Get your golden Buzzards at the ready – the RSPB’s Bird of the Year is back!
Yes, you better believe it, Bird of the Year (BoTY) has returned with another talented line up of competitors all vying for your vote.
Over six weeks this autumn, five brilliant species will go head-to-head in a bid to be crowned the UK’s Bird of the Year 2026. Along the way, each will get the chance to showcase its unique skills and win your vote, with the species that receives the most votes taking the crown.
Behind every contender is a bigger story
Across the UK, birds are under growing pressure from threats like habitat loss, disease and climate change. Each of our contenders has been chosen because they continue to be directly impacted by one or more of those threats and, through our conservation, we’re working to protect them.
Discover each of our incredible birds, their inspiring talents and emotional journeys to the Bird of the Year final below. Who’s your pick!?
Meet the contenders
Discover the five incredible birds competing for the 2026 Bird of the Year crown.
Swift
Name: Swift (Apus apus)
UK conservation status: Red
Key talon-t: Twilight Ascent (high-speed synchronised flying)
Loves: Flying insects
Hates: Slow flyers hogging the fast lane
A devil for a speed demon? Have we got the bird for you!
Swifts are small birds with sensational flying skills. At just 36-50g, these boomerang-winged pocket rockets spend nearly their entire lives on the wing, usually only landing at summer nest sites. That means they eat whilst flying, mate whilst flying and even sleep whilst flying!
Last year, the all-action, nook-nesting flying machines fought off stiff competition from the likes of the Turtle Dove and Lapwing to clinch the BoTY crown. This year, the species returns with nothing to prove and EVERYTHING to lose. Will the Swift keep its title as the only EVER winner of the UK Bird of the Year?
Lapwing
Name: Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus)
UK conservation status: Red
Key talon-t: Up-close magic, sleight of wing
Loves: Tasty invertebrates
Hates: An early harvest
Fancy a doe-eyed dose of adorable? Look no further than the Lapwing.
Watch closely, feather fans – these wide-eyed wading birds hide a talent for sleight of wing. Last year, these deceptively cute con artists made it all the way to the Bird of the Year semi-final before settling for a fourth-place finish. This year, the species is back with a few tricks up its sleeve. But can these cutesy conjurers fool their way to victory?
Decide for yourself when you discover their secret talents and incredible journey to the Bird of the Year 2026 final.
Greenfinch
Name: Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
UK conservation status: Red
Key talon-t: Singing like nobody's listening
Loves: Seeds, socialising, Elphaba
Hates: Gobby Goldfinches. The Gizzard of Oz
If you’re keen for green, there’s just one Bird of the Year for you.
Be the envy of all with the first of three new Bird of the Year contenders – the Greenfinch! About the size of a House Sparrow, Greenfinches are stunning little birds that cast a large shadow. A triple threat, they can sing, perform aerial displays and even do impressions (we hear their Attenborough is very good).
A little birdy told us that during last year’s BoTY, Greenfinches everywhere watched on with envy as the Swift raced to victory. This year, these miniature green garden giants mean BoTY business!
Montagu's Harrier
Name: Montagu's Harrier (Circus pygargus)
UK conservation status: Red
Key talon-t: Neverending love dance
Loves: Long flights and wide-open spaces
Hates: Capulets, modern adaptations of Shakespeare plays
Love a love bird? Look no further than this real-life Romeo.
Romance is alive and well in 2026 if you’re a Montagu’s Harrier. This enigmatic species is the rarest raptor in the UK, and captured headlines when one fiercely committed male, known as ‘AU’, was spotted supporting two nesting females in a secret location.
Why all the fuss? Nesting Monties are exceptionally rare on our shores, so the discovery of two live nests, and the six chicks they fledged, was incredibly exciting! But the burning BoTY question is, will 'AU' be your Romeo?
Gannet
Name: Gannet (Morus bassanus)
UK conservation status: Amber
Key talon-t: Death-defying high diver
Loves: Unnecessarily small swimming trunks
Hates: Having nostrils inside beak, quotes: “We can always smell fish!”
If you live for the thrilling, then this bird’s top billing!
Our final feathered face for Bird of the Year 2026 is the Gannet. What’s a Gannet? It’s basically a jet-propelled crash test dummy with wings, and believe us when we say, that’s no insult! These high-diving thrill seekers are the biggest seabirds in the UK and enjoy living life on the edge... literally – they nest on sea cliffs!
But will diving beak-first into the deep end of Bird of the Year lead to success? Only you can decide.