Birds of Poole Harbour are hosting our third Big Poole Harbour Bird Count!

Back in 2020, we organised our first two Big Poole Harbour Bird Count events, encouraging everyone to head out and record the birdlife in our local area. Over the course of two days, on 19^th January and 25^th October, with your help we surveyed every corner of the harbour and collected loads of valuable community science data. This all helps us build a better understanding of the ecology and trends of birds using Poole Harbour throughout the year. You can explore the results and data from the first two counts on our interactive webpage.

We’re keen to make this a quarterly tradition, dedicating one day during each season throughout the year to monitoring the birds in and around Poole Harbour. Over the past year restrictions and a very busy schedule have prevented this, but now it seems the time is right to get the ball rolling again. So kick things off, on Sunday 16th January 2022 we will be hosting our third Big Poole Harbour Bird Count and you’re all invited to join in!

How to get involved:

It’s simple, on Sunday 16th January just head out birding in your local area and record what you see. This could be a nearby park, urban space, nature reserve, or even just your own back garden (please just ensure you have permission to be there first). If you’re not sure where to go, why not head to the GO BIRDING page on our website looking for inspiration. Once you’re out and about, make a note of which bird Species you can identify and the Total number of individuals of each species you count. Please also document the Names those taking part (this information will not be shared), the Location where you were birdwatching and what Times you were there.

To make submitting your sightings as easy as possible we’ve created a Recording Sheet (Word Document) which you can download here. Once completed, please send to: sightings@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk. Alternatively you can submit your sightings via eBird or BirdTrack.

When you head out we recommend taking some binoculars with you if you have any, as this will help you identify the birds that you see. But don’t worry if not, or even if you only see a few birds: all sightings are valuable so please share them with us! January is the peak time in the harbour for our overwintering birds, so there should be plenty to spot.

Things to consider on the day

Sunrise: 08:03 | Sunset: 16:34 | Low tide: 14:30

Coronavirus Safety

All records are important to us, but not as important as the health and safety of yourselves and other members of the public. If you’re heading out to take part please make sure you abide by the most recent government guidelines and rules. Reserves and other public areas may also have their own safety procedures in place, so please ensure you also observe these at all times. Activities outdoors are generally considered to be low risk, so by taking additional measures such as social distancing, and wearing masks in hides or other indoor settings, we can all enjoy birding and help to protect one another at the same time.