Biological Recording

 

Click for details of local and national surveys you can get involved with.

 

Beginners and Occasional Recorders

SEWBReC actively encourages the recording of wildlife and is always interested in receiving additional records. It is possible to make useful records with no specialist knowledge. If you are unsure of your identification, please let us know, as we may be able to provide assistance or contact a local expert to help.

SEWBReC is interested in receiving records of all species, no matter how common or widespread. There are many places within our area for which we hold few or no records. So please help us to fill in these gaps.

Please see our Beginner's Guide to Biological Recording and using a GPS.

 

Submitting Records

For occasional records, SEWBReC has developed some simple methods for you to submit your sightings:

  1. Use our ON-LINE RECORDING FORM to submit your records; or
  2. Download our Casual Sighting Report Form (click on the link to open the PDF version, or right click and choose 'save link/target as' to save the file to your computer for future use); or
  3. Pass details of your sighting to SEWBReC via letter, email, phone or fax (see Contacts and Links page for full contact details). Please remember to include what you saw, where you saw it (a grid reference and location name), the date of sighting, your name and contact details plus any other relevant information.


If you have a larger number of records, it may be easier for you to submit them in an electronic format - a spreadsheet like Excel is perfect for this purpose. Please remember to include columns for all the required details as set out in option 3 above.

 

Experienced Biological Recorders

For experienced recorders who generate significant numbers of records there are two main approaches for data submission:

  1. Submit your records to the relevant Vice County Recorder (VCR) or Recording Group (see link below for contact details). Your records will then be validated, incorporated into the VCR's dataset and then passed to SEWBReC (usually on an annual basis); or
  2. Establish a "Data Exchange Agreement" directly with SEWBReC. This enables you to submit data using methods and timescales of your choice. Data may still be passed back to Vice County Recorders for validation. In return for submitting your data, SEWBReC will offer you a range of support services. Click here for details of these Services to Data Suppliers.

 

Vice County Recorders and Recording Groups

If you are the County Recorder for a taxonomic group and you don't already have a Data Exchange Agreement with SEWBReC, then please contact us to discuss this further.

Click here to view our Interactive Map of County Recorders and Recording Groups for each Unitary Authority area within South East Wales.

 

Recording Cards

The Biological Records Centre provides a wide range of record cards e.g. for vascular plants or Odonata. These can be downloaded here.