LATEST NEWS (JUNE 2026):

- We apologise for the lack of Ring Ouzel sighting reports during the last few months. We've had a technical issue. Sighting reports up to the end of May are now available. There are also now NEW sighting report forms. See HERE

- Early Arrivals and Spring/Summer Breeding Ring Ouzel sightings 2026 HERE

- The archive of all sightings in 2024 has now been posted

- Listen to recordings of Ring Ouzel dialects recorded on the North York Moors by Ken Hutchinsom, updated for 2025 HERE

- A remarkable photo taken by Tim Melling in the Peak District in April 2025 of three male Ring Ouzels looking at a female on the right

- A fascinating set of video clips of Ring Ouzels captured on a 'perg plucking/perching' rock in the Cairngorms NP. The camera was set up at a peregrine site as part of a survey of pergs in the NP.
Video clips shown with acknowledgements to Shaila Rao, NTS, Cairngorms National Park. Click image below.

Click link below for the EURING/EuroBirdPortal Migration Atlas which shows Ring Ouzel migration patterns.
https://migrationatlas.org/node/1629#top

Maps from the European Breeding Bird Atlas (EBBA2) are available online at https://ebba2.info/maps/. The link to the Ring Ouzel distribution is HERE.

Euro Bird Portal: A fascinating web site showing the migration timing for a numer of species including the Ring Ouzel

The Ring Ouzel Study Group is a group of enthusiastic ornithologists who are particularly interested in ring ouzels, and who are most concerned at the long-term decline of the species in Britain. Comprising individuals from many different parts of the country and overseas, the group meets annually in Penrith (Cumbria) to hear about the latest research, share information and to discuss plans for the future. The next Study Group meeting will take place at the George Hotel, Penrith, IN March 2027.
A major strength of the group is the geographical spread of its coverage and the resulting diversity of issues concerning the conservation of the species. The group is currently chaired by Chris Rollie of RSPB Scotland (see contacts page). Many members have their own study areas and the annual meeting in Penrith provides an opportunity to share information and positively influence conservation action for the species.

The aims of the group are
- To provide a forum for the exchange of information and views
- To positively influence research and conservation action
- To facilitate and co-ordinate monitoring of the species
- To promote a wider understanding of ring ouzels and the need for their conservation

The ring ouzel Turdus torquatus is a summer migrant to Europe and Fennoscandia, where it is characteristically associated with upland areas. The British population has declined steadily since early in the 20th century, and the species' range contracted by 27% between 1970 and 1990. A national survey in 1999 suggested that this decline was continuing and estimated that fewer than 7,600 pairs remained. As a result, the species is now of high conservation concern in Britain. British and continental ouzels winter in similar areas of Spain and north-west Africa, and whereas the species has declined in Britain, its numbers are thought to be relatively stable on the continent. Therefore, it is thought that the decline in British breeding ouzels is due to factors in Britain, rather than elsewhere.

Click here to see the latest map showing the Ring Ouzel range in Europe.