Jude Barbour

Monitoring Officer, Wetland Bioscience

About me

I have been interested in nature for as long as I can remember, of which, thanks to Slimbridge, birds became a real focus of my passion. I started to bird regularly and then in my late teens began bird ringing. I completed my undergraduate degree in zoology at the University of Aberystwyth. It was also at university where I was able to first get involved with working at the WWT, completing a placement year at WWT Martin Mere. After I graduated, I then spent 3 months on the Isle of May working on shags for Edinburgh University and for CEH monitoring many of the island’s other seabird species. I then spent the winter months carrying out vantage point surveys for an environmental consultancy before joining the WWT for my first godwit season.

Outside of work and birds, I am a keen badminton player playing competitively for Worcestershire.

My role

My role at the WWT involves working on the Godwit Futures project – continuing the monitoring of Black-tailed godwit during the spring and summer months at WWT Welney. Working alongside the Conservation Breeding team with the finding of nests for egg collection as part of future conservation breeding work on the species, as well as colour-ring reading of returning birds, catching and ringing of newly hatched chicks and monitoring the distribution and abundance of known predators of godwits and other ground nesting birds. I will also be assisting with the monitoring of corncrakes on the Ouse washes as part of the ongoing reintroduction project.

Experience and interests

• Extensive ornithological fieldwork experience
• Extensive bird ringing experience; hold a BTO ‘C’ permit
• Great knowledge of general bird ecology, behaviour, ID & monitoring techniques

Publications

• Brides, K., Wood, K.A., Leighton, K., Barbour, J., Petrek, S.W., Cooper, J., Vickers, S.H., Christmas, S.E., Middleton, J. and Grogan, A., 2023. Moult migration, site fidelity and survival of Canada Geese Branta canadensis caught at Lake Windermere, Cumbria. Wildfowl, 73, pp.43-63.