Organisation
We have a new website!
Our new website is faster, better looking, far more accessible, and with an improved daily count viewer. And there's more to come!
← All news
Bart Hoekstra
35 posts
At BRC:
- Communications
- Monitoring
- Fundraising
- Strategy
Bart first joined the project in 2016 and has since become an integral part of the team. He coordinated three full seasons and is involved in BRC's monitoring team, works on data management and fundraising, and looks after our communications.
Read more about Bart on our team page 
Field updates
Station 3 – Pilot count from Chalet Kvirike
Every year the same questions come up at our watch sites: what would we see if we counted from higher up in the foothills of the Lesser Caucasus? Would we see more Harriers? Are birds flying above the clouds?
Get Involved
BRC Flyway Monitoring Traineeship in collaboration with OSME
Over the past decade, migration monitoring has become more and more popular along the East Afro-Eurasian Flyway, with projects (re)starting around the Caucasus region, the Middle East and Central Asia.
Get Involved
We’re looking for volunteers for Autumn 2024
After successfully finishing another crowdfunding campaign, we’re happy to announce the call for counters.
Get Involved
Urgently needed: Long-term counters for Autumn 2023
For every autumn count we rely on a diverse group of volunteer counters. This year, unusually, most of our long-term positions are still open, and we urgently need people to help fill them.
Reports & Research
First BRC publication in Russian Raptors Conservation journal
We are proud to announce the publication of our first Russian language paper in the Russian Raptor Research and Conservation Network’s (RRRCN) journal ‘Raptors Conservation’.
Fundraising
Successful completion of 2023 Crowdfunding!
Less than three months ago, on Christmas Eve 2022, we re-launched our crowdfunding campaign to fund the upcoming autumn count of 2023.
Get Involved
Count Coordinators for Autumn 2023
We are still raising funds, but preparations for the BRC Autumn Count of 2023 have started. The count will run from the 12th of August until the 21st of October.
Get Involved
We're looking for volunteers for Autumn 2022
After finishing a successful crowdfunding campaign, we’re happy to finally announce the call for counters.
Fundraising
Donation Doubling Days!
Today – March 1st 2022 – marks the start of our 3rd and final spring count in Batumi. A historic day, which also marks the start of our final sprint to complete the crowdfunding for the BRC autumn count of 2022.
Get Involved
Count Coordinators for Autumn 2022
We are still raising funds, but preparations for the BRC Autumn Count of 2022 have started. The count will run from the 12th of August until the 21st of October.
Events
Watch Now: Worlds Collide
The short film Worlds Collide, directed by Nicholas Rodd, about migration through the Georgian bottleneck is now free to watch indefinitely and embedded below.
Merchandise
BRC 2021 T-Shirt
We are glad to be back counting raptors again! Fed up with all the darkness in our lives recently, our designers have created a more colorful T-shirt than ever before.
Get Involved
5 Reasons why you should NOT participate in the Batumi Raptor Count
Since 2008, in over a decade of counts, over 380 volunteers have participated in the annual Batumi Raptor Count. This year, the 13th count is organized, which runs from August 12th until October 21st of 2021.
Events
Watch now: Worlds Collide selected for British Documentary Festival
A short film directed by Nicholas Rodd about migration through the Georgian bottleneck has been selected by the British Documentary Festival, and is free to watch until May 14th.
Get Involved
We're looking for volunteers for Autumn 2021
Have you missed counting raptors as much as we have? If so, we have good news for you: the application round for the BRC volunteer raptor counter positions is now open!
Reports & Research
BRC: A model for migration monitoring in new BirdLife review
A new Sandgrouse paper, initiated by Ben Jobson (BirdLife International), reviews the challenges and opportunities for monitoring of migratory soaring birds in the East African-Eurasian flyway.
Reports & Research
Now Open Access: From migration counts to conservation in a flyway under threat
In the August 2020 issue of British Birds, we published a long-form paper on Batumi Raptor Count.
Get Involved
Count Coordinators for Autumn 2021
We approach the future with hope in our hearts and have started planning the BRC Autumn Count 2021. The count will run from the 12th of August until the 21st of October.
Reports & Research
Spring Report 2020 published
Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has ground daily life to a halt for many of us, bird migration of course continued and so did our team of spring counters in Batumi.
Reports & Research
New publication in British Birds: From migration counts to conservation in a raptor flyway under threat
We are proud to announce the current August issue of British Birds contains a long paper on Batumi Raptor Count.
Organisation
BRC Magazine 2019
With all that 2020 is throwing at us, last year feels like an eternity ago already.
Organisation
BRC Autumn Count 2020 Cancelled
It is with a heavy heart that we have to inform you that we are cancelling the BRC autumn count for 2020 due to the ongoing covid19 pandemic.
Reports & Research
Autumn Report 2019 published
The 12th season brought unprecedented numbers of Black Kites, a new raptor species for the BRC counts, and marked the start of an education project in collaboration with local teachers.
Reports & Research
New publication: Population trends from 8 years of BRC Autumn Counts
For 8 important species for the bottleneck, we have analysed trends over the past 8 years of standardised counts (2011-2018).
Field updates
Season 2019 has started
This year the 12th of August already marked the start of the 12th Batumi Raptor Count. To better detect changes in migration timing, we have decided to start the count 5 days earlier and finish 5 days later.
Reports & Research
Spring Report 2019 published
After 11 years of autumn counts it was time for something completely different. This spring a group of 13 enthusiastic counters monitored the Batumi spring migration from March 21st until May 31st.
Organisation
BRC Magazine 2018
The final preparations for the upcoming Autumn Count are in full swing. Do you want to read up on what could be ahead of us this season?
Reports & Research
New publication: Egyptian Nightjar at the Chorokhi delta, Georgia and status in Europe
In August 2017 a BRC team (Jonas Schärer, Xu Shi and Jaime Escobar) observed an Egyptian Nightjar in the Chorokhi Delta which turned out to be the first national record.
Reports & Research
Autumn Report 2018 published
The freshly published BRC Autumn Report 2018 features season highlights, phenological peculiarities and general overview with many photos of both birds and people.
Field updates
1 Million Raptors!
Yesterday's highlights were the more than 100,000 raptors counted by both stations and the almost 1,700 eagles on Station 1, but we fell just short of the million.
Field updates
500,000 Raptors counted!
The birds may not care, but we do: today we passed the 500,000 raptors mark!
Field updates
The first 100,000
We have now been counting for 12 days and yesterday we passed the first milestone of the season: we have counted the first 100,000 birds! The start of the season has been everything but standard this autumn.
Organisation
BRC Magazine 2017
The final preparations for the upcoming Autumn Count are in full swing. Do you want to read up on what could be ahead of us this season?
Get Involved
5 Reasons why you should NOT participate in Batumi Raptor Count
Since 2008, in a decade of counts, over 300 volunteers have participated in the annual Batumi Raptor Count. This year, the 11th count is held, which runs from August 17th until October 16th of 2018.