The Big Farmland Bird Count is an annual event that encourages farmers and land managers to record the bird species and numbers on their farms and surrounding land. It is organised by the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and sponsored by the National Farmers Union (NFU).
The count has been running since 2014 and has provided a fascinating snapshot of the farmed landscape. The first year of the count saw around 500 people take part, but in 2024 that number had increased to more than 1,700 counts. In total over the past 11 years, around 16,000 counts have now been carried out by people working on our farms up and down the country.
Farmland birds have declined by 63% since the 1970s in the UK. Since 72% of land in the UK is farmland, 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.
Biodiversity recovery must take place alongside sustainable production and the BFBC helps us figure out how to do this.
It provides farmers, landowners, and wildlife managers with a way of measuring the impact of their conservation efforts on the landscape. They are able to see how and where changes they are implementing are benefiting wildlife on their land. This can help to inform their own land management plans.
The count also gives them a chance to see how their work compares to neighbouring farms and other areas.