British Trust for Ornithology

Description

The British Trust for Ornithology, or BTO, is a UK charity that studies wild birds and works to secure a better future for birds and nature.

It runs bird monitoring and research programmes, chiefly through population and breeding surveys and bird ringing, carried out largely by volunteers. Its science is published in peer-reviewed journals, reports and its own data tools, and is shared with governmental and non-governmental bodies to help protect wildlife sites, set conservation priorities and shape policy. It also runs training courses and events, and a youth programme, to involve more people in its work.

BTO has around 50,000 volunteers and staff based across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1932 for the study of birds in the British Isles, and its headquarters are in Thetford, Norfolk, where it also runs the Nunnery Lakes nature reserve.