Farmers are being urged to take part in this year’s farmland bird count.

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Big Farmland Bird Count takes place from February 3 to 19.

The annual nationwide survey, organised by the GWCT and sponsored by the NFU for the past five years, provides a vital snapshot of the health of farmland birds.

This year marks the tenth year of the GWCT Big Farmland Bird Count – the first nationwide citizen science project to involve farmers in monitoring the state of farmland songbirds.

Since the first count in 2014, more than 11,000 counts have been carried out by people working on the land.

“Farmers and land managers do so much to support wildlife on farms and the Big Farmland Bird Count is an opportunity for them to see just what impact their efforts are having,” said Dr Roger Draycott, from the GWCT.

“By spending just half an hour between February 3 and 19 in one spot on your farm counting the birds you see and submitting your results to the GWCT, you will help us build a national picture of which species are benefiting from conservation efforts and which are most in need of help.”

NFU president Minette Batters said: “The annual Big Farmland Bird Count, which the NFU is proud to sponsor, provides a fantastic snapshot of the huge amount of work being carried out on the nation’s farms to encourage wildlife.

“Not only are farmers across the country producing sustainable climate-friendly food, they are also maintaining and protecting the great British countryside, creating habitats for biodiversity to flourish and additional feeding for farmland birds.

“I would encourage all farmers to get involved in the count.”

The latest assessment of the status of the UK’s birds, the Birds of Conservation Concern list (2021), suggests that farmland birds need all the help they can get.

More than one in four UK bird species is in serious trouble, and many of the struggling species are farmland and upland birds.

“We will not halt the alarming declines of species such as curlew and skylarks if we leave it to nature reserves and national parks alone,” said Roger. “Seventy two per cent of the UK’s countryside is managed by farmers, game keepers and land managers, so it is vital that we are all engaged in the effort to reverse biodiversity decline.”

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