How to submit your sightings of birds in London

Houses of Parliament & Big Ben

London's Birding

How to submit bird sightings
Sightings of rare birds can be telephoned to Birdline Southeast on 08000 377 240 or can be submitted to the London Recorder, Andrew Self on 020 8208 2139. Records of unusual birds and migrants sent to Andrew Self will be published on www.londonbirders.com.

Records should also be sent to the appropriate sector recorder listed below. Please see the Guide for Contributors of Ornithological Records (below) for advice on what to submit.

Inner London: David Darrell-Lambert, 33 Mary Rose Close, Chafford Hundred, Essex RM16 6LY
email: david@ddcl.demon.co.uk

Essex: Chris Langsdon
email: clangsdon@hotmail.com

Herts: Adam Wilson, 7 Douglas House, Davison Drive, Cheshunt, Herts, EN8 0SZ
email: widswilson@hotmail.com

Middx: Rob Innes, 27 Dominion Close, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW3 1PJ
email: mail@robinnes.com

Bucks: Andrew Moon, 46 Highfield Way, Rickmansworth, Herts WD3 2PR
email: andrew.moon@talk21.com

Kent: vacant position, please send records to Andrew Self

Surrey: Steve Spooner, 32 Berkeley Drive, West Molesey, Surrey KT8 1RA
email: sjspooner@ntlworld.com

Guide for Contributors of Ornithological Records

All records of ornithological interest, from LNHS members and non-members alike, are welcomed by the Society's Ornithological Records Committee. However, with an ever-growing number of active birdwatchers in the London Area it seems sensible to issue a guide to our requirements. This guide is not intended to be comprehensive and contributors are asked to use their own guidance and common sense but it does serve as a reference point for the type of records required. For example, with many common breeding species comparative yearly breeding counts are especially welcomed. The Records Committee reserves the right to request full details for any record, e.g. out of season migrants. This guide does not apply to Inner London where all records are required, but similar criteria regarding descriptions should be followed.

KEY:
A = all records.
D = full description required (download form).
N = brief notes required (how identified, view, distance etc.)
MM = dated monthly maxima for frequently visited sites and all records from elsewhere subject to >n.
n = minimum count required, subject to other categories.
B = all breeding records subject to >n.
T = all territory counts as well as definite breeding records.
S = all records between mid-May and mid-July.
F&L = first and last dates.
P = passage flocks and movements.
W = all wintering records.

All divers (A, N)
Little/Great Crested Grebe (MM, B)
Other grebes (A)
All petrels (A, D)
All shearwaters/Fulmar (A, D)
Gannet (A, N)
Cormorant (MM, B)
Shag (A)
Bittern (A)
Grey Heron (MM, >15, B)
Little Egret (A)
Purple/Night Heron (A, D)
White Stork/Spoonbill (A, N)
Mute Swan (MM, >30, B)
Bewick's/Whooper Swans (A, N)
Bean/Pink-footed Goose (A, D)
White-fronted Goose (A)
Greylag Goose (MM, B)
Barnacle/Brent/Egyptian Goose (A)
Canada Goose (MM, >200, B)
Shelduck (MM, S)
[Ruddy Shelduck (A)]
Mandarin/Wigeon (A)
American Wigeon (A, D)
Gadwall/Teal (MM, S)
Green-winged Teal (A, D)
Mallard (MM, >200, B)
Pintail/Garganey (A)
Shoveler (MM, S)
Red-crested Pochard (A)
Pochard (MM, >10, S)
Ring-necked Duck (A, D)
Tufted Duck (MM, >20, B)
Scaup (A)
Eider/Long-tailed Duck (A, N)
Common Scoter (A)
Velvet Scoter (A, D)
Goldeneye/Smew (A)
Red-b. Merganser/Goosander (A)
Ruddy Duck (MM, B)
Red Kite (A)
Marsh Harrier (A)
Hen/Montagu's Harrier (A, D)
Goshawk (A, D)
Sparrowhawk (A)
Common Buzzard (A)
Honey/Rough-legged Buzzard (A, D)
Osprey (A, N)
Kestrel (>5, B)
Merlin (A, N)
Hobby/Peregrine (A)
All partridges (>5, S)
Quail (A, D)
Pheasant (>20, B)
Water Rail (A)
Spotted Crake/Corncrake (A, D)
Moorhen/Coot (MM, >20, B>5)
Crane (A, D)
Oystercatcher/Avocet (A)
Stone-curlew (A, D)
Little Ringed Plover/Ringed Plover (A)
Kentish Plover/Dotterel (A, D)
Golden/Grey Plover (A)
Lapwing (P, >10, B)
Knot/Sanderling/Little Stint(A)
Temminck's Stint (A, D)
Curlew Sandpiper (A)
Pectoral/Purple Sandpiper (A, D)
Dunlin (MM, >5, S)
Buff-breasted Sandpiper (A, D)
Ruff/Woodcock/Jack Snipe(A)
Snipe (MM, S)
All godwits/Whimbrel/Curlew(A)
Spotted Redshank (A)
Redshank (MM, >5, S)
Greenshank (A)
Green/Wood/Common Sandpiper (A)
Turnstone (A)
All phalaropes (A, D)
All skuas (A, D)
Mediterranean/Little Gull (A)
Sabine's Gull (A, D)
Black-headed Gull (MM, >50)
Ring-billed Gull (A, D)
Common Gull (MM, >10)
LBB/Herring Gull/ (MM, >10, B)
Yellow-legged Gull (A)
Caspian/Iceland/Glaucous Gull (A,D)
Great Black-backed Gull (MM, >10)
Kittiwake (A)
Sandwich Tern (A)
Roseate Tern (A, D)
Common Tern (MM, >5, B, F&L)
Arctic/Little/Black Tern (A)

