Inchgarth still frozen over, but a male Brambling in my garden for the second time this week. No yellowhammers though, which I sometimes get in these hard weather conditions #birdingscotland

Inchgarth still frozen but worth the trudge through the snow today for a fly-through patch ✅ Little Egret, first record here since 1993 (when it was still a rarity in Scotland) #birdingscotland

Dead kittiwake at Inchgarth reservoir this lunchtime #birdingscotland

Always good to talk with Mark and the Out of Doors team. A short piece on Robins (European and American!) in the first few minutes of today’s programme #birdingscotland www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

I’ve AviListed the North-east Scotland checklist, available as a free Excel download (v10 January 2026) from the SOC site below. Don’t shoot the messenger (!) #birdingscotland www.the-soc.org.uk/pages/local-...

Woodcock and 2 Crossbills at Inchgarth today, almost worth falling flat on my back for 🙄 #birdingscotland

Still wondering whether to visit the new Fair Isle Bird Obs in 2026? We are open for bookings 20th May to 31st October. Although there is only limited availability in May-July, we still have plenty of space from early August until the end of October. Our website includes information on how to book.

Cattle Egret nr Tillyeve, feeding amongst Wagyu cattle north of Potterton this afternoon - still a rare bird in NEScotland #birdingscotland

Decent sprinkle of seabirds at Girdle Ness on Saturday afternoon included my latest ever Sooty Shearwater and Arctic Tern. The Little Auk tap has been set to “trickle” with 2 - hopefully there will be more to come in the next few days #birdingscotland @birdtrack.bsky.social

Great to catch up with the Eastern Common Nightingale at Rattray today. Found by Andy Carroll. #birdingscotland

There are lots of better photos around but my camera packed up at the worst possible moment! Anyway, the Eastern Common Nightingale at Rattray found by Andy Carroll today showed much better than this suggests! #birdingscotland

It was a tough few days weather-wise on Fair Isle but we still had a fantastic time at @fairislebirdobs.bsky.social thanks to the wonderful staff, with Minke Whale from the bedroom window and Mealy Redpoll in the obs garden #birdingscotland

Barred Warbler showed well mid-afternoon at Loch of Clickimin, taking an Angle Shades moth at one point. The Rosefinch also put in appearance later on but light too poor for photos by then #birdingscotland

After a long wait in the drizzle we got fantastic views of the Siberian Thrush at Asta today #birdingscotland

The 2 Brent geese at Girdle Ness this morning came out of the water briefly in Greyhope Bay to show dark bellies before flying south - we get both of the main flavours here but DB the scarcer. The wandering Glaucous Gull also put in an appearance #birdingscotland

A late Copper Underwing sp. in my Aberdeen garden overnight was a surprise, not a particularly obvious specimen. All previous records in my garden have been Copper Underwing - only one previous Svenssons in VC92 #teammoth

Well Merveille du Jour finally crossed my peepers today thanks to @laurasharp.bsky.social and Helen Rowe, also Ypsolopha parenthesella and a stunning (and wonderfully named) Carabus problematicus beetle #teammoth

A few from Ayrshire VC75 over the last few days, Pandemis cinnamomeana was new for me, with other highlights Dark sword-grass, Rusty Dot Pearl and the ever-lovely Canary-shouldered Thorn #teammoth

The Western Sandpiper at Maidens harbour was a bit more distant today than on my previous visit in June. Essentially now in adult winter plumage #birdingscotland

41 years since I last saw Marsh Sandpiper in the UK, it’s a rare bird in Scotland so I was pleased to see the Musselburgh bird today, along with a host of other waders inc. Pec, Wood and Curlew Sands, 2 Spotshanks and 3 Little Stints including a Norwegian c-ringed bird #birdingscotland

Footage taken by my daughter of a Cheetah taking down a Thomson’s Gazelle in the Serengeti last week - the gazelle made a fatal error. The day before we’d seen another Cheetah take an African Savannah Hare #mammals

2025 has definitely been the Year of the Cat for me - a very successful trip to India in March with 4 Tigers followed by northern Tanzania last week producing 5 Cheetahs (inc 2 successful kills), 5 Leopards, 50+ Lions and a Serval #mammals

Shuttle shaped Dart in the garden, only a handful of prior VC92 records. Last years run of Copper Underwings (just one prior VC92 record) looks to be repeating with 3 last night, a very recent colonist up here #teammoth

