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EBBA2

The European Breeding Bird Atlas 2 (EBBA2) is the second and most recent edition of the European Breeding Bird Atlas (EBBA), the project that compiles information on the distribution of the bird species that breed in Europe. EBBA2 collected data in the 2010s, while EBBA1 did it 30 years before. Currently, the EBCC is working on the EBBA Live project, aiming to update information on distribution on a more frequent basis. 

The EBBA2 main aim was to determine the distribution, abundance and change of breeding birds in Europe. Its main outputs are: 

  • Maps of abundance and breeding likelihood at 50 x 50 km resolution 
  • Maps of change in occurrence between EBBA1 and EBBA2 periods at 50×50 km resolution 
  • Maps of probability of occurrence at 10×10 km resolution 

The project was carried out by the EBCC network of partner organisations located in 48 countries. In total, around 120,000 fieldworkers contributed data to the atlas, covering the whole of Europe in a systematic manner, mostly between 2013 to 2017. EBBA2 is one of the most ambitious biodiversity mapping projects ever done, providing vital data for science and conservation. 

The European Breeding Bird Atlas 2 (EBBA2) was published as a book in 2020 and an online version was released in 2021. 

Citation: Keller, V., Herrando, S., Voříšek, P., Franch, M., Kipson, M., Milanesi, P., Martí, D., Anton, M., Klvaňová, A., Kalyakin, M.V., Bauer, H.-G. & Foppen, R.P.B. (2020). European Breeding Bird Atlas 2: Distribution, Abundance and Change. European Bird Census Council & Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. 

The book can be ordered from Lynxnaturebooks .  

Visit the EBBA2 website for more information: https://ebba2.info/, including data requests. 

 

EBBA1

EBBA1 was the first European Breeding Bird Atlas. As the first major initiative of the EBCC, this atlas demonstrated what can be achieved through broadscale international cooperation. It integrated efforts by thousands of ornithologists from more than 40 countries to produce 50x50 km maps showing the abundance and breeding likelihood of birds in Europe. Field data were mainly collected in the 1980s. 

Citation: Hagemeijer, W. J. M. & Blair, M.J. (1997). The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding Birds: Their Distribution and Abundance. T. & A.D. Poyser, London. 

EBBA1 maps are accessible via the EBBA2 website: https://ebba2.info/ 

 

EBBA live

EBBA Live attempts to determine information on species distribution on a more frequent basis than the European atlases have done so far. This ambitious project has started with a pilot project on farmland birds, which is called EBBA Live Farmland. The project is based on data from PECBMS and EBP and has a special focus on the spatial modelling of the probability of occurrence in periods of 5 years and production of maps of change of this parameter at 10-km resolution. 

Further information on the EBBA Live Farmland project and firsts maps are accessible via the EBBA2 website: https://ebba2.info/live/farmland/ 

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