We are delighted to announce that the annual Herts Bird Club / British Trust for Ornithology will go ahead this year – as an online event on the morning of Saturday March 20.

The programme, which runs from 10.30am to 12.40pm, combines speaker presentations with popular perennials such as Graham Knight's 'What did you miss?' review of county birding highlights for 2020 and the bird photograph of the year.

Jenny Rawson and Tim Hill will talk about 'Action for Swifts in Hertfordshire' and Samantha Franks of the BTO will present on 'Curlews in crisis' . Martin Ketcher and Murray Orchard will provide the usual update on BTO survey activities and – as a special feature – Herts Bird Report editor Clifford Smout will chair a panel discussion about birding during lockdown.

Please note that the conference, using Zoom software, will open its 'doors' at 10.15am so that everyone wishing to attend can be admitted in time for a prompt start. So please do not leave it until the last minute to join the event.

Zoom code for the HBC Conference https://zoom.us/j/91784317638 

Programme:

10:15: Zoom conference opens

10.30: Welcome and introduction - Rupert Evershed, Chair, Herts Bird Club

10.35: Action for Swifts in Hertfordshire - Jenny Rawson and Tim Hill

10.55: Curlews in Crisis: Reasons for their decline and hope for their conservation - Samantha Franks, Senior Research Ecologist, BTO

11.30: BTO survey update Martin Ketcher and Murray Orchard

11.35: BREAK

11.45: Photo of the year winner announced Tom Speller

11.50: 2020, what did you miss? Graham Knight

12.10: Lockdown Birding; Clifford Smout, Editor, Herts Bird Report, to chair interviews of a panel of birders about their experiences of lockdown birding with special reference to the Herts Bird Club April 2020 garden species count.

The panel will consist of John Pritchard, Rupert Evershed and Anna Marett.   

12.35: Closing remarks - Rupert Evershed

12.40: Conference ends

Thanks, as ever, go to Tim Hill and the organising team at the Herts Bird Club, and to our BTO colleagues.

Swift photographed at Wilstone Reservoir June 2020 © David Hutchinson