Happy New Year - belatedly!

Happy New Year to all readers.

Bird Atlas
A great effort so far in the Region; almost 90 tetrads have been visited and recorded online. I expect the actual number will be higher as several surveyors will be returning data on paper and there may be some who intend to submit online but haven't entered their results yet.

Now we're in 2008, it's time to think about the second visits to these tetrads to complete the winter counts. I know some have already been done.

Please keep the Roving Records coming in too.

BBS
The Breeding Bird Survey will continue as normal during the Atlas period. Data from this will also be used to feed the Atlas.

I expect to be sorting out volunteers and paperwork for this survey during February. Let's try to beat last year's record coverage.

Breeding Plover Survey
Forms have now all been returned to the BTO for analysis from last year's survey. 20 sites were visited and 5 Little Ringed Plover pairs were found.

Atlas Update

Have you seen the latest news pages on the Bird Atlas website? Some really interesting information on progress of the project there. Over 5 million birds counted at the time of writing!

So far in the York Region first visits for 38 TTVs have been completed online, which is a great start after a month's fieldwork. Let's try to double that by the end of the year. Roving Records have come in for 12 of the 15 10-kn squares in the region too.

TTV allocation as it stands should give above minimum coverage in most of the 10-km squares. SE57 and SE73 need a couple of tetrads to meet this level. Tetrads are available still in other squares too so please volunteer. Perhaps you could take on another? If not this year, book one for next.

Remember that you only need to cover the tetrad for one pair of visits in winter and one pair in spring. This means the tetrad is fully covered for the TTV to get abundance data after one year.

Bird Atlas Breeding Evidence Codes

The Atlas website allows entry of breeding evidence codes during the winter period to allow for those few species that may nest early or even all year.


Please consider carefully whether these really apply if you wish to use the codes. Only use them when the birds are showing signs of breeding behaviour during the winter. Once we move on to the Breeding Season then their use will become the rule rather than the exception.

Bird Atlas TTV - let's get them covered!

11 out of the 15 10-km squares in the region now have at least a minimum number of tetrads allocated for TTVs. The others need one or two tetrads to get them up to this level.

Do you live in, watch in or would like to have a look at the following: SE57, SE64, SE73 or SE75? Let me know if you can take on a TTV or two in any of these, please.

The Atlas has begun!

The Atlas fieldwork has now started. The Bird Atlas website now supports online data entry for TTVs and Roving Records. Note also the links to and from BirdTrack - you can register tetrads as sites on this system so your data can be used by both surveys.

Six of the 10-km squares now have at least 8 tetrads allocated for TTVs. Four are one tetrad short of minimum coverage and two need two tetrads. SE64, SE66 and SE76 are lagging behind though. Do you live in one of these, or do they contain your local patch? Perhaps you'd like to visit a new area? Please help to get coverage in these areas.

I am giving a talk about the Atlas after the York Ornithological Club's AGM on Tuesday evening, 6th November. The meeting starts at 7.30 p.m. and the venue is the Friends' Meeting House, Castlegate, York.

Bird Atlas starts this week

Only four days to go before the 1st November when the Bird Atlas fieldwork starts. It's not too late to get involved.

I still need volunteers for Timed Tetrad Visits - especially in SE64, SE66, SE75 and SE76.

Anyone can join in with the Roving Records - in your garden, your local patch, or visiting new areas - to get those dots on the maps.

Send me an email or go to the Atlas website at http://www.birdatlas.net/ to request a TTV.

BBS update

The Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) this year has been very successful in numbers of squares covered. I have so far received data from 27 squares; 18 via the BBS-Online system and 9 on paper forms. This equals the record number of squares from 2005. I am still awaiting returns from 5 squares and all the observers of these have told me that they have covered them so I am optimistic that we can beat the record.

This is a great achievement for a relatively small region.

I have also received data from coverage from last year, which brings the total for 2006 to 24 squares covered in the York Region.