TEHRAN – Observed on May 9 and October 10, World Migratory Bird Day 2026 highlights the important role of community science (also known as citizen science) in the conservation of migratory birds.

Themed “Every Bird Counts – Your Observations Matter!”, the 2026 campaign shines a spotlight on people-driven efforts essential to bird conservation and science, celebrating how individuals, communities, and organizations around the world are helping build the knowledge base to better conserve migratory birds across borders.

By focusing on the contribution of individuals, participatory science and public bird monitoring efforts, the campaign will celebrate the millions of bird enthusiasts around the world that are contributing to the data and knowledge that inform policy decisions and are essential for bird conservation – through each recorded observation.

The power of community science

From backyard observations to coordinated global surveys, millions of people around the world contribute vital information about migratory birds, their habitats, and the challenges they face each year. Through these recorded observations, people are engaging in community/citizen science that helps track migration patterns, population trends, and changes in habitats across flyways. 

The campaign will showcase how every observation contributes essential data and supports evidence-based conservation at local, national, and international scales.

Connecting with nature to support conservation

When people take part in bird counting activities that help gather this important data, they also strengthen their connection to nature, deepen their understanding of the pressures facing birds, and often become stewards of nature protection, strengthening society’s engagement with nature.

A global effort across all flyways

This year’s theme is particularly meaningful as it recognizes the many community science projects along all of the world’s major flyways. 

It will be focusing on the monitoring initiatives and platforms that already exist to record bird observations in ways that support both science and policy.

WMBD 2026 also coincides with the 60th Anniversary of the International Water-bird Census, an opportunity to celebrate this global effort to monitor and protect migratory waterbirds as well as promote other community and citizen science initiatives across all flyways of the world. 

By encouraging people to gather observations from across migratory routes, a clearer picture of the “story of the flyways,” emphasizing connectivity, international collaboration, and our collective responsibility, is built.

Celebrated twice a year, the WMBD recognizes that migration occurs at different times in the northern and southern hemispheres and is part of a repeating annual cycle. 

The partners behind WMBD look forward to working closely with all interested stakeholders, external partners, governments, organizations, and communities across all flyways to amplify this message and continue using WMBD as a way to raise awareness and conservation action for migratory birds across borders.

Iran, an important stopover for migratory birds

Iran is the most important country in West Asia in terms of housing migratory birds in winter, as around two million birds fly each year to spend winter in the country’s wetlands, according to an official with the Department of Environment.

Encompassing numerous wetlands, reservoirs, and diverse water bodies, Iran welcomes millions of migratory birds every year. The country has also emerged as the most important stopover for migratory birds in their flight route from Siberia to the Nile, as sixteen percent of them select to spend the winter in the country, ISNA quoted Hassan Akbari as saying.

A diverse array of migratory birds fly to the country, with more than 160 species of aquatic and waterside birds identified in Iran, which is a significant number.

Despite limited water resources in the domestic habitats of the country, the study of the migratory bird population trend shows that the abundance and diversity of the birds that enter the country have not decreased. The majority of them have flown to the coastal areas of the Caspian and the Persian Gulf, though.

Iran hosts more than five percent of the world’s migratory birds in 450 sites in winter, Akbari said.

“Every year, some 30 to 40 million birds are counted all over the world, and the related statistics are recorded in the International Waterfowl Census (IWC) database,” he added.