Had a Ring-necked Parakeet flying around Queen Adelaide this morning. Am i right in remembering this is a regular Cambs site @cambsbirdclub.bsky.social ?

#OpenAccess in #BirdStudy Herring Gulls really don't like people staring at them (antipredator response). The eyes have it: the response of European Herring Gulls Larus argentatus to human eye-gaze doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

We hear a lot about deer in woodlands, but here in the treeless Fens I'm widely seeing about 30+ deer per square km. Mostly Roe deer, but lots of Chinese Water Deer, some Muntjac and rarely a Fallow. That's far more Roe than i ever see in woodland or more woody regions.

Might be good for plant spp. richness, but I'm not sure mowing field margins every 6 weeks in spring & summer is going to be helpful for other farmland biodiversity. Seems a perfect way to repeatedly destroy every breeding attempt of ground-nesting birds, small mammals or butterflies that use them.

🚨 Come join the fantastic long-tailed tit team 🚨 🐦We are recruiting a field technician to collect behavioural data on a long-term studied population of wild long-tailed tits (passerine birds). 🪶20 months contract in Sheffield, UK. 🌲Deadline: 23/11/2025. jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Technici...

#OpenAccess in #BirdStudy Low juv survival in Twites may drive decline in one English remnant breeding population, but wider decline more likely driven by factors affecting all age groups. Age-specific survival in an English Twite Linaria flavirostris population doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

#BirdStudy Switch to autumn crop-sowing and ban on lead angling weights probably influencing big increase in British Mute Swans since 1970s. The relationship between Mute Swan Cygnus olor population trends in Great Britain and environmental change: doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

Fenland bird surveys in a nutshell: wind, flat fields to the horizon, big skies, and trumpeting Whooper Swans. Sound up for wind & trumpets. #ukbirding

Gull-human interactions in an urban population of Herring Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls More nuisance events with humans as breeding season progresses, but human provisioning is negatively associated with nuisance events: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... #ornithology

This is from Autocracy, Inc, about how modern autocratic propaganda works. I consider this every time I decide what to share and how to frame it.

Wasn't out long this morning. Happy to find a Marsh Tit foraging amongst the fallen apples - which exude a lovely smell. #Nikon #photography #birds #ukwildlife #ukbirding #wildlife #nature

If you see this, quote with a vampire that is not Dracula. "Greetings, from Johannesburg!"

Always fascinating to see new @btobirds.bsky.social Ringing & Nest Recording report. Willow Tits at new low, no nestlings ringed at all, just 6 nests monitored. Ringed Marsh Tit halved from 2010. No Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers ringed in UK for 2nd yr running. www.bto.org/get-involved... #ornithology

With HPAI bird flu resurging in UK and Western Europe, here's the link to the 2 recent special issues of #BirdStudy on avian influenza: 20 papers on impacts, mitigation, patterns and control. Part 1/2: #ornithology #seabirds #raptors #birdflu

By monitoring 1896 Wood Warbler nests across Europe over 10 years, scientists found reproductive success varied by area BUT the populations with highest reproductive success were not necessarily doing better, suggesting other reasons for their decline doi.org/10.1111/jav....

🧪 I have a new TV offering: a 2-part Horizon special on BBC2 going out on 29th Sep and 6th October. It is called Secrets of the Brain. See See www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

A video is now available of the lecture I gave last week to the Linnean Society & British Ornithologists' Club in London, on woodland birds, Marsh Tits & Willow Tits (~45 mins): www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7HF... #ornithology #ukbirding @ukceh.bsky.social

Interesting(!) that these captive-bred ducks for sale in East Yorkshire seem to be unringed in very many cases. Baikal, Blue-winged, Green-winged Teals, plus Garganeys. Dread to think how many end up in the wild and in local bird reports... #ukbirding

New in #BirdStudy Density-dependence of White Storks in N Spain, but landfill closure could limit population growth. Long-term demographic dynamics of a White Stork population in northern Iberia reveal density-dependent effects www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1... #ornithology @btobirds.bsky.social

Humans perceive but animals don’t: pitfalls in using plasticine models for assessing biotic interactions buff.ly/7hcLYXx | #ProcB #Ecology

Me: Just use Arial, please. 11pt. Thanks. Office: HOW ABOUT APTOS? YOU'LL LIKE APTOS. IT'S NEW! Me: No. Just use Arial 11pt. I'm going to paste this text in now, just use Arial. Office: YAAAAY I MADE IT APTOS 6PT! Me: No, can we do that again? Office: LOOK I MADE IT TIMES NEW ROMAN NOW! AWESOME!

