Continuing with our exploration of our 2026 holiday programme, and looking ahead to next September, we are excited to be returning to the world's largest wetland, in search of Jaguars and Hyacinth Macaws, Giant Otters and Giant Anteaters. wildlife-travel.co.uk/americas/pan...

The Gatwick Greenspace Partnership officers were recently joined by local Ecologist Laurie Jackson for a walk around Willoughby Fields Local Wildlife Site. Kevin Lerwill tells us more buff.ly/pbjBDtg

and, of course, we won't be missing out on the spring flowers of Aphrodite's island... for those who prefer a more botanical bent to their spring wanderings wildlife-travel.co.uk/europe/cypru...

Next spring, in addition to our regular orchid-focussed itinerary, @jameslowenwild.bsky.social and @wildlifeprecey.bsky.social are looking forward to spending a week enjoying Cyprus's amazing bird life. wildlife-travel.co.uk/europe/cypru...

BIG NEWS: For the first time in six years, Britain's rarest breeding bird has successfully nested in the UK! A pair of Montagu's Harriers have raised four healthy chicks, all of which have taken their first flights.

our 2026 holiday brochure is ready to download from our website. Have a read, and let's start making plans for the year ahead! wildlife-travel.co.uk/our-holidays...

Really looking forward to co-leading this relaxed Christmas break with @beardybirder.bsky.social If you're thinking about a different sort of Christmas this year, why not join us? #cyprus #wildlifetravelling

join us in Cyprus at Christmas for a week of blue skies and winter wildlife wildlife-travel.co.uk/europe/cypru...

Flowers of the Drakensberg We are extremely excited to be visiting the Dragon Mountains of South Africa in January, in the company of expert botanist and award-winning photographer Mayur Prag. mailchi.mp/e3944439750d...

today sees the start of Rabbit Awareness Week et voila, let's make ourselves aware of some rabbits #WildlifeTravelling

blue skies restored today, as we headed up to the top of Karwendel for our final morning in the #BavarianAlps turf studded with colourful alpine flowers; mountain butterflies included Dewy Ringlet, Alpine Grizzled Skipper; and an Alpine Chamois spotted from Germany's second highest cable car

some great plants today for our group in the #BavarianAlps

an exciting day up the Wankberg, with some great high mountain butterflies, Long-beaked Lousewort (any day with a new Pedicularis is a good day in my book) and a thunder storm #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps

a hot day out in the vastness of Murnauer Moos plenty of butterflies on the wing, with Dusky Large Blue, Geranium Argus & Large Heath amongst the stars Siberian Iris was plant of the day, and singing Common Rosefinch & Marsh Warbler kept the birders happy #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps

a day of cheeky choughs, spectacular views and architectural flowers up the Zugspitze and then a circuit of the Eibsee #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps

The Vercors lies in an area of high moth diversity, so I hoped for good trapping & day-fliers on the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social tour led by @sarahlambert7.bsky.social Highlights inc two species of lappet, Transalpine Burnet & lusty NB Bee Hawk-moth. More at www.jameslowen.com/blog-6-jun-2...

a relaxing wander out from our hotel today, up through the wooded hills to the sunny shores of Lautersee woods full of orchids, and some great butterflies to keep us entertained, including Lesser Marbled and False Heath Fritillaries #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps

Now this is one challenge I can really get behind!! Thanks #wildflowerhour, I’d LOVE to see everyone’s urban plants @wildflowerhour.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social

a room with a view the imposing sight of Karwendel, looming over the Alpine town of Mittenwald, home for the next week #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps Servus!

Orchids were a stand-out of the Vercors on the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social tour led by @sarahlambert7.bsky.social including many species rare in the UK. New spp. for me inc. Elderflower, Broad-leaved Marsh, Pale-flowered & the localised Spitzell's. See blog at www.jameslowen.com/blog-6-jun-2...

a trio of gruesome Aristolochias at Munich Botanic Gardens nachste halt, Mittenwald... #WildlifeTravelling in the #BavarianAlps

Plenty of exciting #butterflies on a recent #Vercors trip with @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social @sarahlambert7.bsky.social including my 1st Chequered Skipper (much-dipped in the UK!), Spanish Festoon, Provencal Fritillary & innumerable Clouded Apollo. For more, see www.jameslowen.com/blog-6-jun-2...

Our final day of the 2025 @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social Vercors trip found us at the Cirque d’Archiane enjoying a spectacular landscape with a dazzling array of raptors, butterflies and sometimes enigmatic Ophrys… With @beardybirder.bsky.social

A culmination of orchid madness on our final day in the Vercors with the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social group, with a bewildering array of Ophrys spp found @ Cirque d'Archiane, incl'g Late Spider, Woodcock, & Bee Orchid, plus a variety of intermediate forms/hybrids. With @sarahlambert7.bsky.social

NEW BLOG: Vercors. www.jameslowen.com/blog-6-jun-2... A photo-rich blog of some heady #WildlifeTravelling with @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social and @sarahlambert7.bsky.social in late May and early June. A superb, under-the-radar part of France that the #travelwriter in me will need to write about!

