Out for the count: record numbers of volunteer birdwatchers reveal changes in Wales’s breeding birds - British Trust for Ornithology

A major increase in the number of volunteers taking part in the long-standing BTO/JNCC/RSPB Breeding Bird Survey (BBS), has resulted in greater coverage across Wales than ever before. The results show that it is not just numbers of volunteers on the up, as some bird species too are on the rise.
However, the new report highlighting the results of the survey, published this week, shows there are also continued declines for many species.
BBS is the main scheme for monitoring the population changes of the UK’s common and widespread breeding birds, producing population trends for 60 species in Wales.

Thanks to the efforts of hundreds of volunteers, the greatest number of sites in the history of the scheme was surveyed during the 2025 breeding season, providing invaluable data for many of Wales’s breeding birds. The records collated combine to provide the most in-depth assessment of the state of the country’s birds during the nesting season.

Among the species with an upward trend is the Robin. This very familiar and much-loved bird has increased in Wales by 22% in the last 10 years. Two species more often in the headlines for losses, appear to be turning a corner, as Skylark and Song Thrush numbers continue to show signs of recovery. The birds, famed for their vocal virtuosity, have increased by 24% and 27% respectively, in just the last five years.

Nuthatch, a distinctive bird of woodlands, parks and gardens, maintains its impressive upward trajectory and numbers have increased by 55% in Wales since the mid 1990s.

However, it’s not all good news, and Swifts once again show little sign of recovery. These distinctive birds, once a familiar sight and sound in the summer skies above many Welsh towns and cities, have declined here by 76% since 1995.