23 species on a solo #NewYearPlantHunt in west Norwich today. (I'm recovering from a Christmas lurgy, so kept away from the bigger pub-based plant hunt.) @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Headed home via a few goose fields ~ a huge cloud of flushed birds greeted us near Brancaster, so we carried on east. Came across one decent flock of 3-4000 birds ~ the only goose with a white cheek I could find was this smart Barnacle... @linnetincley.bsky.social #NorfolkBirding

89 species on my Great Yarmouth-Halvergate patch today including these three Scaup that flew in to Breydon before feeding voraciously, two Shore Larks were a surprise at North Denes, two Tundra Beans were with the Mute Swan flock opposite Stokesby

One or two more fungal beauties. Winter Polypore (Polyporus brumalis), Crimped Gill (Plicatura crispa) and something toothed that turned out to be (again thanks to our resupinate whisperer) not the usual Steccherinum ochraceum but the unusual Steccherinum bourdotii @norfolknats.bsky.social

The very beautiful structure (meruloid) of this resupinate found on a Pine log on Cawston Heath. Brilliantly determined by our resident resupinate whisperer. Glaeoporus taxicola. This being the fifth record on the Norfolk Mycota @norfolknats.bsky.social

Every record contributes to our understanding of the distribution and ecology of Britain's spiders and helps us evaluate their conservation status and needs. With a revision of the GB #RedList of threatened species coming up, it's all the more important the we have the best possible information.

🧵A very happy New Year to all our followers and a gentle reminder that it's never too late to resolve to submit your #arachnid records to the GB #Spider, #Harvestman and #Pseudoscorpion Recording Schemes via our #iRecord form: irecord.org.uk/enter-srs-re.... #NewYearsResolution #MakeYourRecordsCount

Happy New Year! Hope lots of you will join us for events in 2026. First up, we will welcome Helen Booth, who is going to share her extensive knowledge of Water Voles. Wednesday 14th January at 7:30 pm at Sprowston Diamond Centre, School Ln, Sprowston NR7 8TR (Change of venue from last year!)

Happy New Year to you all! Why not make it your New Year’s resolution for 2026 to take on a BBS square near you! You can find out how to take part in the survey and sign up to survey a square here: www.bto.org/get-invo... @btobirds.bsky.social @jncc.bsky.social @rspbscience.bsky.social

What makes a biological record notable? Join our FREE webinar on 2nd Feb with @ukceh.bsky.social introducing Record Cleaner – the tool using expert, local & taxon-specific rules to flag unusual records and improve data quality. 👉 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1976877829... @naturalengland.bsky.social

The 2026 #NewYearPlantHunt is now underway and the first records are already pinging in! Take a look at the Results map: nyph.bsbi.org/results.php There are going to be a lot more markers pinging in as the day goes on, each one showing where a plant or list of plants has been recorded. Let's go!

Seen a cool plant or insect and wondered how it helps conservation? 🌱 Learn how to make your wildlife sightings count with iRecord in our iRecord 101 online training on Thu 2 Apr 2026. Discover how everyday records power conservation. 👉 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1734876575... @ukceh.bsky.social

Happy new year all, thanks for all the records in 2025, a record breaking year , looking forward to all the 2026 goodies! 🥳 norfolkmoths.co.uk #norfolkmoths

Tomorrow looks like being dry and bright, if a little on the cool side. Anyone keen to chase away a few cobwebs or work off that one mince pie too many is welcome to join us at #BTO Headquarters in #Thetford at 1030 for the first of the #BSBI #Norfolk #NewYearPlantHunts!! 🌹🪷🌷🏵️

An amazing few days lichening on Blakeney Point: Bryoria fuscescens, Blakeney Point (only Nfk site), Absconditella delutula, Marsham Heath (1st Norfolk) and Coniocarpon cinnabarinum, Felbrigg Woods (only Nfk site).

Holkham NNR was pleasant today.

Chaenothecopsis retinens, Hull Wood (1st VC27); Cladonia callosa, near King’s Lynn (1st Norfolk); Thalloidima physaroides, Weeting Heath (first identified as Thalloidima sedifolium; only Nfk site); and Psora decipiens, Weeting Heath (only Norfolk site).

