In late June I joined an organised visit to see an extremely rare British orchid, the Red Helleborine. It is  very unpredictable in its flowering time and we visited on the 29th June, which was just about perfect on this occasion.  It is now thought to be restricted to just three sites in southern England. […]

A change of scenery in mid-June with a few days away in Dorset. We stayed in a caravan near Swannage, and spent sometime visiting the coastal  reserve at Durlston Country Park. A few new plants, some great butterflies and a stunning Mediterranean Gull performing at Studland Bay. Finishing off with several Dartford Warblers at Arne

During June, a Great Reed Warbler set up territory in a small reed bed at the RSPB reserve of Langford Lowfields, in Nottinghamshire. The reserve is a partnership project between Tarmac and the RSPB involving restoration of a sand and gravel quarry on the banks of the River Trent.  The Great Reed Warbler was very

One of my favourite British warblers is the Wood Warbler, which sadly is now Red Listed, following long-term declines of more than 50%. Breeding here in the UK, is now restricted to largely oak (Quercus) woodlands, and they are becoming ever more scarce across much of southern and eastern Britain. This particular bird was extremely

An Eleonora’s Falcon, a 2nd summer female, was discovered in Kent during the end of May. A long awaited “Twitchable” bird for many UK birders. The arrival of this bird coincided with my planned visit to Kent to see some of the rare orchids with a friend who lives in the village where the falcon

The RSPB reserve of St. Aiden’s, near Leeds, is one of the best places to observe Black-necked Grebe. This beautiful grebe can be seen from late March, as birds arrive back to their breeding areas.