Royd Moor loop from home with Beatrix. 30sp inc. Yellowhammer, Reed bunting, Oystercatcher, Little Owl, Teal, Little Grebe. 7 Brown Hare. @s-yorksbirding.bsky.social @sorbynathissoc.bsky.social @btoengland.bsky.social @rspbengland.bsky.social

It’s #WorldWildlifeDay. Peatlands are home to unique and fascinating wildlife!

Thriving #wildlife habitats is one of the many benefits of moorland restoration. Learn more about moorland habitats on our website: www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk/our-purpose/...

📷 Moors for the Future/Sam Willis

Male Crossbill feeding in the Durham Dales from the weekend 👍 #NEbirds #Ukbirds @durhambirdclub.bsky.social @teesbirds.bsky.social

Ringed Bewick's Swan seen in UK for first time in 20 years A ringed Bewick's Swan has been recorded in the UK for the first time in 20 years. The bird, known to researchers as Galina, was first ringed two decades ago on its Russian breeding grounds as part of the Europe-wide monitoring effort co-ordinated by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) and partner organisations. 

A ringed Bewick's Swan has been recorded in the UK for the first time in 20 years:

March 2026 Newsletter

March Newsletter is now available to read.
www.derbyshirebirdtours.com/post/march-2...

Curlews back on local patch - there are still a few pairs nesting in the fields above Penistone. Skylarks singing, Fieldfare over and a bonus pair of Goosander on Castle Dam.
#patchbirding #yorkshirebirding @s-yorksbirding.bsky.social @patchbirding.bsky.social

Ecological barrier crossing strategies in small migratory birds depend on wing morphology and plumage color Recent tracking technologies have revealed remarkable diel flight altitude changes over the Sahara Desert in small migratory birds. However, the drive…

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Fascinating new study on passerine migration using @btobirds.bsky.social tracking data.
#ornithology

High numbers of gulls at Ingbirchworth Reservoir this morning. 700+ Black Headed & 50+ Common and a handful of Herring Gulls. With over 120 Common at nearby Broadstone Reservoir, numbers building before they head north to their breeding grounds. @s-yorksbirding.bsky.social #ornithology

More signs of spring on an early morning visit to Broadstone Reservoir. 4 Oystercatcher on dam wall, 10 Curlew in surrounding fields, at least 4 singing Reed Bunting and plenty of displaying Skylark. @s-yorksbirding.bsky.social @btoengland.bsky.social #yorkshirebirding #ornithology

Chronic ocean heating fuels ‘staggering’ loss of marine life, study finds Fish levels fall by 7.2% with as little as 0.1C of warming per decade, northern hemisphere research shows

Chronic ocean heating fuels ‘staggering’ loss of marine life, study finds

- Fish levels fall by 7.2% with as little as 0.1C of warming per decade, northern hemisphere research shows

#climatecrisis
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Study charts dramatic westward spread of Blyth's Reed Warbler across Europe A comprehensive review of records published in Dutch Birding has documented the continued westward spread and population growth of Blyth's Reed Warbler, with new breeding locales now established well beyond its historic European range.

A review of published records has detailed the westward expansion and range increase of Blyth's Reed Warbler:

A truly fabulous reference guide for any birder or naturalist in Sheffield and the surrounding areas. It provides a long-term overview of the state and changing nature of bird life across the city.

Bonus Caspian Gull spot driving to work this morning. Single juv mingling with the Common Gulls on Hoyland football pitches. Then on the way home a mini Starling murmuration at RSPB Old Moor!

4th and last Winter Bird Survey at Scissett/Clayton West BBS square recorded 21 species.
@btobirds.bsky.social #yorkshirebirding #ornithology

Final Winter Bird Survey on @btobirds.bsky.social BBS square near Denby Dale yielded 24 species. Signs of spring with Yellowhammer and Skylarks singing on their breeding areas. Interesting pure white leucanistic Jackdaw puzzled me for a moment!
#yorkshirebirding #ornithology

All patches of snow in Scotland disappear in 2025, for the fourth consecutive year No patches of snow survived on the hills of Scotland from the winter of 2024/2025 to the winter of 2025/2026.

In Scotland, no patches of snow from winter 2024/2025 survived to winter 2025/2026

- This is the fourth year in a row that all snow has completely disappeared

I miss snow

#climatecrisis
HT @carbonbrief.org
rmets.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Fascinating post here

Combs Moss case study - adapting to a new funding landscape for peatlands in the Peak District and South Pennines Words by Alice Pearson, Project Creation Officer for Moors for the Future Partnership

Our latest Substack post is out now: open.substack.com/pub/moorsfor...

#GreenFinance #Buxton #Derbyshire #Peatlands #Biodiversity #NaturalFloodManagement

Help Stop the Criminal Killing of Birds of Prey Despite more than 70 years of full legal protection, raptor persecution remains a serious and persistent wildlife crime. The Yorkshire Dales is one of the UK’s worst-affected areas, with 152 confirmed...

I just signed a @theactionnetwork.bsky.social petition: Help Stop the Criminal Killing of Birds of Prey. Sign here: actionnetwork.org/petitions/he...

Fantastic #goosing in North Norfolk today: 1,000 Russian Whitefronts (570 Holkham, 310 Overy, 114 Titchwell), 570 Barnacles, 8,000+ Pinks and 💥32💥 Tundra Beans (19 Bircham, 8 Burnham Market, 3 Holkham, 1 Overy, 1 Titchwell) #beanfeast #norfolkbirding

Royd Moor: first Curlew of the year seen. Stonechat, Redwing, Fieldfare, Skylark and Grey Partridge. #curlew #ornithology #wildlife #birding @rspbengland.bsky.social @btobirds.bsky.social @curlewaction.bsky.social @s-yorksbirding.bsky.social

Greenshanks will soon be returning to Scottish breeding sites.
Unlike their cousins that breed in eastern Russia, they won't have flown far.
Research by Highland Ringing Group, supported with £ from @scottishbirding.bsky.social.
wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/03/23/m...
#BirdingScotland

Three-year General Licence restriction imposed on Raeshaw Estate (again), this time relating to shooting of Golden Eagle ‘Merrick’ NatureScot has today announced a three-year General Licence restriction on Raeshaw Estate (and on neighbouring Watherston Wood, which is understood to be under separate management to Raeshaw), in r…

Three-year General Licence restriction imposed on Raeshaw Estate (again), this time relating to the shooting of Golden Eagle Merrick.

Statement from NatureScot & commentary from me ⬇️

#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime 🌍

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/02/10/t...

NERF commentary is absolutely spot on. Sadly, there’s no sign of the current loopholes being closed any time soon.

Sunlight really is the greatest disinfectant.

Hear hear

Probe after golden eagle found in Borders with shotgun injuries Four-year-old Hamlet was discovered injured by a gamekeeper on an estate in Stanhope, near Tweedsmuir.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Extremely disappointing is a masterly understatement (I hope).

Just a reminder to report all dead birds - to Defra in England, Wales and Scotland for possible testing. Also add the record to BirdTrack if you can for monitoring purposes
#ukbirding

Let’s hope this gets speedily chucked out!

Pennines delight as drone survey offers hope for one of UK’s rarest birds Conservationists find dunlin chicks thriving in boggy habitat created in collaboration with landowners

Dunlin needed some good news - @rspbscience.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Red-listed in UK:
wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/10/04/u...
Rapid decline in Iceland:
wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/02/20/i...
Really bad in the Baltic:
wadertales.wordpress.com/2021/06/20/d...
#ornithology