Matthew

We are going to irreversibly degrade the biosphere for the sake of people asking 'Grok' to explain simple memes and/or generating pictures of cats that look like Hitler.

A dapper wintering Bluetail at @wendlingbeck.bsky.social continues to show on & off today. Bird on private land & owners are keen for birders to be help not hinderance to the community. Therefore, I've been asked to organise a donation pot for St Mary's Church upkeep. ko-fi.com/simonleomitc...

...& the wing pattern, with that broad slash of white across the upperwing (seen easily on the underwing too), plus that isolated white belly patch & reduced, diffuse pale area behind the black nail all add up nicely to a pukka Ferruginous Duck.
@linnetincley.bsky.social
#norfolkbirding
3/4

Ferruginous Duck is still a rare visitor to the north Norfolk coast. A popular female on Holkham Park lake a decade ago & a young drake at Stiffkey & then Cley around 1996 (?) are the only ones I've seen on the coast in over 35 years + a pair in spring '92.
@linnetincley.bsky.social
#norfolkbirding

Male Siskin, pale green, with streaks on flanks, pale cream underneath and black head feeding upside down in an Alder Tree.

Went out locally to check for Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, no sight or sound, I suspect they are no more, but will make further visits. I see Siskins every day in my garden, but watching these little acrobats as they fed on Alder seeds is always a pleasure. #Birds #NorfolkBirds

I had a chat with the brilliant @davidolusoga.bsky.social

Lost my phone in London, with four credit cards and £150 cash in the case. Returned to me within 21 minutes. This hellhole of a city eh.

Goldcrest

Short-eared Owl 1

Oystercatcher

Short-eared Owl 2

It's voting time in the EBwS Winter 2025-26 Bird Photography Competition quarter-finals! Here are the entries in the 1st - please choose your favourite photo from these four and vote here: strawpoll.com/GPgVYWlv8na
#essexbirding

Sparrowhawk

Goldfinches

Robin

Lapwing

It's voting time in the EBwS Winter 2025-26 Bird Photography Competition quarter-finals! Here are the entries in the 3rd - please choose your favourite photo from these four and vote here: strawpoll.com/40Zm40XLAga
#essexbirding

Starlings

Mute Swan 1

Mute Swan 2

Barn Owl

It's voting time in the EBwS Winter 2025-26 Bird Photography Competition quarter-finals! Here are the entries in the 2nd - please choose your favourite photo from these four and vote here: strawpoll.com/X3nkPbk8EgE
#essexbirding

A Cuckoo perches on a post. Wording over the image reads: We're hiring. Science Manager. www.bto.org/jobs. BTO logo top right of the image. Image credit bottom left reads: Cuckoo by Edmund Fellowes / BTO.

New role! 📢 We're looking for a dynamic and experienced Science Manager to join us at BTO. Apply now ➡️ www.bto.org/jobs #Ornithology

📆 Full time, Permanent.
📝 £46,344 per annum.
📍 Hybrid working.

Deadline for applications: Monday 9 March.

A young person is holding a bird in their hand. Wording below reads: young bird observatory visitors programme. bto.org/ybov.

Apply for our Young Bird Observatory Visitors Programme grant ➡️ www.bto.org/ybov

Each year the BTO provide a number of grants of up to £250, to support young people looking to visit one of the accredited British and Irish Bird Observatories.

Closing date: Sunday 1 March. #UKBirding

Two Tundra Bean Geese and a Greylag Goose. Bill colour oddly pink in this video grab but clearly orange in the field

A nice surprise at work today when @arjuncdutta.bsky.social found these Tundra Bean Geese at @btobirds.bsky.social HQ. Instructive trying to age them with @sconebirding.bsky.social #UKBirding

I arrived on Anglesey before first light and I was the first person to see this drake Bufflehead this morning, which was quite close in. Amazing pink legs! #ukbirding #birds #birdsseenin2026 #ducks #bufflehead #loveducks @angbirdnews.bsky.social

A successful return to the Severnside patch today, when a female Merlin made a spectacular appearance at Aust Warth. Scared the living daylights out of the Mippits before crossing the estuary towards Wales. Here's one of these superb predators from Cornwall a couple of years ago #ukbirding

Cracking shot

Delighted to see this Sparrowhawk photo on the front cover of @britishbirds.bsky.social February 2026 issue. Photo taken at RSPB Strumpshaw Fen from the Fen Hide on the 2nd October 2025. Incredibly lucky to get an in-focus photo, as it sped past the hide on a hunting mission.