A day in the sultry Drôme Valley where dragonflies occupied our attention including many battling powder-blue Southern Skimmers and hordes of demoiselle damselflies, soundtracked by cicadas, plus very loud Marsh Frogs and Cetti’s Warblers… @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social @beardybirder.bsky.social

The beautifully ocellated Pearly Heath was one of the butterfly highlights today, during the ongoing @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social exploration of the Vercors. With @sarahlambert7.bsky.social

Rockrose Clearwing clearly responds well to lure, with 9 of these fab' little moths enticed into one trap in the Vercors today during the ongoing @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social trip. Not dissimilar to a leggy Red-belted Clearwing, but with wonderfully white marked underparts & red epaulets #TeamMoth

Memorable wildlife encounters in the Vallon de Combeau included a pair of Alpine Chamois on the scree slopes, a trio of confiding Alpine Marmots, and a host of Lepidoptera including Clouded Apollo and the high alpine moth Psodes quadrifaria @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social @beardybirder.bsky.social

The upper Vallon de Combeau was once more a botanical treasure-trove, personal highlights being my first Snow Gentian and Black Vanilla Orchid, Round-headed Orchid and the kaleidoscopic carpet of flowers on some steeper slopes… With @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social and @beardybirder.bsky.social

It was the day of the gentian in the upper Vallon de Combeau during the ongoing @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social Vercors trip, with the subtle mauve of Field Gentian, the sky blue wondrousness of Spring Gentian, and the eyeball-searing ultramarine of the diminutive Snow Gentian all vying for attention

Orchid madness continues apace in the Vercors, with the beautifully formed globe of Round-headed Orchid, the burgeoning buds of high altitude Black Vanilla Orchid (agg) & the crazy tails of Lizard Orchid all encountered with our @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social group With @sarahlambert7.bsky.social

A perfect day of flower-filled alpine meadows, trickling rivers, seepages and natural rock-gardens in the Vallon de Combeau. Hard to pick a botanical highlight - maybe the subtle but complex One-flowered Wintergreen… @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social with @beardybirder.bsky.social

Chequered Skipper was one of the star butterflies seen during the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social exploration of the lower Vallon de Combeau today. Absolutely fabulous little things.

Continuing orchid madness during the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social Vercors trip, with another amazing variety of species encountered in the Vallon de Combeau today, including the ever-lovely Lady's Slipper & the camply elegant Military Orchid. With @sarahlambert7.bsky.social

An early morning walk yielded a flowering Lizard Orchid and several Burnt Orchids. Later the Col de Pennes wowed us with a mix of dry grassland and woodland flowers, Short-tailed Eagle and argumentative Duke of Burgundy butterflies @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social @beardybirder.bsky.social

Just a small selection of the diversity of colour and form encountered amongst the 20+ species of orchid already recorded during the first few days of the ongoing @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social Vercors trip. Pure orchidophile heaven.

Day 2 leading the Vercors @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social trip produced an array of interesting flora & invertebrates, including a veritable swarm of day-roosting Owlflies & several svelte Heterogynis penella (comprising a new family for me), with Narrow Rose-banded Wave seen during an evening stroll

Another stunning day in La Nonières, filled with flowers, moths, two species of owlfly and the spectacle of a mass of butterflies puddling on nutrient-rich mud. Plus an evening walk with glowworms, a nest of bees and Spiny Toad… With @philsaunders.bsky.social and @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social

The puddling butterflies were wonderful in the Vercors today, with flocks of Black-veined Whites & a multitude of blues vying for attention, with @sarahlambert7.bsky.social

Vercors round two

Between the morning rain and the afternoon’s thunderstorm I meandered along the local paths Short spells of sunshine brought out a few nice insects - mostly day-flying #moths Looking forward to a second week of wildlife travelling in The Vercors with @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social

one last #MothBreakfast before we head home from the #Cevennes a crisp Spurge Hawk-moth, friendly Arctia tigrina, giant Four-spotted Footman and an ostentation of Giant Peacocks set us up nicely for a day on the rails. #WildlifeTravelling with @wildlifeprecey.bsky.social & @tomforward.bsky.social

gearing up for a travel day... a trio of Giant Peacock Moths to the trap overnight #WildlifeTravelling in the #GrandsCausses

just some of the orchid highlights of a week's worth of #WildlifeTravelling in the #Cevennes and #GrandsCausses, just in time for #WildFlowerHour with @tomforward.bsky.social and @wildlifeprecey.bsky.social

An excellent start to our final day with Spotted Sulphur before breakfast, then a scorching walk at Cirque d’Archiane where we found a cavalcade of Late Spider-orchids and butterflies including Pearly Heath and Provençal Fritillary… @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social @jameslowenwild.bsky.social

more from the Vallée du Cernon Empusa pennata, a conehead mantis Slender Scotch Burnet moths procreating a mixed pair of Small Heath and Pearly Heath, not procreating... and Meadow Fritillary #WildlifeTravelling in the #GrandsCausses