Millions of birds leaving Europe this Autumn. BirdLife organisations across the continent announce Europe’s largest bird watching event. Armenian Society for the Protection of Birds, BirdLife in Armenia is inviting everyone to join EuroBirdwatch (1) on 3 & 4 October, organised annually by BirdLife International (2) and its national Partners. This year special attention is asked for the protection of migratory birds, which are declining rapidly. In more than 30 European countries there will be events, ranging from bird watching excursions to ringing demonstrations. Most countries will also have special posts set up to count birds that fly overhead. The results of the counts will be collected by BirdLife in the Netherlands, and will be published all over Europe afterwards. Every year more and more people attend EuroBirdwatch events. Last year the event drew 30.000 adults and children from over 30 countries, and a total of 2.2 million birds were counted. The popularity of birds is clearly growing, but so is the urgency of their conservation. EuroBirdwatch this year also promotes the Born to Travel Campaign (3), to save migratory birds that travel between Europe and Africa. On their annual journeys migratory birds depend on range habitats, and the threats are therefore numerous. For example, intensive agriculture in Europe, deforestation in Africa and illegal hunting in the Mediterranean all decrease their chances of survival. (1)    EuroBirdwatch (formerly known as the European Birdwatch) is an annual event organised by BirdLife International, comprising hundreds of nationally-organised activities all over Europe. EuroBirdwatch is part of World Birdwatch – a global initiative established over 10 years ago. The goal was to encourage as many people as possible to go birdwatching over one weekend, and to record sightings of as many as possible of the world’s 10,000 bird species. (2)    BirdLife International is a global alliance of nature conservation organisations working in more than 100 countries and territories. BirdLife is the leading authority on the status of birds, their habitats and the problems affecting them, and is working on a wide range of environmental issues. (3)    The Born to Travel Campaign is BirdLife’s international initiative to raise awareness on the urgency to protect migratory birds and their flyways. The campaign was launched in March 2009 and will run until 2012. It is organized by BirdLife Partners across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.