This cracking juvenile Long-tailed Skua was the undoubted highlight of a pelagic trip out of Wells yesterday. Certainly made all the effort feel worthwhile over recent summers! Superb comparison shots with the young Arctic Skua taken by Steve Cale #NorfolkBirding #UKbirding

I was enjoying the waders at Snettisham this morning when I heard Black Terns calling somewhere way up in the blue sky. These four barrelled down, circled the pits briefly, and then continued North along the shoreline. Migration in action! #norfolkbirding #ukbirding

Just back from leading the @oriolebirding.bsky.social Colombia tour where we saw 11 species of Antpitta and heard a further 2. A couple of new ones for me takes my personal tally to 32 - Crescent-faced being a personal fave! Only another 40-odd to see plus future splits 😂

Yesterday evening I had brief views of an adult Black Brant at Thornham Harbour in fading light. I went back this evening and thankfully it was still about and showing much better, close to the seawall halfway along to Holme. A smart bird! #norfolkbirding

I very rarely get close views of Great Northern Divers in Norfolk but this young bird that has been wintering in Gun Hill channel at Burnham Overy has been showing really well the last few days #NorfolkBirding #UKbirding

Drake Green-winged Teal at Holkham today. Presumably last years bird returning, though still a very nice surprise. In each of the previous zillion times I’ve looked through a flock of Teal thinking “be nice if there’s a Green-winged”, there hasn’t been!

Read our new blog post via the link below following an epic fact-finding trip to Peru. Look out for a new itinerary coming soon for late 2025 but you can pre-register your interest now by emailing us www.oriolebirding.com/birding-diar...

Our previous two-day attempt to see Red and White Antpitta had resulted in only brief glimpses so we decided to try again on the way back up the Manu Road today near Wayqecha. Bosh!!! 😮‍💨👌🏻 #PeruBirding

Really pleased to finally connect with Tiny Hawk yesterday on the trails at Manu Biological Station. It’s a species which has been on the list at most of the places I’ve been in the Neotropics but nobody ever seems to see it! A beautiful rufous morph juv too - and yes it is tiny!

Incredible session at an Andean Cock-of-the-Rock lek by Manu Road this afternoon. Have been to leks before where it’s semi-dark and the birds won’t perch in the open but this was different gravy! Lekking on branches at eye level just a few metres away 🤯

Pearled Treerunner has been pretty common in the mixed flocks as we’ve descended Peru’s Manu Road - a very smart little furnarid!

Gould’s Jewelfront jazzing things up at the lodge feeders during a rainstorm at lunchtime Manu Biological Station (Villa Carmen), Peru

Now down in the Amazonian lowlands of Manu staying at Villa Carmen, so it’s time for some crap photos of ant-things with sticks in the way. Antpittas hit 8 for the trip with the hyper-elusive Amazonian, but better views of White-browed, Chestnut-tailed and White-lined Antbirds

And here’s a few more random final highlights - Long-whiskered Owlet, Yellow-scarfed Tanager, Lulu’s Tody Flycatcher (these three all endemics) and Golden-headed Quetzal all along the Alto Mayo Road area. 4/4

Then there was the incredible Marvelous Spatuletail. Views down to mere inches thanks to the fantastic set up at the small private reserve, Al Refugio del Colibrí Espátula 3/4

Other antpittas were available… Here’s Rusty-tinged, Pale-billed and Chachapoyas, the latter being one of the ‘Rufous Antpitta’ splits. Both these last two were up in the cloud forest above 3000m and favour areas with stands of bamboo. Rusty-tinged was at Fundo Alto Nieva 2/4

The northern section of my Peru trip is done, now heading down to Cusco and the legendary Manu Road. Here’s a few highlights from the Pomacochas area from the last few days starting with the fantastic Ochre-fronted Antpitta at Fundo Alto Nieva 1/4

A solid start on antpittas on my trip to Northern Peru. Some at feeders, some still old skool ‘sit and wait inside a thicket and hope it perches in a spot where you aren’t blocked’! The latter being the case for Pale-billed, my most-wanted of the trip. What a monster!

Long day travelling and a delayed internal flight meant that there was only time for night birding on the first day of my Peru trip but we made it count - Long-whiskered Owlet in the bag!

The mighty Amazon from 33,000ft above Brazil, close to São Paulo de Olivença #aerialphotography

I think there’s something utterly fascinating about seeing familiar places from the air, especially when they are also birding spots! West Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly seen just now while en route to Peru #ukbirding #aerialphotography

The first proofs of my the second edition of my #Pantanal #wildlife travel guide are in... A heady, heavy few days ahead. Pantanal Wildlife/2 will be published by Bradt Guides in February. Jaguar photo by @oriole-ashley.bsky.social (who should be very pleased with himself).

So in answer to my own question, @howardvaughanbeb.bsky.social & myself have now had 5 different GWEs in D&G in the last 3 days. This bird, 1 Caerlaverock (where 2 reported), 2 Loch Ken/River Dee and 1 Crook of Baldoon. I must admit I’m surprised they’re that common here! #ukbirding #birdingScotland

Whoopers, Barnacles and Yellowhammers among the highlights while guiding with @howardvaughanbeb.bsky.social on the Solway today around Caerlaverock #ukbirding

Nice end to a days guiding for @oriolebirding.bsky.social Dumfries and Galloway with @howardvaughanbeb.bsky.social with a Great White Egret at Castle Loch (award winning photo attached) - not sure how regular they now are in this part of the world? #UkBirding