Publishing original material, articles, notices, branch and Club news, along with up to date information on birds in Scotland (including reports of rare and scarce bird sightings), our members tell us that Scottish Birds is one of the key benefits of belonging to the SOC.
Scottish Birds is the quarterly journal for SOC members and is published in March, June, September and December annually in hard copy format. Considered to be a leading authority on Scottish ornithology, Scottish Birds offers readers the complete story of birds in Scotland and acts as a channel of communication for SOC members.
Its different sections have been developed to meet the wide needs of the birdwatching community and it's a firm favourite amongst photographers for its first-class photography.
To judge the quality of the publication for yourself, take a sneak peek of the latest issue or download a recent sample issue. If you'd like to receive a hard copy sample issue in the post, click here.
SNEAK PEEK SAMPLE ISSUE Join Us
Scottish Birds Editorial team:
Co-ordinating editor:
Ian Andrews
Peer-reviewed papers:
Dr Stan da Prato
Assisted by:
Dr I. Bainbridge, Dr M. Marquiss, R. Swann, Dr W. Miles & Dr C. R. McKay
Articles, news and views:
Dr Stuart L. Rivers & Harry Scott (Long-standing articles editor, Jimmy Maxwell, sadly passed away suddenly but peacefully at his home on Saturday 15th August 2020)
Contributions to Scottish Birds
Material for contribution should be sent to Wendy Hicks at SOC HQ. Ideally contributions should be submitted by email or on disc, but typed or handwritten material is also fine. For more information on contributing, please read our advice to contributors.
Passing on your feedback to the Editors
Please send this c/o Waterston House, Aberlady, East Lothian, EH32 0PY or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Subscribe to Scottish Birds today
Join us today to receive your copy of Scottish Birds every quarter or contact us if you would like more information about membership. If your Library or Institution would like to subscribe please contact us. The current rate is £60 annually (for delivery to all non-UK addresses a £15 postage supplement applies). To renew your Library or Institution membership, please click here.
Scottish Birds online
Older back issues of the journal can now be downloaded in a searchable PDF format, click here to start searching. Recent back issues of the journal are available for purchase from Waterston House, SOC Headquarters, at £7 each plus p&p.
Scottish Bird News
In summer 2009, the Club decided to incorporate its members’ magazine and journal, Scottish Bird News, along with the independent Birding Scotland, into a single publication under the Scottish Birds cover. Back issues of Scottish Bird News are still available to download.
