I am grateful to Dan at Sunday Times magazine for choosing me to illustrate Mr Clarkson's piece on his farmland birds. We certainly do need to do more to protect them... #ukbirding

At least one Zitting Cisticola still about south of Walberswick - no others seen in a couple of hours. Silent and elusive but now fully moulted at least and plumage looking quite dark and richly hued #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Hume's Warbler in Southwold churchyard brought up 220 for my patch this year, then almost immediately went to 221 with a Richard's Pipit that flew south calling - a scarce bird nowadays #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Boom! All the 'red-tailed shrikes' done in Suffolk this year with Isabelline Shrike at N Warren this afternoon. Made sweeter as it is a grip back for me too, having missed the previous birds. No matter what anyone says to me, I can't see such pale birds not being isabellinus

An early walk at Walberswick in the sun before the rain this morning gave another burst of views of the Zitting Cisticolas. If trying for them please do not traipse across the marshes and view from the banks #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

3 Zitting Cisticola showed distantly at Walberswick this morning (poss 4); at least 2 in moult - record shots only

Brown Shrike, Upper Hollesley Common this afternoon. My fourth new bird for Suffolk this year - all since May: Bridled Tern, Zitting Cisticola, Turkestan Shrike and now this. Unfortunately, it kept its distance from me

A surprisingly glorious day on the Suffolk coast for my @naturetrek.bsky.social day walk ended with ace views of the Turkestan Shrike on Dunwich Heath #ukbirding

Lapland Bunting, Dunwich yesterday. A scarce migrant through Suffolk (rarely over winters), Lapland Bunting numbers have varied from 6-21 (av. 11) in the county over the past 10 years and is now hard to connect with, so it was nice to find this #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Turkestan Shrike at Dunwich Heath this afternoon; a real stunner #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Some better views and photos of the male Turkestan Shrike on Dunwich Heath this morning. Windy conditions not helpful #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Turkestan Shrike - ad male, Dunwich Heath this afternoon. An excellent bird and find; photos in gloomy light not the best and was a little elusive early evening #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

A handful of very poor pix that show the juv Sabine's Gull at Benacre Boad this morning - my 210th species on patch this year #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Benacre Broad has been very good recently and this morning, as well as 19 species of wader, @david-walsh.bsky.social picked up a 2cy male Hen Harrier that eventually flew over our heads. Missing an inner 'finger' #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

On my first visit to Easton Bavents for a while a juv/1cy Red-backed Shrike was a nice find and a good way to bring up 200 species on my patch for the year. Always a little distant for photos...

It has been a while since I saw my last UK Barred Warbler - Southwold 2019 - so it was great to get such good views of the 1cy at Kessingland this afternoon #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

An educational variety of Dunlin at Aldeburgh yesterday included a couple of juvenile arctica and a worn adult alpina-type #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

A new image of the Zitting Cisticola at Walberswick - still a little distant but did sit out this morning before the wind

Well I wasn't expecting to see Zitting Cisticola on the patch when I set out this morning - 1 km south of Walberswick - record shots #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

Of the four juvenile Caspian Gulls at Southwold harbour this afternoon this one was the most intelligent, having learnt how to catch the crabs with a line

This afternoon, the fifth Caspian Gull at Southwold harbour this week was a juvenile with a yellow ring from De Kreupel, NL

My first juvenile Caspian Gull of the autumn at Southwold harbour this afternoon. Elusive at first as it fed abut the revetement for starfish, it eventually gave good views - hopefully it will hang about...

A comparison of three species of juvenile tern at Minsmere today: Arctic, Common and Sandwich #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

I am really pleased to be given the co-leader slot on Mariposa's exciting Butterflies of the French Alps tour in July 2026. www.mariposanature.com/tours/butter...

The Collared Pratincole at Aldeburgh was my fourth for Suffolk, having found two of them. It showed well, but heat haze has ruined pix #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

A few shots of some of the nominate limosas on Cley this evening, including "Anouk", a regular returning♀️from Welney. All adults, all already dropping grey winter feathers into the remants of summer feathers. Breeding failure at play for early numbers here. @linnetincley.bsky.social #NorfolkBirding

Minsmere has been good for adult limosa Black-tailed Godwits recently, with a 'head-start' c-ringed male, but others too - often distant on west scrape. Sometimes a female (as here), but I am less confident on ID of these...

