Talks

Branch Talks

This season the meetings will, again, be a mix of SOC-wide online meetings and Clyde Branch in-person meetings. Please note below the new venue for this season's talks.

Clyde branch in-person meetings are usually held on the first Monday of the month and are highlighted in green in the talks programme below.

The venue for the in-person meetings is: Partick Burgh Hall, 9 Burgh Hall Street, Partick, Glasgow G11 5LW [map]

Our in-person meetings start at 7.00pm (note earlier time this season) and the hall is available from 6pm if you wish to meet up earlier.

Online meetings and talks are held on zoom and start at 7.30pm

There is further information below for meetings at Partick Burgh Hall and for zoom instructions

Contact for any talks queries: Rebecca Dickson

Grey Heron © Rebecca Dickson

2025-26 Talks programme

Our SOC and Clyde Branch talks for the coming season are as follows:

Date	Time	Talk	Format
Wednesday 19 November	7.30pm	Douglas Russell – Interesting Bird Nests & Eggs – writing a popular book on 250 years of avian architecture	Online
Monday 1 December	7pm	Stephen Inglis – My patch on the Eaglesham Moor: Shieldhill Farm	In Person
Wednesday 10 December	7.30pm	Laurie Campbell – Photographing birds: more than just the species	Online
Monday 12 January	7pm	Paul Noyes – Curlew and the Yorkshire Dales	In Person
Wednesday 21 January	7.30pm	Adam Nicolson – Birds in the Hebrides and a Sussex wood; Q & A	Online
Monday 2 February	7pm	Heather Ritchie-Parker – Conservation of the Capercaillie and Northern Rockhopper Penguins using genetic techniques	In Person
Wednesday 18 February	7.30pm	Liz Myhill – Evocative encounters with the natural world; a talk & demonstration	Online
Monday 2 March	7pm	Rachel Reid & Speaker TBA – The consequences of urbanisation and artificial light at night on avian health and physiology & Title TBA	In Person
Wednesday 18 March	7.30pm	Prof. Tim Birkhead – The Most Perfect Thing; Q & A	Online
Monday 6 April	7pm	AGM & Rachel Steenson – Spring with the Midlothian Dippers	In Person
Wednesday 15 April	7.30pm	Prof. Claire Spottiswoode – Show me the honey: communication between people and wild birds in Africa	Online

The in-person meetings start at 7pm
The online meetings start at 7.30pm

Further Information

* In Person meeting venue
Our in-person talks take place in Partick Burgh Hall. This is near Partick bus, underground and train station (see link for map). Car parking should be available in the adjacent streets e.g. Burgh Hall Street, Peel Street and Fortrose Street once the parking regulation hours have passed (currently after 6pm).

This is a new venue for this season. The venue is cheaper to hire than our previous venue and therefore we have been able to reduce the entrance fee. Based on the average number attending meetings last season it is proposed that we charge an entrance fee of £3. There will be no additional charge for the tea, coffee, and biscuits. The fee will be reduced to £1 for students and for others at the discretion of the committee. It would be very helpful if you could bring with you the exact amount of £3. We do not have any debit / credit card handling facility.

Online meetings:
For the meetings that are marked as "online" an invitation with a link to the Zoom meeting will be sent out a few days before the event via email. To receive this notice, please ensure that you are on the appropriate mailing list held by SOC HQ. If you are unsure, you can check your mailing list preferences by emailing Kathryn Cox or if you know you do not receive branch notices but would like to, you can sign up here (please note these will only be sent to SOC members).

Instructions on how to use Zoom.