Bring a wildlife listening station to your site.
A S.W.A.N. node is a compact, weather-resistant listening station designed to detect bird activity and turn it into useful wildlife information for schools, communities, conservation groups and local organisations.
Organisations can buy a node directly, request a sponsored node, or help sponsor a node for a school, charity, community space or conservation site. If you are not sure which option fits, choose “I’m not sure” on the enquiry form and we can help work it out.
For schools
Living lab
Turn school grounds into a live science resource using real local biodiversity data.
For conservation
Insight
Support passive, repeat monitoring of bird activity and changes over time.
For communities
Access
Help people explore local wildlife through station pages, maps and learning tools.
For sponsors
Impact
Fund practical local science, education, conservation and environmental awareness.
Who can request a node?
There are three main ways to join the network.
Some organisations will be ready to buy a node directly. Others may have the perfect site but need sponsorship. Local businesses and partners can also support the network by funding nodes for schools, charities, community spaces and conservation locations.
Buy a node
Best for businesses, estates, schools, landowners, visitor centres, nature sites or organisations that want to fund their own node, installation and dashboard.
Request a sponsored node
Best for schools, charities, community organisations, youth groups, parish projects, conservation groups or sites that would benefit from a node but need external funding.
Sponsor a node
Best for local businesses or funders who want to support STEM education, biodiversity monitoring, public engagement and practical local conservation.
Not sure yet
If you are unsure whether your site is suitable, whether you should buy or seek sponsorship, or what setup you need, submit an enquiry and we can talk through the options.
How a node works
A careful bird-detection workflow.
A standard S.W.A.N. node analyses short sound sections locally, identifies likely bird species and sends detection records to the Project S.W.A.N. platform. Audio handling is agreed for the site and kept to what is needed.
01
A bird sings
A bird call or song is heard by the station microphone.
02
The node analyses it
Bird detection software checks the sound locally against known bird call patterns.
03
A result is created
The system creates a detection such as species, time, date and confidence score.
04
Audio is handled carefully
Public and school nodes are normally configured to minimise retained audio and discard material that is not needed.
05
The dashboard updates
The website can show station detections, charts, maps and public summaries.
Privacy-first
Designed to monitor birds, not people.
The useful record is normally the likely species, time, confidence score, station and general site context. Public and community installations are configured to avoid retaining unnecessary audio. Any different research arrangement requires a clear purpose and agreement with the host site.
What you get
A node is not just hardware. It is a full monitoring setup.
Each proposed installation is reviewed around the site, local environment, power, connectivity, safety, privacy and practical maintenance.
Site survey
We check power, connectivity, microphone position, weather exposure, mounting options, safety, safeguarding, visual appearance and maintenance access.
Suitable installation plan
The node location is agreed with the host site before installation. It should be safe, tidy, discreet and appropriate for the surroundings.
Node hardware
A weather-resistant outdoor node with a microphone, compute device, enclosure, power method and connectivity method suitable for the site.
Website and dashboard
Detections can appear on station pages, maps, public dashboards, school dashboards, species profiles and summaries.
Maintenance and support
Nodes may need checks for enclosure condition, acoustic vents, mounting, cabling, power, connectivity, updates and detection performance.
Post-installation review
After installation, the host site and Project S.W.A.N. review the position, operation and any practical concerns. Changes are agreed where appropriate.
Buy, request or sponsor
Choose the route that fits your organisation.
Costs are confirmed after the proposed site and installation needs have been reviewed. Hardware, power, connectivity, travel and maintenance can all affect the final quotation.
🏢
Route 1
Buy a node
For organisations that can fund their own equipment, installation and setup. This is often the simplest route when the site is suitable.
Good for:
Businesses, estates, schools, landowners, visitor centres, farms, nature sites and private organisations.
🤝
Route 2
Request sponsorship
For sites that would benefit from a node but cannot currently fund the full cost. The request can be matched with local businesses, donors or funding partners where possible.
Good for:
Schools, charities, community groups, youth groups, parish projects, public green spaces and conservation groups.
🌱
Route 3
Sponsor a node
For businesses and funders who want to support local biodiversity, school STEM learning, conservation monitoring and community science.
Good for:
Local businesses, CSR programmes, environmental funds, community sponsors and organisations wanting visible positive impact.
Sponsorship explained
Sponsorship helps turn good sites into real monitoring locations.
A school, charity or community site may have an excellent location for a node but not have the funding available. Sponsorship allows a local business or partner to cover some or all of the costs so the site can still join the network.
Sponsorship should not just be advertising. It should be a direct contribution to local science, education, nature recovery and community value.
Hardware contribution
Helps fund core hardware for a node. This could be suitable for smaller businesses or supporters who want to help a project get started.
Recognition is agreed in advance and kept appropriate to the supported site.
Full station sponsorship
Funds a full node, enclosure and installation for a specific site, such as a school, charity site, community space or conservation area.
Recognition may include an acknowledgement on the station page or at the site, where appropriate.
Network support
Provides wider ongoing support for platform operation, maintenance, network growth, educational resources and public reporting.
Recognition and reporting are agreed as part of the partnership.
What sponsors help pay for
Hardware, installation, maintenance and public value.
Installation process
Every node request follows a careful process.
The aim is to make sure every node is suitable, safe, trusted and useful. A good node location should collect valuable wildlife data without creating concerns for the host site.
01
Request
You tell us who you are, what type of site you have and whether you want to buy, request or sponsor.
02
Review
We check whether the site sounds suitable and what power, connectivity and permissions may be needed.
03
Survey
A site survey identifies the safest, least intrusive and most useful installation position.
04
Install
The node is fitted using an agreed installation method and linked to the dashboard.
05
Review
The host site and Project S.W.A.N. review the installation and agree any practical adjustments.
Site suitability
What makes a good node location?
A good site does not have to be perfect. It just needs a practical place for a node, a reasonable chance of hearing birds, a safe installation route and a host organisation that understands how the system works.
Power
Nodes may use PoE, mains with suitable equipment, solar and battery, or another agreed power setup depending on the site.
Connectivity
Ethernet, Wi-Fi or 4G may be possible. The best method depends on host-site approval, security, signal and reliability.
Habitat value
Sites near trees, hedges, ponds, fields, gardens, woodland edges or green corridors may produce especially useful wildlife data.
Safe access
The node must be reachable for installation, inspection, maintenance and removal if needed.
Privacy and safeguarding
This is especially important for schools and public spaces. The location, wording, permissions and dashboard settings should all be clear.
Host confidence
The host site should understand the purpose of the node, what data is collected, what is not collected, and how concerns can be raised.
Start your request
Tell us what kind of node request this is.
Tell us about the site, what you hope to achieve and whether funding is already available. Project S.W.A.N. will review the request and contact you to discuss suitability, costs and possible next steps.
How sponsorship enquiries are handled
Contact details are used to respond to the enquiry. If a sponsored placement may be suitable, any information shared with a potential sponsor will be agreed with the requesting organisation first.
Not sure what you need?
Start with a conversation. The site survey helps decide the right setup.
You do not need to know the hardware, power, connectivity or sponsorship route yet. Submit a request and we can work through the options.