Date: Saturday, 5 and Sunday, 6 October 2019
Time: 07:30-09:45 (Saturday, Għadira Nature Reserve)
14:00-19:00 (Sunday, Buskett)
Location: Għadira Nature Reserve and Buskett
Fascinated by bird migration? October is a truly spectacular time for birdwatching in Malta. It is the time when the sky is full of migrating birds on their way in search of their wintering spot.
EuroBirdwatch is the largest annual event of the BirdLife Partnership held at this time of year to celebrate migratory birds.
We are joining our European partners for EuroBirdwatch19 with birdwatching and bird ringing sessions at our Għadira Nature Reserve on the first day (Saturday) in the morning (with booking), and another guided birdwatching session on the second day (Sunday) in the afternoon at Buskett woodland (no need for booking), which is the best spot in Malta to experience the autumn bird migration!
On both days, the highlight will be the observation of the migrating raptors. Just bring your binoculars with you…if you don’t have any, we will be providing some on site!
This annual birdwatching initiative is organised every year by BirdLife Malta as part of this Europe-wide initiative held by all BirdLife partner organisations during the same weekend in several countries across Europe and Central Asia. Hundreds of local birdwatchers will identify and count passing birds during the great autumn migration when millions of birds make their epic journey southwards to wintering areas in the Mediterranean and Africa. Malta will contribute too by reporting its numbers.
Have a look below at what we’re preparing for this special weekend:
Saturday, 5 October | Għadira Nature Reserve | 07:30-09:45
(with booking)
This event will consist of birdwatching, where our bird experts will identify birds and explain more about them to the participants! We shall also have a bird ringing session for which we need to know how many people will be attending. We have split the session in two groups (07:30-08:30 and 08:45-09:45) with a maximum number of 20 persons per group. Bookings will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Click here to choose and book your bird ringing session at Għadira Nature Reserve. Bookings will be acknowledged as soon as the event becomes fully-booked.
On the day Għadira Nature Reserve will be open to the public as usual, so those of you who want to spend more time at our reserve can do so following the bird ringing demonstrations, until 16:00.
Sunday, 6 October | Buskett | 14:00-19:00
(turn up anytime you want)
Join us for an afternoon out in nature! Come to Buskett with blankets and snacks for a picnic in nature and we will be take care of entertaining the children with activities such as birdwatching and a bird migration game! Adults can join our birdwatchers to watch birds of prey migrating.
Since the birdwatching session at Buskett will take place in a remote area of the woodland, please click here to see the directions towards the birdwatching spot. Please note that the you will need to walk across rough terrain to reach the area. We are also providing suggestions where you can park. If you click on the parking area on the PDF it will provide you with google map instructions to arrive on site – you just need to insert your starting point and press GO!
Participation in the events on both days is FREE but donations are greatly appreciated.
Click here for the official EuroBirdwatch19 website where you can find results from previous years, including Malta’s results from last year.
Below are some pictures from the event we organised last year and also photos of birds of prey we might see during the two-day event.
Follow the Facebook event for updates!
