Bird population monitoring covering European Russia is underway in Karelia as well. The Republic joined the action in 2023. Since then, scientists and volunteers have established a transect network for efficient observations. The collected data have helped to identify the species composition of birds in the selected habitats and detect red-listed species. The census network however still needs to be expanded.

"To identify endangered and threatened species and determine their population trends it is necessary to conduct surveys for five years at minimum, which means we need to continue for at least the next three years. Furthermore, to obtain representative data, it is essential to increase the number of transects in each region and distribute them more evenly across the territory", – the project authors remark.


Rooks (Corvus frugilegus)

Anyone can try their hand as a bird-watcher. What it takes is willingness to participate in the surveys for at least five years. The participant shall choose a convenient walking route approximately two kilometers long — through a forest or open area, and walk it two or three times during the breeding season (in Karelia, this is the last ten days of May through early June), and document all birds seen or heard along the way.

A bird can be recognized by its looks or songs – tools to help include electronic or hard-copy identification keys, as well as mobile apps such as iNaturalist, Merlin, Birds of the Volga Region. Within this project scientists also run a VK group and a Telegram channel, both named Monitoring common bird species populations, where they tell about widespread species and provide detailed project info.

– Since the main observations start in the spring, one can now choose a route, register it, and practice recognizing bird species, – says the Project Coordinator, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Biology KarRC RAS Maria Matantseva.

To join the project, write an e-mail with the subject “Join the monitoring team” to the coordinators and attach a file describing your route. The coordinators for Karelia and the Leningrad Region are Maria Matantseva (MariaMatantseva@gmail.com) and Sergey Simonov (ssaves@gmail.com).


A pair of fieldfares (Turdus pilaris) with offspring

At present, something around fifty transects are covered in Karelia, mostly around Petrozavodsk, in Prionezhsky and Kondopoga District. So there’s special demand for expanding the network to other districts of the republic.

– I’m so glad that a vast majority of participants find the time and opportunity to fulfill the scheduled surveys every year. I didn’t expect the project to be developing so successfully. Thank you to our volunteers! I hope that in the coming years the surveys will continue on schedule and in full, for it’s only after several years that proper expert conclusions can be drawn, – remarked Maria Matantseva.

As guidance for future participants, the ornithologist emphasized: the main thing is to take seriously the matter of being able to conduct the surveys on the same dates every year.

– The monitoring must not be interrupted. One should take care to plan the transects according to all the rules from the very start in order to obtain reliable data. There is no need to try to do as much as possible; quality is what matters. Also, it would be wonderful to establish transects through new places, away from the areas already under monitoring. There are still districts not covered by monitoring and it would be great to extend the survey network to those as well, – added Maria Matantseva.

This year, the project “Development of the program for monitoring bird populations in European Russia” was supported by the Presidential Nature Foundation. The foundation was established in 2025 to implement environmental and nature conservation projects. A total of 164 organizations across the country were winners of the first competition. Thanks to the grant, the bird observation network will be developed in eight regions of European Russia, specialists will be able to educate citizens and train volunteer surveyors-to-be.

Speaking of why the observations are so important, scientists note that the results will not simply help identify species with declining populations and target them in the conservation efforts. Birds occupy the upper tiers of the ecological pyramid, and the wellbeing of their populations largely depends on the wellbeing of the ecosystems. Hence, avians can serve as an indicator of environmental wellbeing. It is a known fact that the habitats where the numbers and diversity of birds are declining also typically see a loss of other animal and plant species. Thus, information about bird population sizes and monitoring of their trends help identify areas with the least and the most favorable ecological conditions.



Photos: Maria Matantseva / IB KarRC RAS