My Work with Birds
My experience in ornithology spans more than a decade. This has involved research at the Natural History Museum, London, into plumage colouration and bill evolution, and bird flight and flocking behaviour at Royal Holloway, University of London.
In my ornithological consultancy work, I regularly deliver Environmental Statement (ES) chapters, Ecological Impact Assessments (EcIA), and Shadow Habitats Regulations Assessments (sHRA). I also lead the design and delivery of a range of ornithological surveys across the South West and Wales, including Breeding Bird Surveys, Winter Bird Surveys, SPA surveys, Nocturnal Surveys, and nesting checks.
I've been a licensed bird ringer since 2016 (now an S-permit trainer), conducting ringing on behalf of the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). This involves placing small metal (and sometimes plastic) rings to birds' legs to help track their movements, monitor their survival, and study their behaviour. I've been involved in a variety of ringing projects across the UK:
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Nightingale adult & nestling ringing at Knepp Estate rewilding project. Featured on David Attenborough's Wonder of Song Wonder of Song BBC One documentary.
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Nestling ringing of Dartford Warbler (under Schedule 1 Licence), Linnet, Stonechat, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, and other heathland species in the Quantock Hills National Landscape.
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Educational public ringing demonstrations at Global Bird Fair, Oakham.
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Gull cannon-netting in at Pitsea Landfill Site in Essex.
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Shelduck canon-netting and colour-ringing at Seaton Marshes, Axe Estuary, Devon.
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Mute Swan colour-ringing in Greater London, Surrey and the South West.
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Shag colour-ringing in Aberdeen.
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Manx Shearwater ringing and Puffin colour-ringing at Skokholm Island Bird Observatory.
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Hirundine roost catching in East Sussex and Surrey.
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Woodlark adult & nestling colour-ringing in Hampshire (under Schedule 1 Licence).
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Pied Flycatcher adult & nestling ringing in the Elenydd–Mallaen SPA, Wales.
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Nightjar ringing in Surrey and Somerset.
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Supporting efforts at Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory, Portland Bird Observatory, and Icklesham Rye Bay.
We were featured on "Attenborough's Wonder of Song" on BBC One while supporting Nightingale nest monitoring at Knepp Rewilding Project, West Sussex.
A short piece on the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and our demonstrating at the Global Bird Fair 2023.
All footage copyright Simon McCabe.
I delivered a webinar for beef farmers in the South West under Lidl’s Sustainable Beef Programme, exploring why farmland birds matter and the practical actions that can help them thrive within sustainable beef systems.
I was involved with LEGO’s Build the Change: Build for Birds initiative, aiming to inspire your 7-14-year-old students to engage in bird conservation. The live lesson went out to up to 19,000 school children across the UK!
