A recent trip to Sorrento, Italy saw us visit Mount Vesuvius where I was overjoyed to walk into 2 Alpine Accentors after missing them in the Pyrenees and Atlas Mountains over the years. Good numbers of Black Redstart were also present.

Of what use to be common wintering grounds for these species along the North Wales coast, there has just been one wintering Snow Bunting (Gronant) and one Shorelark (just outside the region in Cheshire) available this winter. Both really nice to catch up recently #Birding #Birds #UKBirding

A tour through Conwy County in North Wales this morning saw a few notable mentions inc. an unexpected Black-throated Diver from Rhos Point behind 7 Purple Sands roosting at high tide. A Surf Scoter and Slavonian Grebe were a touch distant for images but a Gt Northern Diver was close in #BirdingWales

North Point Pools gave me a rare opportunity to see multiple goose species within a pan of the scope. The most educational was the presumed Taiga Bean Goose which was only my second UK bird in 15+ years. Albeit on the small side, it seemed to fit the criteria for a small female. #RareBirdsUK #Geese

2025 ended in Norfolk with a day to hit a couple of smart, desirable targets: the over-wintering Black-winged Kite and the Eastern Black Redstart. Both showed rather nicely marking an excellent December for rarities in the UK #RareBirdsUK #Birds #Birding

Delighted to catch up with the first winter Lesser Yellowlegs @ the Clwyd Estuary this morning. Feeding mostly in the saltmarsh, and occasionally on the mudflats. A little smaller and more dainty than the Redshanks nearby. @alexhj.bsky.social @birdsinwales.bsky.social #birdingWales

A broken down car and I was left stranded in Rhyl - so I thought I'd try and pick up a few year ticks on the River Clwyd. A Lesser Yellowlegs was one of the last birds I expected to find in January socialising with the Redshanks!

Bonkers weather and road chaos scuppered a proper shot at a New Year bird race however great fun with Tony Kearney + Owen Parsons. A close Slav Grebe at the Spinnies NR was the highlight until @alexhj.bsky.social found a superb Lesser Yellowlegs on the Clwyd! cracking bird ☺️ #ukbiring #birdingwales

This striking drake Bufflehead made quite an early Christmas present marking a potential first for Wales when it was found briefly; a couple of weeks ago in Flintshire. Luckily it was refound 45 miles to the west on Y Foryd, near Caernarfon on Friday 19th staying put for all to connect #RareBirdsUK

Exciting to catch up with the drake Bufflehead that graced Point of Ayr #RSPB over high tide today. No sign of rings & behaving like a wild bird. @rspbcymru.bsky.social @britishbirds.bsky.social #birdingWales @birdsinwales.bsky.social @rspbburtonmere.bsky.social @penrhynbirder.bsky.social

A Lesser Crested Tern was a real turn up for a December after a 20 year absence in the UK. Ranging over 5 miles, it did give itself up after remaining fairly elusive on Saturday on the Exe Estuary, Devon. #RareBirdsUK #Birding

Fantastic to find 2 American Golden Plovers on Dale Airfield, Pembrokeshire, this afternoon. Such an elegant wader. #BirdingWales #RareBirdsUK

Our recent trip to Colorado gave us so many memorable experiences and one in particular was our encounter with this young American Black Bear at Dinosaur Ridge just a few feet away! #BlackBears #Colorado

I was pleased to find 3 Yellow-legged Gulls just outside of Chester, UK on the River Dee. Always a scarer species in the NW but July and August are a good time for passage. #UkBirding

The Woodchat Shrike at Daresbury, Cheshire showed nicely proving to be another good local bird of the Spring in 2025. #RareBirdsUK

My 4th Painted Lady butterfly this week in North Wales after recording none last year. I feel a UK influx coming on! #butterflies @savebutterflies.bsky.social

For World Curlew Day, it's worth highlighting the vulnerable Bristle-thighed Curlew we saw in Oahu, #Hawaii 2 years ago. With a very restricted breeding & wintering range, it was a joy to connect with 3 individuals at the end of our 3 week trip. #Birdsoftheworld #Birds @curlewaction.bsky.social

What a record... Black Kite over the landfill site at Wood Lane NR on Saturday. My first UK individual since the overwintering 2010 Welsh Gigrin Farm bird. Much welcomed just less than.40 min drive from home #RareBirdsUK #Birds

Great find by @saloplarus.bsky.social of Shropshire's first Black Kite at Wood Lane. It hung around the tip there late morning, often chased by 2CY Red Kites and Corvids. #shropshirebirding #ukwildlife 🪶

Quality views of Ring Ouzel locally in NE Wales over the weekend. This was promptly followed by a further 5 found during a Heathland BTO survey! #Birds

The rather splendid 1st-winter Bonaparte's Gull at Ogmore Estuary, well found by @tomwright1.bsky.social This is the third of this species I've seen at the site, albeit the first non-adult.

