Great news for nature! The Scottish Government has refused plans for a golf course on Coul Links that would have irreparably damaged this precious place.  Thank you to the tens of thousands of you who spoke up to save Coul Links. Your voices made a difference.

Juv isabelline type shrike Kessingland 19/10/2026 Another great find by @gavindurrant1.bsky.social. @suffolkbirdgroup.bsky.social

A busier time for our seasonal ringing Warden Tom Salt this morning as new birds were being ringed with each net round a smart Siberian "tristis" Chiffchaff briefly posed for a confirmation pic before flying to the Holm Oaks allowing the ringers to get the next batch done

Plenty of variety at Landguard this morning including a Barn Owl floating around in broad daylight that was enjoyed by the visiting SBG group also a Brambling whizzing about and later a sprite was ringed, ya just gotta love a Yellow browed Warbler

Natural England can't bring itself to say "persecution" or "illegal killing" is still constraining Hen Harrier population recovery. Instead it calls it, "conflicting land management priorities". Nope, it's crime, committed by criminals, on grouse moors. raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/10/15/n...

Natural England publishes 2026 Hen Harrier breeding attempts – only 9 (of 45) were on grouse moors

Natural England has finally published data for the 2026 Hen Harrier breeding season, showing yet again that Hen Harriers are not tolerated on most English grouse moors. Of 45 recorded breeding atte…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

A walk around the reserve at Landguard today in rather pleasant weather Meadow Pipits trickling south, some dropped in briefly a Reed Bunting was given a good grilling as was a rather brown mantled Lesser Whitethroat, blythi ? well maybe but needs DNA but a female type Black Redstart held no problem

Landguard this morning got me a patch tick in the form of a Bonxie going north also a bit of Vismig which included 3 Wood Lark a Ring Ouzel present that i didn't see also a Mediterranean Stick Insect was found probably the offspring of some pet ones kept by our seasonal warden in 2020

Nuthatch. asiatica ssp. Sat down on the couch after dinner. "One last look at the feeder...JESUS!! 😱😍😍 There's been a huge influx of both ssp of Nuthatch this year & I was hoping for one in the garden. Result! Sp. 151 for the garden list. 😎 #birds #birding #birdwatching #finland #birdsseenin2026

Ringing details for this Black-headed Gull at Redcar on Sunday @teesbirds.bsky.social @nybirdnews.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social

Any one noticed that Ian Wright has gone for the Frank Spencer look this evening, ooh Bellamy

Gone but not forgotten.

Although really quiet for migrant birds at Landguard today i was pleased that yesterday's Yellow browed Warbler was still present along with the recent Shore Larks best for me though was picking out a distant dark Long tailed Skua that was slowly going north dip feeding as it went

I had the 2 Shore Larks at Landguard this morning to meself as they are now settling into a regular feeding area as long as Birders/Toggers give them space

A nice patch year tick in the form of 2 juvenile Curlew Sandpipers at Felixstowe Ferry this afternoon

Over the moon (to put it mildly) to find this first year male SIBERIAN BLUE ROBIN in our garden at Hillwell, Shetland this morning. The fifth record for Britain and a first for Shetland. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife

No Siberian blue Robins at Landguard today but a Shore Lark still present 3 Bramblings several migrant Song Thrushes a Ring Ouzel heard in the dark 2 Jays wandering around the beach bushes plus a Short eared Owl in off that eventually flew upriver

Slender-billed Nutcrackers stage Finland's biggest influx in three decades www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/S...

Slender-billed Nutcrackers stage Finland’s biggest influx in three decades

An exceptional movement from the east has kept Finnish birders watching as autumn advances.

rarebirdalert.co.uk

Just as the Pallid Harrier came in close, a ringtail Hen Harrier confused things - those looking for a white rump on a Harrier as their distant ID feature suddenly had to take more care! The fourth pic is of the Hen Harrier, on a remarkable 10 raptor species day for some birders. #ukbirding #birds

A map of records of migrating Nutcracker - seemingly all Slender-billed (machrorhynchos) - from Southern Sweden in the last week. Also this great video of 48 migrating SW at Falsterbo today. Definitely something afoot with this species this autumn... www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ol-I...

Let’s “smash” the #BirdOfTheDay theme for today with #Seabirds; any bird found at sea or the coast and Alt. is #Airborne; any bird in flight. This Ross’s Gull brightened a dark January afternoon on the River Tyne, UK in 2025. A rare bird in these parts…

Another poor year for the Purple Hairstreak (eikenpage, F quercus) on Dutch Butterfly Monitoring transects. The species spends most of the time in the canopy of oak trees, and can be hard to find, which makes them difficult to monitor. In some years, as e.g. 2018, they descend in large numbers.

A commission piece I did of the White-throated Needletail that was on the east coast last year. A3 watercolour and graphite #UKbirding #birds #birdart #sciart

Three Black Redstarts at Landguard around the fort today 2 of which were ringed also a Cinnamon Bug and at least 3 Clouded Yellows

2026 gave us more butterflies on Dutch Butterfly Monitoring transects than 2023 and 2024 (these years were the worst since 1990), and a little bit more than 2025, especially in August. But beware of shifting baseline, numbers in most years in the 1990s were often twice as high as nowadays.

The Lesser Purple Emperor (kleine weerschijnvlinder, Apatura ilia) has been expanding north at a speed of ±10km per year and has now started to colonise SE of NL. If this speed continues it might reach me in Wageningen in ten years or so. The expansion is caused by climate warming.

This very fresh Red veined Darter at Felixstowe Ferry Suffolk this morning by a large Apple Tree behind the millennium green

The Landguard Queen of Spain Fritillary still in the obs compound just now but mobile also 3 Clouded Yellows

Fortunate to have been at Landguard this morning when Tom Salt our ringing Warden found a Queen of Spain Fritillary

Short-billed Dowitcher, adult in moult at Drift Res this afternoon (14th Sept). Delighted to find it but will admit that was a difficult id in this plumage. Thanks to Killian Mullarney for confirming id.

Patch work does turn up some good birds now and then and so it was this morning at Felixstowe Ferry when a Ringtail Harrier flew towards me chased by Crows which turned out to be a Juvenile Montagus Harrier along with 6 other raptor species made for a good morning 😀