We are the ~50-year-old avian ecology project started in 1979 on the island Gotland 🇵🇱🇸🇪🪺. Every year we follow several hundred breeding pairs of blue tits and collared flycatchers in our nest boxes. Follow us for news and related winged miscellany.
Hej Blåmes! Gotland's long-term bird monitoring
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As always - this would not be possible without the support of @ncn.gov.pl @jagiellonskiuni.bsky.social
The number of breeding BT pairs dropped by 50% (sic! ~90-100 broods fewer!) Many broods are clearly attended by 1 parent, and we’ve noted almost a 100% drop in the number of recruits (1-2% of recruited 2nd yrs instead of the usual 20-30%). Our Swedish friends also reported almost no BTs in feeders
only a few dozen starting nests and only 1 with eggs!) This year we continue with the behavioral experiment on blue tits - testing their choice of feather decorations they add to their nests. Stay tuned for news and updates:)
But the good news is - blue tits are using our artificial feathers in their nest decorations, it’s the first year of the experiment so stay tuned in a year for the next steps! @ncn.gov.pl @jagiellonskiuni.bsky.social #gotland #birds #collaredflycatcher
Day 68 of the 47th # Gotland season! After some May showers Gotland returned with dazzling sunny weather :) first flycatchers started to hatch, but this years weird. The blue tit population was hit hard by blåmessjuka („blue tit disease”) caused by Corynebacteria - Suttonella ornithocola.
Day 49: the season is ramping up really slowly… Tits started laying eggs very late and in two bouts (below blue tit data) and flycatchers - well, they started on the 11th but then most females decided to wait ;)
We’re at @hnbirds2025.bsky.social in Olomouc :) tits rule the talks so far - second photo = @szymekdr.bsky.social presenting work on blue tits and steroid hormones.
Day 22 of the 26th Gotland season! We started on the 14th of April - it’s a surprisingly odd spring here in #Gotland. Exceptionally early arrivals of warblers (chiffchaff, willow warbler and blackcap already gear on the 18th) and exceptionally late for hole nesters (it’s past the 20th and we have
in the winter. Flycatchers seem to have taken advantage of reduced competition as also great tits noted a30-40% drop in breeding pairs (100 pairs more of the collared flycatcher). Let’s hope it was just a fluctuation and significantly colder winter… last pic - a ringed tree pipit found in our plot;)
With #eseb2025 coming to a close, it is time to start making plans for 2026. Interested in the interface of evolution 🧬 and ecology 🌳? Come to our #ExE conference hosted by @uniexecec.bsky.social in beautiful #Cornwall. Leave your email address at tinyurl.com/EvolxEcol to join our mailing list!
