The importance of the United Kingdom for wintering gulls: population estimates and conservation requirements

View this paper online

Fine-tuning the assessment of large-scale temporal trends in biodiversity using the example of British breeding birds

View this paper online

Fat provisioning in winter impairs egg production during the following spring: a landscape-scale study of blue tits

Although many of us provide food for garden birds, especially in winter, we are still only in the early stages of understanding exactly how this affects wild bird populations.  One possibility is that winter food enhances birds’ ability to invest in future reproduction.  However, it is likely that the type of nutrients a bird receives from supplementary food will be an important factor in determining whether this is the case. A new study by scientists at the University of Exeter, in collaboration with the BTO and the University of Turin, has shown exactly that. 

View this paper online

Individual consistency in the foraging behaviour of Northern Gannets: Implications for interactions with offshore renewable energy developments

With European member states committed to obtaining 20% of their energy from renewables by 2020, the number of offshore wind, wave and tidal developments is increasing, potentially putting pressure on marine life.  Seabirds could be affected in many ways, including through loss of foraging habitat, and collision with wind turbines.  In a new study by the University of Liverpool, BTO and Alderney Wildlife Trust, GPS tags were deployed to examine how breeding Gannets on Les Etacs, Alderney, used their marine environment in early June 2011.

View this paper online

Avian foraging behaviour in relation to provision of ecosystem services in a highland East African agroecosystem

View this paper online