One of my duties as Northants county recorder is to submit each year to the UK Rare Breeding Birds Panel (RBBP), detailed records of confirmed or suspected breeding for sixteen species of nationally rare breeding birds.
Species included in the Northants submission for the last three years are listed below:
- Shoveler
- Common Pochard
- Turtle Dove
- Little Ringed Plover
- Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
- Hobby
- Peregrine Falcon
- Willow Tit
Breeding records for other species required by the RBBP, but not recently recorded as breeding in the county, are Red-breasted Merganser, Northern Goshawk, Marsh Harrier, Long-eared Owl, Short-eared Owl, Woodlark, Dartford Warbler and Hawfinch.
I’d welcome records for any of the sixteen species which could indicate breeding; these would of course include obvious evidence such as visible nests or adults seen with young, but also potential evidence such as courtship / display activity or even just pairs seen on suitable territory in late spring through summer.
Now is the perfect time to monitor and record 2022 breeding activity, but I would also welcome any retrospective records for 2021.
All records received will be treated in confidence.
Records can be submitted in various ways; see this link for more on this topic: https://joncookbirding.wordpress.com/about-the-county-recorder-role/
For more on the work of the RBBP, see link: https://rbbp.org.uk/
Jon Cook - Northants County Bird Recorder 