LNHS Activities
The LNHS Library, located in the Angela Marmont Centre, Natural History Museum, is open every Wednesday and every third Saturday of the month. Please see the Library page for more information, and our calendar for ID seminars and other events held at the library. See you there!
We have a full programme of activities, both in person field meetings and virtual talks. Please check the calendar and our downloadable programme for full details. Please note that these events may be cancelled at short notice.
Virtual Talks
The LNHS Virtual Natural History Talk series brings together naturalists with experts and specialists using the Zoom videoconferencing tool.
Our talks are hosted fortnightly and are free to attend (though booking is required).
The talks cover a wide range of subjects, from birds to bats, worms to weeds, fungi to foxes and everything inbetween.
Talks are around 30-40 minutes in length and are followed by a live Q&A between the guest speaker and audience.
Find out more about the Virtual Talks
News
Botany quiz 2025
If you missed the annual Botany Quiz, or would like to try it again, it's here for you to enjoy!
New publication!!!
The LNHS is very pleased to announce the publication of The Butterflies of London by Leslie Williams. For more information on this publication, please read more...
Digital option for the newsletter
If you would like to be sent a digital copy of our Newsletter instead of receiving a paper copy by post, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Volunteering
The LNHS is run by active and engaged volunteers. Getting involved in the LNHS is a great way to make a difference, meet new people, learn new skills and learn about the wildlife and natural history of London. We have a number of volunteer positions, including recorders, writers, and more. Please see our Volunteering pages for more info or download our handy leaflet for the latest opportunities.
The LNHS News section is the place to keep up-to-date with society announcements and project updates. We accept blogs from naturalists and biodiversity-sector organisations that want to share their experiences and opportunities with our members. Please contact the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you'd like to contribute articles.
Membership
London's biodiversity faces new challenges from climate change and development pressure.
You can contribute to the conservation of wildlife in the London area by helping to record the changing fortunes of the many species that live here.
Together with our historic records, this information will help us to tackle the conservation issues of the future.
Join us, learn new skills, and help us to make a difference.
Sign up to the LNHS now
Digital back issues of the London Bird Report can be found here, going back to 2014. For issues pre-2014, please visit the Biodiversity Heritage Library. For print copies, please see the Buying back issues (print) page.
Back issues of the London Naturalist (and its predecessors from 1898 onwards) and the London Bird Report are now freely available online through the Biodiversity Heritage Library. A summary of the holdings for each publication may be accessed via the links below:
- Transactions of the City of London Entomological & Natural History Society (1898 to 1913)
- Transactions of the London Natural History Society (1914 to 1920)
- London Naturalist (1921 onwards)
- London Bird Report (1921onwards)
Searching publications on the Biodiversity Heritage Library
To make a detailed search of the holdings:
- Click on the “Advanced Search” tab and enter “London Naturalist” in the “Title” Box.
- Check the “Exact Phrase” button.
- Enter your search term in the “Text” box, this can be an author name, a species or any other phrase relevant to your search.
- You can also specify a year in the “Year” box.
The contents have not been fully indexed, which is why you should search for authors and subjects as text entries.
List of bird articles
Our online file LBR 1936-2018 Contents includes direct links to each year that has been digitised, including (on a separate worksheet) the Transactions of the LNHS and London Natuarist years that include records or papers about birds (i.e. those that precede the London Bird Report).
The links are in the year column and are highlighted in green (TLNHS and LN) and blue (LBR). Here is an example:
For examples of why you might want to explore the digitised journals, see the paper 'Exploring Digital Copies of the LBR' by Pete Lambert in LBR No.84 for 2019, due to be published in May 2021.
On this page, we have a selection of additional materials for the London Bird Report, including downloadable sample articles from past years, consolidated table of contents from 1936 onwards and checklists for birds found here in London.
Sample articles
Please find below a list of sample articles that were previously published in the London Bird Report in PDF format.