Entering the public hide at Minsmere, I found that the Roseate Tern had just flown off! Two minutes later a Bridled Tern flew south low over the scrape; having watched it reach the sluice I remembered I had my camera, which was on the wrong settings - hence crap pix #ukbirding #suffolkbirding

As ever, late to the party, yesterday was my first visit to Long Nanny to take in the Arctic Terns and American Black Tern - we had to wait 2.5 hours for the latter to fly in off the sea #ukbirding

This 2cy fm Red-footed Falcon in the 5km radius patch is species 184 for the year; it is slim pickings from here on - getting to 200 will be tough

It's been a hectic few days birding on the Suffolk coast: found Temminck's Stint on patch, then R-n Phalarope, Black-winged Stilt, and today 4 Bee-eater over Southwold and 4 ace Red-footed Falcon at Carlton that occasionally came closer

Few things please me more than a reeling Grasshopper Warbler, especially as my ears can't pick them up from more than 100m nowadays, so to have 6 'on patch' currently is rather nice

It's not often you get your bird illustrations in a Netflix series, but mine are on the cover and inside a book used in the excellent new Netflix series 'The Residence'. Commissioned a while ago and now here they are used as a prop. (Not a real book, I hasten to add)

A very early singing Willow Warbler was surpassed by a cracking adult male Black Redstart at Southwold today - behind the Harbour Inn

The excitement of a White-tailed Eagle over the house this afternoon was not diminished by the probability of it being a tagged IOW bird; pestered by a Peregrine for a while before heading off north #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

It's not hard to guess what one of my highlights of guiding a N Norfolk group for Naturetrek was...the lovely 1w Glaucous Gull at Hunstanton, still enjoying the seal carcass @naturetrek.bsky.social

A morning of cold easterly winds and gloom was brightened by a 2cy Black Redstart along the seafront at Southwold today #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

In strong winds, good numbers of gulls were at Minsmere this morning. At least 28 Caspian Gulls on the scrape and south levels (likely 30+) included many 1-w, but David talked up a 1-w Glaucous Gull, which he duly found on the south levels - scarce in Suffolk nowadays #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

A long walk on my Southwold 'patch' this morning was productive, with almost a touch of spring as several species in song or displaying: Firecrest, Woodlark and Dartford Warbler all within 5km of home... #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

2cy Russian Common Gull still at Sizewell yesterday - plus a possible 3cy; on a lovely sunny morning, displaying Woodlarks in local onion fields were in fine voice #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

Very happy to see this nice 1w Russian Common Gull at Sizewell today. All features tick the right boxesfor heinei: white head and body with minimal crescental marks; unmarked uptcs and tiny spots on undtcs; bright bill and black tip. I have spent years looking for a 1w looking like this in Suffolk

Cracking views of Spotted Redshank as I north of Dunwich this morning with an old friend, Mark Smith; over 61 Snow Bunting were good, but not as good as these superb waders #suffolkbirding #ukbirding

First birding and post of 2025 includes Taiga Bean Geese at Thorpeness and Hooded Crow at Snape. The way things are going they will both be lumped - not with each other of course...

My 5km radius Southwold patch keeps on producing, with two Scaup on Covehithe Broad being my 215th species for the year - hopefully I still have time to add to it...

I found out today that this juvenile Mediterranean Gull on Covehithe Broad, Suffolk, on 26 July was seen and photographed yesterday on Sao Miguel, Azores, with a Ring-billed Gull. A pretty neat record...

A November Hoopoe at Thorpeness today. Having looked for it and failed near Sizewell, it was great to see it on the beach just north of Thorpeness

Cracking views of male Amur Stonechat at Trimley yesterday; a bit of a chamaelon with upperparts being earth brown or warm, rufous cream depending on light; moult has revealed black centres to upper tail coverts - call distinctly different. Bird of the year for me!

The flash floods in Spain are no doubt tragic for all those involved, but if you look at Google maps and the intensity of the farming in the region it is not surprising.

Today at 16:00 Radio 4's Last Word will feature Steve Piotrowski's obituary. Steve was an amazing birder and well-known for so many positive bird-related projects in Suffolk (including Barn Owls). It is a fitting tribute to him to be featured on Last Word - www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand...

An interesting greyish and whitish yellow wagtail found late yesterday on the north fields at Walberswick. Seen and heard distantly - actually found by raspy call. Hope to get out after work later today