The Birds in Reserves Project, or for short BIRP, started in 1992 and is run as a National “Citizen Science” project by the Animal Demography Unit (ADU), based at the University of Cape Town (UCT). The primary aim of the project is the collection of bird occurrence data, specifically inside South African protected areas (PAs). The process is fairly simple; volunteers go out to any PA and simply make a list of all the bird species observed. Data can be collected up to a maximum of seven days. This project is well suited for people that simply want to contribute their sightings (within protected areas) to a worthwhile cause. Equally, the BIRP project can serve as an avifaunal baseline monitoring tool for all protected areas, whether big or small. The data is submitted to the ADU, processed and made available on this website.

The data collected serves a variety of users; private, recreational, institutional and academic. The project is supported and endorsed by both the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) as well as BirdLife South Africa (BLSA).

The menu on the left provides you with a host of functions in order to obtain information from this site. Species summaries, site summaries, observer summaries including other project related information are available. We also encourage decision makers and managers to use the data available to help them make informed planning and management choices. We hope that this site will serve you as a valuable conservation assessment tool.

If you would like to become involved in the BIRP project, we would dearly like to hear from you. Your contributions will certainly benefit bird conservation in South Africa. Please download the BIRP instruction booklet which contains all the relevant information pertaining to this project. Alternatively contact the project coordinator (telephone 021 650 4698).

We encourage you to use the BIRP information for personal or recreational use; including education, research and conservation purposes. For these applications the data will be provided free of charge. This information may not be incorporated into other websites, or used for commercial gain. Please contact the project coordinator for further details. Effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the data, but the ADU cannot guarantee that all data are correct. If you are aware of any errors or omissions in the data, please contact the project coordinator.

Latest news

2010-02-18 Les Underhill 
CWAC and BIRP forms 

With the departure of Marius Wheeler from the ADU, please send all BIRP and CWAC forms to Doug Harebottle (or post to: ADU, Dept of Zoology, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, 7701) in the interim.

As soon as a replacement for Marius is found we will notify all CWACers and BIRPers of the new incumbent's contact details.  
 
 
2009-12-18 Les Underhill 
Farewell to Marius Wheeler 

After six years at the helm of the Coordinated Waterbird Counts project, CWAC, Marius Wheeler leaves the ADU to take up a new and challenging position at CapeNature from the beginning of 2010. Marius has quietly and conscientiously built up the momentum of waterbird counts in South Africa. He has also kept the Birds In Reserves Project, BIRP, on track. On top of that, he has made an enormous contribution to the ADU as a whole, and has made a decisive input to the ADU "ethos". We will miss him greatly. We wish him all the best in his new position.

Marius says: "I have really enjoyed the challenges that CWAC and BIRP have presented to me and hope that the progress made will be built upon and even expanded further. Thanks to all of you that have helped the CWAC project in so many ways. Your contributions were always welcome and I appreciated the input. I hope that CWAC will go from strength to strength. I look forward to taking up my new position with CapeNature."

Marius will be based in Porterville, and his territory will be in the northern region of the Western Cape. He will work at the interface between "Research" and "Management" teams at CapeNature – in other words, he will facilitate the communication between the science and the action.

The post of project manager for CWAC will be advertized early next year.  
 
 
2009-12-15 Marius Wheeler 
End of Year 

I would like to thank all the BIRP participants that have contributed over the last year. Thanks for all your hard work. It has been a great year. I wish you all a relaxing festive season. Wishing all of you a productive 2010! If you are out and about in some strange part of the country, enjoy it and please remember to submit your sightings in the New Year. Enjoy the birding!

 
 
 
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