BRC’s first bird camp: students in Adjara start bird clubs at their schools
Batumi Raptor Count ran two three-day camps for 25 teenagers from schools in Adjara. Students watched raptor migration at the Sakhalvasho station, and afterwards two of them started bird clubs at their own schools.
In 2026 Batumi Raptor Count held its first bird camp. Twenty-five teenagers chosen from schools in Adjara spent three days each, in two groups of 13 and 12, learning about birds and how to protect them. The camp ended, but the work did not: two students went on to start bird clubs at their own schools.
Three days with birds
Every autumn hundreds of thousands of raptors pass over the Batumi bottleneck, and counters from all over the world count them. This year Batumi Raptor Count brought local teenagers closer to that work. Its first bird camp brought together 25 students chosen from schools in Adjara, in two groups of 13 and 12. The camp builds on the team’s education work with local schools.
Each group’s camp lasted three days. Students heard talks about birds from experts. They watched documentaries about conservation work in other parts of the world and about poaching threats in the region. They also played team games meant to build teamwork, critical thinking and a sense of responsibility for nature.
At the Sakhalvasho station
The liveliest part of the camp was the Sakhalvasho station. It is one of the count’s two main stations, where the team counts migrating raptors. Students watched kettles and streams of birds of prey in the sky. Through binoculars they picked out plumage details and the shape of each bird.
They also tried spotting scopes and hand counters, or “clickers”, themselves. That is how they learned how the count works. The big days of this autumn’s count are in the news.
After the camp: two school clubs
On the last day, students split into small groups and presented what they had learned in three days. Each group did it in its own way: some made a poster, others wrote messages about protecting nature and birds.
Feedback from the students was very positive: the camp sparked their interest in birds. Two students started bird clubs at their own schools. Between the two camps, the education team met more than 25 teachers from schools around the Batumi bottleneck. If you want to know which birds migrate over Adjara too, start with the birds hub.
