Press Releases - July/August 2008
Item 1

No. 2008/07/20
July 2008

Northumberland’s garden birds get their very own Ambassadors

Thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant, garden birds in Northumberland are to get a helping hand as the county gets its first ever garden bird Ambassadors. The British Trust for Ornithology celebrated the appointment of the Northumberland Garden BirdWatch Ambassadors at a conference in Morpeth.

Dr Val Tuck and her husband Alan became the BTO Garden BirdWatch Ambassadors for Northumberland. Val commented, “I am delighted to take up this position. This survey is the only survey that monitors our garden birds throughout the year. By taking part, ordinary people are adding to what we know about how, why and when birds use our gardens. In the long run this can only benefit the birds. The more we learn now about Northumberland’s garden birds, the stronger position we will be in to protect them in the future.”

Both Val and Alan have been participants in the Garden BirdWatch survey since it began in 1995 and understand more than most the importance of monitoring the fortunes of the birds that share our gardens. Alan commented, “More people than ever are feeding the birds in their gardens, and the only way of finding out what is happening in those gardens is for the owners to tell us. It was people doing just this that first alerted us to the decline of the House Sparrow and it will be these people that will be keeping an eye on them in the future.”

The BTO is to appoint a further 10 Ambassadors across the country over the next two years. These will be a point of contact for existing Garden BirdWatch participants and will raise the profile of the survey locally. The Ambassadors will also be available to give presentations about garden birds and the survey to a wide range of audiences.

For more information on how to contact the Northumberland Ambassadors, to book a talk for your club, or to get involved in the survey and make your garden count, contact the GBW Team on 01842 750050, email; or write to GBW, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk, IP24 2PU.

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Notes for Editors

1. The aim of the BTO Garden BirdWatch Ambassador Scheme is to create a network of volunteer Garden BirdWatch Ambassadors across the country, to help increase the impact of the Trust’s work, and to act as focal points for the development of the BTO Garden BirdWatch survey at a local level. The scheme will see 15 ambassadors appointed in different regions of the UK over the next three years.

2. The regions covered will be:

• Year 1: Suffolk, Hampshire, Devon, Northumberland and Merseyside.
• Year 2: Lothians, Nottinghamshire, South Wales, York and West Midlands.
• Year 3: Northern Ireland, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Shropshire and Hertfordshire.

3. The Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £37,900 will be used to recruit, train and provide the equipment that will enable the Ambassadors to give talks and presentations across the country. By 2010 there will be 15 fully trained BTO Garden BirdWatch Ambassadors in 15 different regions of the UK.

4. The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. From our great museums and historic buildings to local parks and beauty spots or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up our nation’s heritage for everyone to enjoy.

5. The BTO Garden BirdWatch is the only nationwide survey of garden birds to run weekly throughout the year, providing important information on how birds use gardens, and how this use changes over time. Currently, some 16,000 people take part in the project. The BTO Garden BirdWatch is funded by participants’ contributions and is the largest year round survey of garden birds anywhere in the world. For more information see www.bto.org/gbw

6. The BTO is the UK’s leading bird research organisation. Over thirty thousand birdwatchers contribute to the BTO’s surveys. They collect information that forms the basis of conservation action in the UK. The BTO maintains a staff of 90 at its offices in Norfolk and Stirling, who analyse and publicise the results of project work. The BTO’s investigations are funded by government, industry and conservation organisations.

7. Images of garden birds and of the Northumberland Ambassadors are freely available for use in association with this press release. Please contact to request an electronic version. Please quote reference number 2008/07/20

8. The BTO has an ISDN line available for radio interviews.

For further information please contact:

Paul Stancliffe on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)
or mobile 07845 900559 (anytime)