My year list for 2011 was slightly better than last year, I managed to see 267 species in Britain and I had 4 lifers plus an armchair tick (Siberian Stonechat) so I’m creeping along ever closer to the big 500! My highlights of the year were trips to Speyside, Scotland in April; Shetland in September […]

For several weeks a juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard has been favouring an area of old pit workings just north of the city of Nottingham. It may well over winter here and it seems to be finding plenty of food. Only 20 miles from home, so well worth the visit. The bird showed well intermittently […]

2011 has been one of the best years in memory to see American Waders in Britain. At least 17 species had been seen up to 28th November. The only species not found at this time was Western Sandpiper. So it was inevitable that one would be discovered somewhere!. Cley NWT Reserve was […]

Chew Valley Lake & Blagdon Lake, both sites now in Somerset, must rank as two of the best inland waters in Britain for attracting rare birds. Chew Valley had managed to hold on to a cracking wader for well over a week. A juvenile Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, along with a supporting cast of 2 Long-billed Dowitcher […]