This is why we have Buddleia in the garden - first garden record of Comma today. Used to be mega here in NE Scotland but has been increasing in recent years #butterflies

Still some availability for this October! #birdingscotland

Getting towards the end of Dark-bordered Beauty season on Deeside, but we still managed to find a rather faded male today. Also White-line Dart, and there were a few Chevrons and Anomalous (Anomali?) amongst the numerous Antler moths. A smart Batman Hoverfly too #teammoth

A few more from yesterday morning on Upper Deeside, Neglected Rustic, Suspected, Angle-striped Sallow and Swallow Prominent #teammoth

Ear, ear! 4 different Ear Moth agg. specimens from Upper Deeside this week, on range they could be Large, Crinan or Ear #teammoth

The pewter-like quality of Anomalous is really unusual and well, anomalous…. #teammoth

Flounced Rustic and a very dark Garden Dart both new for my garden in Aberdeen VC92 overnight #teammoth

Pool Frog = cool frog! And the Southern Migrant Hawkers were a very welcome surprise, one of 5 new Odonata species for me last weekend in Norfolk. Many thanks to @andymus.bsky.social for hosting.

Lots of cool moths in Norfolk and Staffs over the last few days, thought this comparison of Svensson’s Copper Underwing (l) and Copper Underwing (r) might be interesting #teammoth

Very much a NE Scotland speciality (although there’s a record from Stoke Holy Cross in Norfolk), Catoptria permutatellus Scottish Grass-moth was new for my garden in Aberdeen yesterday #teammoth

Beauty and the Beast! Great day helping with Dark-bordered Beauty surveying on Deeside, took over 5 hours to decant the traps with 8 DBB found amongst lots of other good stuff, and a flyover sea eagle #teammoth

Moth and butterfly event this Saturday at Braemar - free to attend but booking essential via the Eventbrite link below #teammoth www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/go-wild-fo...

Got the c-ring of the summering Whooper Swan at Inchgarth today during the @btobirds.bsky.social WeBS. Just my 2nd Dark-green fritillary for the site at new scrape (which also had Golden-ringed Dragonfly last week) #birdingscotland @britishdragonflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Name that plume! Yesterday Gillmeria pallidactyla (Yarrow Plume) and this morning Stenoptilia bipunctidactyla (Twin-spot Plume) Aberdeen VC92 #teammoth

Beautiful Carpet was a new and much-wanted moth for me last night in Aberdeen; Gillmeria pallidactyla and Scoparia subfusca were also new. 2nd Muslin Footman of the week too, things are definitely perking up #teammoth

As usual, FIBO will be at the @globalbirdfair.bsky.social‬ at Rutland this weekend. Why not come along and hear about the new observatory building and some special offers. There are vacancies for this autumn and bookings for 2026 open for 'Friends of Fair Isle' on 1st August.

Strewth! Australian adventive Ruddy Streak (Tachystola acroxantha) last night inside the front door, second record for me here in Aberdeen #teammoth

Scanning wires for Corn Buntings near Crimond this afternoon to give @rogbroadbent.bsky.social a year tick, I found the anti-Corn Bunting - a Bee-eater present for just over 10 minutes #birdingscotland

A count of 8 (eight) Common Sandpipers on the reservoir boom this morning easily beat my previous record here of 5 in 2007. The summering (white-ringed) Whooper Swan is still present, and a singing Collared Dove was my first since March last year #birdingscotland

Acentris ephemerella was new for the garden overnight, it has rather a patchy distribution in Scotland #teammoth

Purple Clay was nfg last night and just the second Green Carpet in the garden (VC92) #teammoth

You can now make a late autumn visit to the newly opened Obs with a special deal with prices from £99 per person per night (full-board, en suite accom) during the whole of Oct 2025. 25% discount for 7-13 nights 33% discount for 14+ nights See all our prices at www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk/prices

Great views of the Maidens Western Sandpiper this afternoon which seems to have shaken off whatever was ailing it a few days ago. Bonus extralimital sighting of @twmar.bsky.social too!

I was calmly watching my 4th Broad-billed Sandpiper on the Ythan this morning when news of this broke! Like Nick, I missed the 2013 bird so it was good to be in the right place at the right time for this one #birdingscotland