with the right targeted actions, the drive, & the funding” @tonyjuniper.bsky.social @naturalengland.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social @rspbscience.bsky.social 🐦📈📈

Natural England hails recovery of 150 struggling species

Excited to share our new paper led by @alexlewanski.bsky.social showing largely positive, multi-decadal consequences of translocations in Red-cockaded woodpeckers at Avon Park Air Force Range in central Florida: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... press release: www.eurekalert.org/news-release...

Encouraging news on the journey toward the White-tailed Eagle’s recovery in England. Excellent work by various folks to get to this point, especially Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation & Forestry England. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

🚨 First PhD chapter is out! My work thus far, with @andy2dobson.bsky.social We found that formerly common species have declined the fastest, on average. 📄 North American bird declines are driven by reductions in common species | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

North American bird declines are driven by reductions in common species | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... @rspbscience.bsky.social 🐦🐦🐦📉📉

Pleased to find a number of silver-spotted skippers at Aston Rowant NNR today - a new butterfly for me! 🦋 @savebutterflies.bsky.social @europebutterfly.bsky.social #butterflies

UCL People and Nature Lab are looking for partner organisations in the conservation sector for Nature Smart Challenge 2026! Could you be one of them? #UCL @freshwaterizzy.bsky.social

Want to join our friendly team of conservation experts? Our marine team are hiring for a new 1yr role to provide expert scientific advice on marine developments 🌏 🧪 See here for how to apply: shorturl.at/kdthM #ornithology

Biodiversity conservation requires integration of species-centric and process-based strategies | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Want to join our friendly and supportive #marine #science team @rspbscience.bsky.social? #conservationjobs for a scientist to provide scientific advice and contribute to applied #research affecting real world decisions about marine development and #seabird #conservation. shorturl.at/kdthM

You only have to spend time in UK National Parks to understand that large areas are not managed for conservation Much more needs to be done before our National Parks will make a positive contribution to nature recovery www.theguardian.com/environment/...

UK’s rarest breeding birds raise chicks for first time in six years www.channel4.com/news/uks-rar...