All auks (A, D)
Feral Rock Dove (>100)
Stock Dove (>10, B)
Woodpigeon (>100, B, P)
Collared Dove (>20, B)
Turtle Dove (A)
Ring-necked Parakeet (A)
Cuckoo (S, P, F&L)
All owls (A)
Nightjar (A, N)
Swift (>100, B, P, F&L)
Kingfisher (T)
Bee-eater/Hoopoe/Wryneck(A, D)
All woodpeckers (T)
Short-toed Lark/Shore Lark (A, D)
Woodlark (A, D away from breeding sites)
Skylark (>25, B, P)
Sand Martin (>20, B, F&L, P)
Swallow/House Martin (>50,B,F&L P)
Tawny/Richard's Pipits (A, D)
Tree Pipit (A)
Meadow Pipit (>25, B, P)
Rock/Water Pipit (A)
Yellow Wagtail (A)
Grey Wagtail (MM, S)
Pied Wagtail (>5, B)
Waxwing (A)
Dipper (A, D)
Wren/Dunnock/Robin (>10, T)
Nightingale (A)
Bluethroat (A, D)
Black Redstart/Redstart/Whinchat (A)
Stonechat/Wheatear/Ring Ouzel (A)
Blackbird (>20, P, T)
Fieldfare/Redwing (>20, F&L, P)
Song/Mistle Thrush (>10, P, T)
Cetti's Warbler (A, D for non-singing males)
Aquatic/Marsh Warbler (A, D)
Grasshopper Warbler (A)
Sedge/Reed Warbler (>5, F&L, T)
Hippolais warblers (A, D)
Barred Warbler (A, D)
Dartford Warbler (A, N)
Lesser Whitethroat (>5, F&L, T)
Common Whitethroat (>5, F&L, T)
Garden Warbler (>5, F&L, T)
Blackcap (>10, F&L, T, W)
Pallas's/Yellow-browed Warbler (A, D)
Wood Warbler (A)
Chiffchaff (>10, F&L, T, W)
Willow Warbler (>10, F&L, T)
Goldcrest (>5, T)
Firecrest (A)
Spotted/Pied Flycatcher (A)
Red-breasted Flycatcher (A, D)
Bearded Tit (A)
Long-tailed Tit (>20, T)
Marsh/Willow Tit (A)
Coal/Blue/Great Tit (>20, T)
Nuthatch/Treecreeper (T)
Golden Oriole (A, D)
All shrikes (A, D)
Jay/Magpie (>15, B>5, P)
Jackdaw/Rook (>20, B)
Carrion Crow (>50, B>5)
Raven (A, D)
Starling (>100, B>10)
Rose-coloured Starling (A, D)
House Sparrow (>20, B>5)
Tree Sparrow (A)
Chaffinch (>50, B, P)
Brambling (A)
Serin (A, D)
Greenfinch/Goldfinch (>30, B, P)
Siskin (>5, S)
Linnet (>20, B, P)
Twite (A, D)
Lesser Redpoll (>5, S)
Mealy Redpoll (A, N)
Crossbill (A)
Common Rosefinch (A, D)
Bullfinch (>5, B)
Hawfinch (A)
Lapland Bunting (A, D)
Snow Bunting (A, N)
Yellowhammer (>10, T)
Ortolan/Cirl Bunting (A, D)
Reed Bunting (>10, T, P)
Little Bunting (A, D)
Corn Bunting (>5, T)

In addition to the above, full descriptions are required for all species assessed by the British Birds Rarities Committee. Description forms are available from the Editor on request. All records of escapes are also welcomed by the Society. All records of hybrids and birds showing plumage aberrance are also required. In difficult cases, eg Aythya hybrids, supporting notes may be required.

Sub-species
All records of sub-species/races are required. In some cases notes are required, eg White Wagtail in autumn and races of Yellow Wagtail other than M.f. flavissima . In many other instances notes may not be required but in difficult cases please provide your reasons for assigning the record to a particular sub-species/race. Such cases could be:
Greenland Wheatear
Races of Chiffchaff
Northern Willow Warbler
Hooded Crow
Northern Bullfinch

Rock Pipit: when given suitable viewing conditions please record which race of Rock Pipit you encountered and submit the reasons for your belief. All records of 'Scandinavian' Rock Pipit, Anthus petrosus littoralis, in autumn and winter require full descriptions.

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