Bird Observatory

02/01/2026

This February in Benin and in March on the Ivory Coast, the first international calibrations for bird ringers in Africa will take place. Come and participate! In addition to quality and precision checks among ourselves, we will be testing new pliers, new rulers for obtaining morphometric measurements more quickly and reducing the time birds spend in our hands, and some equipment and materials for ringers who are constantly exploring new environments.

01/01/2026

The Bird Ringing School will offer two additional training courses this January and February in Senegal. These will then continue in Benin and Ivory Coast. Next winter, the courses will continue in Senegal and Ivory Coast, and will be extended to Niger, Burkina Faso, and Ethiopia. For more information, visit birdring.net/bird-ringing-school, here, or send an email to [email protected].

01/01/2026

To stay current, we review our measurement methods, readjust our accuracy, and refine our sample collection processes. We test new equipment and materials, collaborating with ringers from every continent. The next calibration? In February in Benin.
birdring.net/calibrationbirdringers

26/12/2025

THE BIRDRINGING SCHOOL ➡️ On October 16, 2025, an agreement was signed between the National Directorate of National Parks of Senegal and the Ornithological Station of the Senegal Delta, which was subsequently endorsed by the Djoudj National Bird Park (PNOD). The objective was to formalize the bird ringing station already operating in the Senegal Delta in conjunction with the PNOD Biological Station and, within that station, to create the West African Bird Ringing School (EBO), given the high influx of young ornithologists, mostly from the Master’s Program in Ornithology at Gaston Berger University in Saint Louis.

The School is headquartered at the PNOD and offers free courses and camps for African ornithologists every year from March to August. It also offers a package of academic scholarships to cover travel, accommodation, and meals.

The EBO is staffed by instructors, evaluators, and leading experts from major bird ringing centers in Europe and the Americas. After their training and once they reach an optimal level of knowledge, the students who are driving initiatives—generally within national parks or university biological stations—are visited in their home country, and the Bird Observatory network provides them with a complete kit to begin their scientific work. All of this takes place under the supervision of their country’s government and with the support of the Alliance for Bird Ringing in Africa.

27/11/2025

, from the Avian Conservation Uganda Society, was our first international scholarship recipient at the Senegal Delta Ornithological Station (SODS)
Last October, he arrived in Dakar from Uganda, where we met him at the airport to transfer us to Djoudj National Bird Park.
From the very first moment, Muhumuza actively participated in the scientific bird ringing training, led by international experts from Europe. All his transfers, boat trips through the Delta, accommodation, and meals were provided courtesy of the SODS scholarship. But most importantly, he was able to learn and practice with dozens of birds at the National Park's Biological Station, which, as always, also provided full support and logistical assistance. He was accompanied by several other young ornithologists from Senegal and other African countries.
Muhumuza's goal is to become a great bird ringer and lead the Avian Conservation Uganda Society's ornithological station.
Thank you for joining us, Christopher!

25/11/2025

We help the birds, we help our ornithologist friends, we help Africa. 💚

Cette fois-ci, la bourse d'études de l'École de baguage des oiseaux d'Afrique de l'Ouest est attribuée à notre ami Mahamadou, du Niger.

20/11/2025

Come and help us in the study and conservation of birds in Africa's wetland with the largest number of migratory birds.

19/11/2025

Now is the time to choose your 2026 dates to come ring in the best place in the world by far. +1000 species in one place.

11/11/2025

Parfois, très rarement, nous écrivons l'histoire de l'ornithologie dans un pays. Venez baguer des oiseaux en Afrique tropicale et créons ensemble la première station ornithologique du Bénin: [email protected] 622 08 16 90

11/11/2025

FORPUS. Se acaba de publicar, en la República Checa, un libro monográfico sobre el género Forpus, el de los pericos o cotorritas neotropicales. El autor es el Dr. Martin Smrček y en el se menciona la labor de investigación de campo a través del anillamiento, de nuestro compañero y su extenso equipo en América.
Aparte de las excelentes fotografías, descripciones, revisiones de mapas de distribución e información actualizada Martin presenta un libro muy útil también para aquellos que se dedican al rescate, cría en cautividad y reforzamiento de poblaciones en la naturaleza con información precisa sobre dietas, enfermedades y reproducción.
Ha sido editado este 2025 y se puede solicitar al correo [email protected] de su autor, el Dr. Martin Smrček.

24/09/2025

https://birdring.net/herons/ ¡TALLER GRATUITO!