Some of the 2025 lichen highlights for me. Lichenomphalia hudsoniana, Roydon Common (1st VC28); Placynthiella oligotropha, Roydon Common (1st VC28); Usnea esperantiana, Ling Common (1st Norfolk); and Bacidina caerulea, Hull Wood (1st Norfolk).

Preliminary results from our county recorder suggest 2025 was a better year for butterflies in Norfolk. Who got the top marks Purple Emperor & Clouded Yellow - Excellant Swallowtail - Good Dingy & Grizzled Skipper - Steady 📷 PE Iain Leach BC

Quite a few of the new fungi I saw in 2025 were plant fungi so not particularly spectacular to look at. Three of these highlights all came from a January foray at Dillington Carr: Ionomidotis fulvotingens (new to Norfolk), Dadlinia decipiens and Phaeohelotium nobile. The other is Candelabra Coral.

2025 was a good year for psyllid recording. Each of these were new ones for me and the latter three were new to Norfolk: Cacopsylla mali on Apple, Homotoma ficus nymph on Fig, Euphyllura olivina on Olive and Camarotoscena speciosa nymph on Poplar. #NorfolkPsyllids

I've spent quite a bit of time during 2025 recording aphids. I found two of my target species, Crimson Tansy Aphid Uroleucon tanaceti and Giant Oak Aphid Stompahid quercus. Curry Plant Aphid Macrosiphoniella helichrysi was new to Norfolk, and Phylloxera glabra was also something I've wanted to see.

My 2025 diptera highlights: the hoverfly Microdon devius (Foulden), Flea Bee-fly Phthiria pulicaria (Wells), Saltmarsh Horsefly Atylotus latistriatus (Wells) and a tephritid Campiglossa plantaginis (Salthouse).

As it is the last day of the year, I'm going to indulge myself with a few 2025 highlights. These were my favourite beetles: Black Oil Beetle (Ringstead), Rhinoceros Beetle (Santon Warren), Red Poplar Leaf Beetle (Upton Fen) and Rose Chafer (Catton Park).

Was amazing to watch the Eastern Black Redstart at Sheringham trying to kill, swallow and digest a large Sea Slater Ligia oceanica on Sunday am #NorfolkBirding

October 25 and the weather started to change but before it did an unexpected visitor at Felbrigg NT in the form of a Cattle Egret. Stormy weather arrived, a seawatching event at Cromer was wet and windy. Fungi emerged in a variety of forms and the leaves began to fall.

A minute of Black-winged Kite at Ludham Bridge, Norfolk. 30 December 2025. After dipping on 29th, it was relief to see and have such nice views this morning. #Norfolkbirding #UKbirding

Video still from this morning’s excellent viewing of the Black-winged Kite. #norfolkbirding #ukbirding

Learn more about #diptera Funding available for Summer field meeting 2026 #fieldcraft #entomology #pollinators #foodwebs #detritivores Application deadline is 5th Jan. Email [email protected] @britentsoc.bsky.social @dipterists.bsky.social @royentsoc.bsky.social @flygirlnhm.bsky.social

Details have been confirmed for our next outdoor event - a walk at Holkham looking at lichens led by county recorder @robyaxley.bsky.social on Sat 10th Jan 2026, at 10:30. The meeting point is at maps.app.goo.gl/3PE3QESACzm9... Anyone with an interest in lichens is welcome (free, no booking needed).

Black-throated Diver (Loon) at Brancaster Staithe this afternoon. An amazing close encounter with a bird I've only ever seen distantly before today #UKBirding #norfolkbirding #ukwildlife #birds

Three eider were quite the inland surprise on Filby broad today! Found by @djlbirding.bsky.social when they drifted into view outta nowhere on the piece of broad I had just checked 😌🤨 (not that I’m salty)

A trio of lichens from Marsham Heath - Cladonia polydactyla with tiny red fruits; concentric circles of Rhizocarpon reductum discs on a flint; and what I think is Bacidina delicata on a rabbit bone.

