Welcome to the website of Manx BirdLife.

In 1996 the idea of undertaking an atlas of Manx birds took its first tentative steps. With the Island in a prolonged period of economic and population growth, there was increasing pressure on the natural environment. Some major developments included environmental impact assessments, but there was often a lack of comprehensive information to provide for these assessments. Therefore it was considered to be the right time to undertake a structured survey of the Island’s birdlife.

This led to the creation in September 1997 of the ‘Manx Bird Atlas’ charity, the original name for what is now known as Manx BirdLife. From 1998, the Manx Bird Atlas charity undertook a comprehensive study of the Island’s birdlife. It research spanned the breeding season and winter periods, during which all of the 1km squares of the Island were surveyed, making it the most comprehensive atlas work of its kind. The work of the Atlas was supported by over 300 individual sponsors and over 60 corporate sponsors; with support also from charities and the Isle of Man Government.

From April 1998 to March 2003, all 665 squares were surveyed. Despite the setback of access restrictions in 2001 due to Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks in other parts of the British Isles, the charity was able to keep in track with completing the fieldwork on time. In excess of 626,000 records were generated during these first five years. Manx Bird Atlas staff and the many members of the public who sent records to the charity, generated over 120,000 records, all of which were available for use in the annual Manx Bird Report.

The results of the fieldwork and detailed analysis were published in 2007 in the 389 page Manx Bird Atlas book.

Since the original atlas work was completed, the charity has continued its work monitoring the birds of the Isle of Man. In April 2008, the charity was renamed Manx BirdLife in recognition of its longer term aims. In October 2008, Manx BirdLife entered into a partnership with the RSPB; the aim being to combine local expertise on the status of species and their habitats with the resources and know how of the RSPB to ensure the long term conservation of the bird life of the Island.