23 February 2026
Bird Watching magazine celebrates 40th聽Anniversary
Home of the official #My200BirdYear birders challenge
Bird Watching聽magazine celebrates its 40th聽Anniversary with the March issue.聽聽As the UK鈥檚 best-selling consumer birding magazine the special milestone issue, includes:
- Flying high 鈥� the once-scarce species that have thrived since 1986.
- Britain鈥檚 100 Best Birding Sites 鈥� the places that have shaped UK birdwatching.
- How digital photography altered birdwatching forever.
- Changing gear 鈥� optical technology then and now.
- Key birding figures聽on the impact Bird Watching has made.
Bird Watching聽is the official magazine for #My200BirdYear.聽 For its big anniversary year, the title offers the opportunity to sign up for its fun and flexible challenge 鈥� encouraging birders to see more birds than ever! 聽聽There鈥檚 a target of 200 species, and birders don鈥檛 need any fancy equipment, though some binoculars may help! You can do it in the聽UK, deep in the Amazon Rainforest, or anywhere else you go. Help and advice appears in every issue of the magazine and there鈥檒l be regular Readers鈥� Days to meet the Bird Watching聽team, get tips from them and reserve wardens, and add new species to your list at some of the UK鈥檚 best birding spots.聽聽Readers can join today at birdwatching.co.uk/my200
Bird Watching Editor, Matt Merritt, says: 鈥淟ooking back into the archives in preparation for our 40thanniversary issue has been a great pleasure, but I鈥檝e also been struck by how closely Bird Watching has stuck to the aims laid out in the March 1986 issue.聽聽It wanted to inform and to further the cause of conservation, but above all to speak for the ordinary birdwatcher and help them enjoy their birding to the maximum. We鈥檙e still doing that, I hope, and it鈥檚 a challenge but a privilege to be taking our loyal readers forward into a new era.鈥�
