Background to where data come from

Scope

The Rare Breeding Birds Panel (RBBP) collects data on rare breeding birds in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) plus the Crown dependencies of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. Further details on the species can be found here.

Sources of data

The majority of records received each year comes from the county bird recorder network. County recorders collect bird records from local and visiting birdwatchers in their recording areas, and each year they compile a detailed and confidential list of the rare breeding bird species in their areas, giving the locations and the numbers of breeding pairs at each of these sites. These details are submitted by recorders on the RBBP data submission spreadsheet (downloadable from the menu). These data constitute about 70% of the annual data load; the remainder come mainly from Schedule 1 and nest record data from the BTO, Schedule 1 returns from the government agencies (Natural England, Scottish Natural Heritage/nature.scot and Natural Resources Wales), and species specific studies (see pie chart).