BPM Reports

Bird populations are always shifting and changing and so monitoring them is a useful tool to track and know about these changes in our areas. Monitoring also helps both volunteers and researchers to potentially benefit from the exercise. Volunteers can increase their knowledge and understanding of the scientific process, gain deeper understanding of natural phenomena and issues of local importance, strengthen their attitudes toward their natural environment, and participate in making science-based recommendations. It provides scientists with an opportunity to increase public awareness concerning their areas of study across local or global scales and can make it possible to answer research questions that require observations spread over time or space or that otherwise would not have sufficient resources to address.

Botswana’s migratory bird species are doing well

according to a report written by Keddy Moleofi and Simon Wotton  done in 2018 migratory birds have no borders and so they are faced with various challenges caused by development in countries they use as migrating routes. The report states that two thousand species of birds, 20% of all known species, make regular seasonal movements. Many travel thousands of miles between their breeding and non-breeding places and they are being hit hard when they are most vulnerable. After very long journeys they face countless dangers. These may include the destruction and degradation of natural habitats, the loss of critical stopover sites such as coastal wetlands, illegal killing, poisoning, pollution, and collisions with badly-sited infrastructure such as power lines and wind turbines. The sectors that affect migratory birds the most have been identified as those of agriculture, energy, hunting, climate change, tourism and waste management.

Birds tell Us: BirdLife Botswana taps into people’s love of birds to protect them and their environment from climate change effect.

According to statistics from the Department of Meteorological Services the extreme heat wave with temperatures climbing above 40 Degrees Celsius which hit the country recently has broken several maximum temperature records. This is a real sign that climate change is happening. Climate change is an existential threat to birds, people and the environment, and addressing this threat requires sustained, targeted action across the country. BirdLife Botswana engages people to participate to accumulate the bird data that could guide or inform decisions on birds and biodiversity conservation through a Bird Population Monitoring Programme. The Bird Population Monitoring Programme is a free, fun, and easy event that engages bird watchers of all ages in counting birds to create a real-time snapshot of bird populations trends. Participants are asked to count birds for as little as 1 hour  in February and November annually from a 2km route.