Disappointingly, there have been very few Pale-bellied Brants around Cley this winter ~ only two for me so far (perhaps a reflection of - currently - lower than usual numbers of Dark-bellied Brents). This super adult has been around a while & I'm so happy about that. #NorfolkBirding #cleybirds 1/2

Some Tundra Beans from today. The darker backs, solid blackish tertials, the more extensive black in the tail and the head/bill shape are good pointers when distant or in a pink flock. #norfolkbirding

Whereas Cawston Heath is all about Cladonia, the adjacent Marsham Heath has large patches with abundant Baeomyces rufus. The higher amount of bare sand at Marsham may be a factor.

My 12 days of Xmas in moths 2. Gynnidomorpha permixtana Coast Straw. Riverside at Horning VC27 on 30/05/25 & retained because I thought it was a one or other of something else but it turns out to be a very rare moth pRDB1 feeding on Water-plantain with only 2 other sites in VC27 #teammoth

Another fleeting glimpse of a Firecrest, at Titchwell this afternoon. They've been showing very reliably there this winter #UKBirding #norfolkbirding #ukwildlife #birds

Certain to be far better but for now, a few record shots of todays Great Shearwater as it passed Waxham this morning. Hell of a buzz!.. #NorfolkBirding

A stunning Eastern Black Redstart at Sheringham (Phoenicurus ochruros) today. Form murimus/phoenicuroides/rufiventris. A paradoxus type Ist winter ♂︎. 10-12% of them have bright male plumage. 90% look like females. Birding Frontiers 2011 Thanks to the finder. @norfolknats.bsky.social

The drake Goosander at Bayfield from this morning. Brilliant to watch him fishing right in front of us, his peach-infused torso cutting through the clear water for small fry. We stood & watched him for a while as he drifted within yards of us. @linnetincley.bsky.social #NorfolkBirding #cleybirds

Good day for fungi at Felbrigg NT yesterday. Particularly like the fungi on sticks. Merry Christmas and I hope you enjoy the holidays. ☃️☃️☃️

More of the Sheringham 1w♂️ Eastern Black Redstart this morning. Looks like a classic phoenicuroides (and as with - every? - 1w ♂️ EBR in the UK, this is a "paradoxus"♂️, showing obvious ♂️ characteristics in 1w plumage ~ perhaps a trait of EBR). @linnetincley.bsky.social #NorfolkBirding #RareBirdsUK

Two reasonably distinctive Cladonias from Cawston Heath yesterday, both scarce in the East of England. Cladonia crispata (dark brown colour, open axils distinctive) and Cladonia cornuta (half corticate - half sorediate unbranched podetia, P+ red, neat basal squamules)

Normal for Norfolk #NormalforNorfolk #GreatTreesof Norfolk @norfolknats.bsky.social

Best of 2025:24. And finally... Eastern Nycteoline (Nycteola asiatica) at Terrington St Clement, 19/09/2025 by Ric Sandifer — new for Norfolk! #teammoth #norfolkmoths norfolkmoths.co.uk?bf=24231 Merry Christmas :) 🎄 🎄 🎄

Good heavens, we've already posted 59 #NewYearPlantHunt Group Hunts & details of more are pinging in every day! From Jersey to Stirlingshire, from Sheringham to Hayle and from Sligo to Sussex... check them out! It's also fine to head out with family & friends or go solo! bsbi.org/take-part/ac...

More Maroon Brittlestems, Psathyrella bipellis, on yesterday's bike ride to Old Buckenham. On the edge of a wood at Wattlefield, Norfolk. #Fungi #FungiFriends

Pavement Mushroom, Agaricus bitorquis. Found on my walk into Norwich city centre this morning. A nice pre-Christmas bonus. #Fungi #FungiFriends

Some other gravestone invertebrates from Earlham Cemetery: the spider Diaea dorsata, harvestman Rilaena triangularis, a helomyzid fly (Tephrochlamys flavipes I think) and a globular springtail, Dicyrtomina sp.