Find out who’s heading headfirst down a slippery slope - and who’s skating on thin ice…

No, it’s not the Winter Olympics. It’s PRIVATE EYE WEEK.

New issue in shops and with subscribers from Wednesday.

Adult Tundra Bean Goose with Pink-footed Geese

Two Tundra Bean Geese with Pink-footed Geese

Adult Tundra Bean Goose with Greylag and Russian White-fronted Geese

Adult Tundra Bean Goose with Greylag Geese

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

Purple Sandpipers at Ness Point Lowestoft. These birds are so interesting to watch, scampering over the rocks with waves crashing around them. Won't be long before they migrate north to their breeding grounds. #Birds #SuffolkBirds

It was good to see the Hume's Warbler at Lowestoft on 14/2/26. It gave brief views in the morning, and then wasn’t seen for a few hours: I relocated it early afternoon, in the north-east corner of Sparrow's Nest Gardens, where it showed very well.
#RareBirdsUK #UKbirding #Suffolkbirds

I think it was you I saw at ness Point PM? I did see it round the tennis courts after an hour, had good views, but it wasn't up for a photo. Excellent bird though.

A BirdTrack yearly summary graphic showing data against an image of a Glossy Ibis in vegetation at the water's edge. Data highlights: 5,906 records of 180 bird species and 30 non-bird species from 91 places in Britain & Ireland over 193 recording days.

A BirdTrack infographic showing personal data highlights for 2025. There's a list of top birds seen, as in seen by fewest other birders - Black Kite, Roseate Tern and White Stork - a timeline showing species per day throughout the year, a graph showing the accumulation of species throughout the year, and a map of Great Britain with places records were collected shown as dots.

I really like the @birdtrack.bsky.social yearly summary email.
I'm "part of a community of c.13,000 birders that collectively recorded 9.6 million records of over 400 bird species in Britain & Ireland". The app is so easy to use in the field.

More info: www.bto.org/get.../volun...
#ShropshireBirds

Alnmouth #Northumberland this morning were 4 Whitefronts, 1 Raven, 1 fw Little Gull, 3 Red breasted Mergansers as highlights of 52 sp. #LocalPatch #Lowcarbonbirding

Even better/closer views of Tay White-billed Diver today AM, with @lainy.bsky.social. Bird headed well out on river, few short flights (no flights Fri-Sat) just before ship passed through same area. Bird not seen since (3 hrs worth of looking E/W of castle to Stannergate). #Scottishbirding

I am rather amused by the farmer who thinks wildlife will be gone because its not farmed! It certainly won't be the same admittedly, but it should certainly be more diverse ecologically.

Mm, I can identify with that, Birding and keeping a list certainly helped me out of some very dark days, still does actually. I do like connecting people to birds and nature, which is why I spend some of my time volunteering with the RSPB, its a joy getting people enthusiastic.

I've been interested in birds for a fair few decades, but listing never really appealed to me, but after traumatic incident in my life, I started keeping a UK list to have something positive to focus on.

There is that, also I'm anti-social so watching a bird in the company of more than a dozen others has never really appealed! I'm happy bumbling around and seeing what turns up or if I do go for a new bird, there needs to be some other attraction to justify the trip!

It helps living in Norfolk! Lots of good birds within an hours drive, which is kind of my limit these days for a twitch with numerous good "general" birding sites to make a proper day of it.