Biological Recording

The Wiltshire and Swindon Biological Records Centre (WSBRC) provides a central reference point for environmental information on geology, habitats, sites and species.  Visit the WSBRC website >

Sending in your wildlife records to the WSBRC or becoming a volunteer monitor, helps the WSBRC establish accurate records of the distribution of different species throughout Wiltshire and Swindon.  This is particularly important when it comes to BAP species, which by their very nature are rare or suffering population decline. By establishing their distribution, conservation efforts can be best targeted, and progress can be measured.

Your Records!

All environmental records are important, from the most common to the rare, from flocks of birds in the air, to fish in a river – all of these encompass what Biodiversity Wiltshire is all about – Biodiversity!

The WSBRC would love to hear about the wildlife that you’ve seen – whether it be the robin that you see every day in your garden, the Peacock butterfly that you see on your afternoon walk, or the squirrel in your local park. 

There are four essentials to remember in order to provide the WSBRC with really useful records:
1. What is the species? Give its Latin name if you know it, but the English name will be sufficient
2. Where did you see it – give as precise a location as you can, a six figure grid reference, postcode, or precisely described location. Click here to go to the National Grid website and their step by step guide showing how to work out a grid reference.
3. When did you see it – day, month, year
4. Who saw it – the name of the recorder

Records can be sent to the WSBRC by post, email, or by using the online recording form.
Post – WSBRC, Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, Elm Tree Court, Long Street, Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 1NJ
Email: use the email box below or email your completed recording form to brc@wiltshirewildlife.org.

Link to online wildlife recording form – opens WSBRC website, go to 'your records'
Download an document to use for multiple recordings - 42kb
Download an document to use for single recordings - 31kb

As well as giving your detailed records to the WSBRC, tell us your highlights from this month for our bulletin board!
Use the email box below to tell us your highlights...

Visit the featured species page to find out what wildlife is out and about this month in Wiltshire...

Volunteer Recording Schemes

Recording the wildlife and ecology of the same site over a number of years (monitoring) helps us to understand how that environment is changing. If enough sites are regularly monitored, we can begin to build up a picture of the changing face of Wiltshire. This is where you could make a real contribution!

Visit the WSBRC website to find out more about the following schemes:
- River monitoring
- Protected road verges
- Hedgerow recording
- Living churchyards and cemeteries
- County recorders

Becoming a Protected Road Verge Monitor will help towards meeting targets for Road Verges under the Wiltshire BAP Built Environment Action Plan. 

Email us with your records, and your highlights of the wildlife you've seen this month!