Emerging effects of Usutu virus on London’s Blackbird population by Rob Robinson (2022)
A rare encounter over Bushy Park by Lewis Newman (2019)
The Peregrine Falcon in Inner London and factors affecting its existence in urban London by David Johnson (2014)
A Study of the Movements and Site Fidelity of Foreign Ringed Black-headed Gulls in St. James's Park, 1983-86 by A.P. Gosling (1985)
Bird Highlights at well-watched sites (2011) (PDF).
Special publications
Please find below special, one-off publications associated with the London Bird Report:
Walthamstow_Wetlands_-_papers_from_LBR_2018_and_2019.pdf
Consolidated table of contents: 1936 to present
The consolidated table of contents contains the full contents of the London Bird Report, from 1936 to the latest issue. The Excel file is updated annually, and contains embedded links to issues digitised by and kept on the Biodiversity Heritage Library website. Printed back issues are also available.
LNHS bird checklists, breeding criteria, indexes and gazetteers
LBR checklist and breeding criteria: 2022
Checklist of birds of the London area and guide to contributors
Indexes of common and scientific names
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls data
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2013-2023
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2013-2022
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2021
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2013-2018
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2016
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2015
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2014
Foreign-ringed Black-headed Gulls 2013
LBR corrections
Every year, the LBR Editorial Board reviews comments received about the London Bird Report and incorporates any corrections in the electronic version. These corrected versions are linked here.
The corrected version includes this symbol adjacent to the highlighted original text where a correction has been made. When you pass the cursor over the symbol, a pop-up window will display the correct text. In a few cases the whole text may not fit in the window; by clicking on the symbol, the remaining text will be revealed.
London Bird Report 1985: Peter Strangeman, the author of a paper in LBR No.50 for 1985, pages 170-186, brought to our attention some mistakes in his paper that he noticed some time ago. As many members may not possess a copy of this issue, the corrected paper has been reproduced in its entirety.
Miscellanea
WeBS Counts in the London Area, 2011-12
WeBS Counts in the London Area, 2010-11
WeBS Counts in the London Area, 2009-10
North Kent Marshes field trips with Ken Palmer, 1976-2002 (2011) (Introduction, PDF data, spreadsheet data)
The London Bird Report is an annual publication for the London Bird Club at the LNHS. Each year, thousands of records collected from bird-watchers all over London are collated and published, alongside informative articles, written by expert birders from all walks of life. For each of the species recorded in London that year, the report outlines their current status in London and compares the records for this year with previous years, giving an indication of how their fortunes are changing from year to year. This is one of the annual publications that members of the London Natural History Society (LNHS) receive as part of their membership. You can also This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. of the London Bird Report.
The London Bird Report has a team of nearly 30 volunteers who compile the species accounts that are at the heart of the LBR. We are looking for more writers to join the panel over the coming years, to strengthen the team and reduce the work for each writer. You do not need to be an expert but should be a fairly experienced bird-watcher with knowledge of the current status of birds in London or in the UK.
There are many benefits to becoming a species accounts writer: this is an opportunity to make a useful contribution that informs science and conservation; you will be recognised explicitly in the contents listing as a contributing writer with citable work; you will learn how to handle large volumes of data and learn to extract the highlights and finally, you will be part of a success story – the LBR was first published in 1936 and there have been 86 issues so far. If you’d like to be a part of the writing team at the LBR, please have a read through the LBR species accounts writers information and contact the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The LBR relies on people like you to observe and record what they see. We welcome all records of birds seen in the London area (with photos). Please contact the relevant LNHS recorders.
2022 Issue
This issue of the Report was published in May 2024 and includes papers on birds ringed and recovered in the London area, vindication of a theory about trends in the migration of Black-headed Gulls to London, two firsts for London: a Baltic Gull at Thamesmead and a Pallid Harrier at Staines Moor, the emerging effects of Usutu virus on London’s Blackbirds, and observations on the birds of a north London suburban garden. The report also gives a summary of the status of all birds that were reported in London in 2022.
Many back issues of the London Bird Report from the 1950s onwards are available for purchase.
For details of price and availability, and to order, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., who will happily help you.