Links to other bird-related sites
Please note that the SOC is not responsible for the content of external websites.
Scottish organisations, agencies, clubs etc
Coastal fora and partnership
Moray Firth Coastal Partnership
The Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG)
Forth Seabird Group – seabird monitoring in the Firth of Forth
Glasgow City Council biodiversity site
Glasgow Natural History Society
Sustainable Tourism – in Scotland
Machrihanish Seabird & Wildlife Observatory
Mountaineering Council of Scotland – Nesting Bird Updates
National Trust for Scotland (NTS)
NatureScot (formerly SNH)
North Ronaldsay Bird Observatory
Paisley Natural History Society
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) in Scotland
Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation – includes projects on Osprey and Honey Buzzard
Scotland’s National Nature Reserves
Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)
Scottish Government, use the site’s search facility for ‘birds’
Scottish Parliament, again use the site’s search facility for ‘birds’
Scottish Seabird Centre, North Berwick
Scottish Raptor Study Group (SRSG)
Scottish Wildlife Trust (SWT)
Recent News
North Ronaldsay Bird Observatory – new sightings blog
Western Isles Wildlife – latest sightings, photos, etc
Where to Birdwatch information
Newsgroups, discussion groups, Facebook, Twitter etc.
ABZ Rare Birds, NE Scotland Facebook
Angus Birding, Angus & Dundee forum
Ayrshire Birding, Ayrshire bird group
BirdForum, the net’s largest birding community
BirdingLothian, Lothian Twitter
Birdwatching for Beginners, SOC Facebook group
Caithness Birds, SOC Caithness Facebook
Caithness Birds, SOC Caithness Twitter
Clyde Birding, SOC Clyde Twitter
Orkney Birding, Facebook
Upper Forth Bird News, Twitter
Sites with links to more sites (UK-Ireland)
Birds of Britain, a monthly web magazine for birdwatchers
The Fat Birder – Scottish Links, many relevant links
Tina & Duncan MacDonald: Scottish hotspots, tours, events etc, again many links
Sites with links to more sites (world) and trip reports
Surfbirds – birding articles from the UK and North America
Home Advisor Beginner's Guide to Bird Watching Around Your Home
Weather, Tides, and Maps
Latest UK Weather from the Met Office
BBC Weather – including (rainfall) radar images updated every three hours
Marine Weather - a collection of maritime weather resources
XC Weather – more UK weather information
SOC Site Finder – find places, display recording areas, atlas tetrads etc
UK Street Map – a useful site for finding places (not just streets) on a 1:50,000 OS map
Microsoft Bing Maps – another site-finding utility
Tide Times – UK locations – predictions available months or years ahead
Tide Times by The National Oceanography Centre – tables for the next 28 days
DMAP – distribution mapping software
Other organisations
African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA)
BirdWatch Ireland – the BirdLife International Partner for the Republic of Ireland
British Birds Rarities Committee
British Ornithologists’ Club (BOC)
British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU)
British Trust for Ornithology (BTO)
Form to report a ring you have found
European Ornithologists' Union (EOU)
European Union for Bird Ringing (EURING) – includes EURING code list
Fat Birder's Top 1000 Birding Websites
IPMR – Integrated Population Monitoring Reporter, including how to record colour-ringed birds
Irish Rare Birds Committee (including The Irish List)
Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)
NHM Library – includes on-line catalogue search
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Scottish SPCA) including Animal Helpline Numbers
Research Grants
Art and Photography
Colin Woolf Wildlife Art – original paintings, illustrations, limited edition prints, and cards
Crail Birder – John Anderson’s wildlife photography from Fife and around Scotland
Derek Robertson – wildlife and landscape prints and originals by the Fife-based artist
Island Porcelain Ltd – hand made porcelain bird figures, ideal as gifts or the start of a collection. The pottery is in the village of Kilmory on the Isle of Arran, Scotland
Laurie Campbell Photography – natural history photographer from the Scottish Borders
Rozi’s Gallery – wildlife prints and illustrations from the Isle of Lewis
Bird Identification and Calls
Sounds Natural – Wildlife and countryside CDs including bird songs and calls
xeno-canto – a website sharing bird sounds from around the world
A guide to using xeno-canto – some simple steps to get you started
Birdwatching outside Scotland
Birdingpal – find local birders all over the world to go birdwatching with
Birdwatching Bulgaria – a rough guide to birdwatching and birding in Bulgaria
Travel in the UK
Caledonian MacBrayne Hebridian and Clyde Ferries
The Internet Guide to Scotland – a useful starting point
Scotland.org – ‘Scotland’s national internet signpost’
East Lothian links
Aberlady.org – Aberlady Community website
Accommodation
Ben Macdui Self Catering, Boat of Garten
Bed and breakfast at Colvend, Dalbeattie, Dumfries & Galloway. Tel: 01556 630483
Kilspindie Hotel & Duck’s Restaurant
Raasay House Self Catering, Isle of Raasay
Winton House self-catering accommodation, Pencaitland, East Lothian
Wildlife Holidays and Tours
Aigas Field Centre – wildlife, birdwatching, history & nature holidays in the Highlands of Scotland
Birding in Spain – itineraries, maps, checklists etc. in northeast Spain and Mallorca
Bird Watching & Wildlife Club – wildlife breaks in the Cairngorms. Click for Press Release.
Endemic Guides – Malaysia and Singapore Bird Watching and Eco Tours
Hacienda Baru National Wildlife Refuge – birdwatching in Costa Rica
Heatherlea – Scottish birding and wildlife holidays based in Nethybridge
Hebridean Voyages – cruises, pelagics, and tours from Gairloch
Speyside Wildlife – wildlife watching holidays in Scotland, the UK and overseas
Walking in Etruria – guided wildlife walks in and around the Tuscany region of Italy
Miscellaneous
Advocates for Animals – campaigning against all animal abuse
The British Library Public Catalogue
Living with birds – Bird Food and Care items
Jersey Stamps – shop online for wildlife stamps
Belle the Barn Owl Friend of the Farmer – A YouTube link to the children's book, text by John Miles and artwork by Dan Powell