Autumn always brings all sorts of rarities and scarcities, but this year I’ve generally stayed close to home (which sadly meant missing out on England’s long-staying Longtailed Shrike). Instead, I’ve been trying to take careful note of bird...
Matt Merritt: “A Redbacked Shrike in Derbyshire – it had just dropped in while I was at a local site, looking for waders.” Mike Weedon: “My favourite bird this year was a UK tick for me: Squacco Heron at Crowland, just 7.5 miles from my house.”
“Red Kite and Little Egret over my mum’s north London garden. Each were garden ticks!”
“A common but elusive bird, Water Rail, seen alongside an equally smart Green Sandpiper.”
“A confiding juvenile Dotterel on the Great Orme; a wonderful sign of migration, on my doorstep.”
“White-tailed Eagle at RSPB Ouse Fen in April, ringed in the Netherlands in May 2025.”
Amy Brewer looks at what allows certain species to thrive in certain conditions. Evolution is remarkable. Patient. Intricate. Here, I am going to focus on just a fraction of how bird anatomy – specifically beaks, eyes, eyelids,...
Stephen Moss pays tribute to his friend and colleague for many decades – an inspiration to us all. Stephen Moss worked with the legendary TV presenter Bill Oddie for almost 20 years, producing the groundbreaking series Birding with Bill...