New in #BirdStudy Big numbers of released Pheasants & Red-legged Partridges in the landscape all year. Seasonal densities of released Common Pheasants and Red-legged Partridges on land used for shooting and on nearby non-release land in southern England: doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

Almost a third of UK Hawfinches used artificial birdfood when available, with implications for disease transmission. Investigating supplementary food use of UK Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes populations using DNA metabarcoding doi.org/10.1080/0006... #BirdStudy #ornithology

A pleasure to give a talk on Marsh Tits, Willow Tits & woodland birds to the @linneansociety.bsky.social & @britornitholclub.bsky.social in the fabulous surroundings of Burlington House, under the gaze of Linnaeus, Darwin & Wallace. Great audience Q & A. #ornithology

Creating woodland through natural processes: Current understanding and knowledge gaps in Great Britain Great to contribute to this #OpenAccess paper published in Ecological Solutions & Evidence: doi.org/10.1002/2688... #rewilding #forests #trees #nature @ukceh.bsky.social

Will they take their flags off the lampposts before going?

A few opportunities to learn about rare breeding birds and the work of the RBBP. If your bird club/wildlife group/RSPB group would like an online talk from our Secretary @markaeaton.bsky.social, get in touch.

Shifting baseline, where birding on Anglesey these days means that a shiny black bird with a downcurved bill isn't only a Chough...

New in #BirdStudy Loyal as a Robin: low frequency of extra-pair paternity in a European Robin Erithacus rubecula population in the natural forest of Białowieża National Park (Poland) doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

New in #BirdStudy Which future for the Red Kite Milvus milvus in Sardinia? An analysis of the future scenario of developing wind farms doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology #renewables

Maybe the last white butterfly I'll see this year. A Large White, I think. It's come the past 2 lunchtimes to nectar on late-flowering rosemary in the garden.

Vinous-throated Parrotbill is continuing to expand its foothold in Europe and has spread from Italy, prompting recent surveys in the Netherlands amid question marks surrounding how far the species can gain a foothold in the continent:

Interested in a PhD in ornithology? Funding available for projects at the interface of ecology, behaviour & evolution from Oct '26 working on long-term population studies of tits at Wytham, based in @biology.ox.ac.uk in the new Life & Mind Building in Oxford www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

End of 24th yr of intensive Marsh Tit monitoring at Monks Wood. Similar juv recruitment to recent years (<30), half the number when project started. Some deaths of long-lived adults (5-7 yrs old), but our oldest bird survives (10.5 yrs). Crossbills, Siskins, Redpolls, Skylarks overhead. #ornithology

New in #BirdStudy Which future for the Red Kite Milvus milvus in Sardinia? An analysis of the future scenario of developing wind farms doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology #renewables

New in #BirdStudy Loyal as a Robin: low frequency of extra-pair paternity in a European Robin Erithacus rubecula population in the natural forest of Białowieża National Park (Poland) doi.org/10.1080/0006... #ornithology

The biggest (by DBH) and oldest standing tree in Monks Wood. A veteran oak, seemingly a former pollard that used to be on edge of the wood, now surrounded by expanded woodland. Must measure the girth one day, must be 3-4 m.

The Wild Service trees (Sorbus torminalis) are in their spectacular autumn colours at Monks Wood. One of my favourite trees, and a speciality of the wood.

Can you hear the silence of the forest? With @richardkbroughton.bsky.social explore how our quietening woods relate to declining Marsh and Willow Tit populations In partnership with @britornitholclub.bsky.social 📍 Linnean Society, in-person 🗓️ 23 Oct | 6pm-8:15pm 🎟️ From £9.38 Book: buff.ly/WqWIDhm

The ghosts of Wolves, Elks, Crested Tits, Willow Tits, Aurochs and Lynxes emerging at low tide in long-lost Holocene forest...

Very nice @birdguides.bsky.social review of my Poyser monograph on The Marsh Tit & the Willow Tit www.birdguides.com/reviews/book... #ukbirding

Two firsts for #StKilda in one day is pretty special for a last day on island! A Cattle Egret flew over as the wagtail was being searched for, landed briefly, then appeared to head straight back out of Village Bay! @hebridesbirds.bsky.social @birdguides.bsky.social

The UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) has launched a new branding with a short film - see the video linked below:

Autumnal Monks Wood, and my first Fieldfares of the year, a flock of about 40 silently migrating over. The wood was jumping with Redwings, Song Thrushes, Robins and Goldcrests, most seemingly migrants, as they weren't there last week.

UK Government told to prepare for 2C warming by 2050 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

State-funded faith schools can turn children away because their families are the ‘wrong’ religion – or have no religion at all. That’s not right. Your donation will help end this discrimination and build an education system that’s fair for every child. 🧵

If you still have friends on Twitter, maybe this will convince them to junk it. The Muskrat openly bankrolling Tommy Ten-Names in the UK courts brings Lord Rothermere and the BUF to mind, only Rothermere wasn't the richest man in the world. Fascism always goes hand-in-hand with obscene wealth.

Frog you I won't do what you tell me.

JOB ALERT: We have an exciting Senior Research Assistant post available for a project tracking predators and prey simultaneously starting early 2026. We need someone with experience tagging adult raptors or wader chicks. This you? app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...

‪Keynote speech from @UK_CEH Prof David Roy discussing 50 years of butterfly data‬ ‪David’s talk included a video from Ernie Pollard of the Monks Wood Experimental Station who helped design and pilot the methodology in 1976!‬