Hoylake…….another cold walk out to the low tide shoreline this morning was rewarded with this interesting looking drake Scoter….. general consensus is Black Scoter @patchbirding.bsky.social

This smart returning adult drake Greater Scaup gave nice views at Westport Lake in Stoke. Worth the effort to stop off on my way through! #birds

Earlier in the week, I took a visit to Carsington Water for some waterbird action - a nice first winter female Lesser Scaup providing useful ID comparisons with the local Tufties. Female Ring-necked Duck, GT Northern Diver, RT Diver and Willow Tit was best of the rest.

A local Glossy Ibis showed incredibly well in Rhuddlan, North Wales last weekend as it fed within a few feet of the admiring crowd of people #Birds #BirdingWales

An interesting Jackdaw in the garden yesterday showing features of 'Nordic' Jackdaw with a light collar on the lower neck. Despite the dark, gloomy conditions it did show a fairly pale neck/nape as seen in third image. Comments/info welcome #BirdingWales #Birds

Last weekend saw us take a trip to see the unprecedented record of the drake Spectacled Eider on Texel. Luckily we gave ourselves the weekend which saw us obtain some nice views after the fog had lifted. #Birds #Birdsoftheworld

A look back over 2024 and particular highlight was the fantastic trip to the Seychelles, Mauritius, Reunion and Rodrigues that saw us connect with every endemic bird possible with a snapshot of some of them below! #Birds #BirdsOfTheWorld

Boxing Day will be one to remember with a trip to Kent for a remarkable record of Yellow Warbler found on Christmas Eve. This rather vocal 1w individual remained dominant over the afternoon, often fending off Chiffchaffs and Firecrest who dared enter the alders it was feeding in #RareBirdsUK #birds

Strong northerlies today = some more Little Auks ! 98 came wanging past Beadnell Point this afternoon between 13:30 and 15:00. Never get tired of seeing these incredible little birds. #NEBirding #Northumberland

The Seychelles Sunbird is a small native passerine with a stable, healthy population across most islands. Easily photographed from our hotel balconies allowing close views! #Birdsoftheworld #Birds #BirdingSeychelles #Seychelles

This smart Ring-necked Duck has returned to St Helens in Merseyside, UK where it is currently with 50 Tufted Duck at Taylor Park. After some perseverance, the bird became a little more active in the late morning sunshine! #RareBirdsUK #UKbirding #Birds #Birdsoftheworld

#Dubai has one of the busiest airports in the world and longer connections can be utilised to visit local birding sites just a matter of a few miles away #birds #birdsoftheworld #UAE

Update by Dan Gornall on our Yellow-browed warbler project "1) Mainland Shetland > Carmel Head, Anglesey 2) Lundy > Lower Moors, Scilly. Especially interesting southerly re-orientation from Shetland. Many thanks to the ringers & birders who reported these". 📸Reg Thorpe. @alexanderlees.bsky.social

Taiga Bean Goose at Hay-a-Park, Knaresborough this afternoon @nybirdnews.bsky.social

Azores Gull still on roof at Newlyn Harbour 13:00 today. #UKbirding #CornwallBirds

Believed to feature in one in every 500-1000 birds, this American (Storm) Wigeon shows a striking and rarely seen plumage variation. It returned to the North Wales coastline and it was great to be on site in Rhyl when found over the weekend after spending some time in Anglesey last winter #Birds

Beautiful Northern Lights in North Wales this evening! #NorthernLights #AuroraBorealis

So glad I returned to @rspbengland.bsky.social Bempton_Cliffs today. Wanted better views and a photo of the Pale-legged Leaf Warbler. It didn’t let me down! Very happy! @birdguides.bsky.social @rarebirdalert.bsky.social #ukbirding #rarebirdsuk

I love it when a rarity just decides to pop up in front of you. Almost touching distance to this Arctic Warbler at Spurn today! #UkBirding #RareBirdsUK 🪶 @sophieshrike.bsky.social

A very skulky Pale-legged Leaf Warbler favouring the copses around Bempton RSPB car park this weekend sparking one of the biggest twitches of 2024. This is the first twitchable record for the UK. It now begs the question what else is capable of making the journey here from the far east? #RareBirdsUK

The superb #PaleleggedLeafWarbler showed well at times at Bempton RSPB Reserve today #UKBirding

The Grey Hypocolius has a restricted range in the Middle East and we specifically targeted this species on their wintering grounds in #Kuwait where they would gather in large flocks at dawn before dispersing out into the desert for the day! A true beauty! #birds #birdsoftheworld

White Terns were a common sight across the #Seychelles. We had close views of these angelic birds on their breeding grounds on Cousin Island #birds #birdsoftheworld

They’re here! And we need to check these autumn gems for colour rings. This via @birdguides.bsky.social www.birdguides.com/news/yellow-... #birdingScotland #UKbirding

A 90 min flight east of Mauritius, we recently travelled to the island of #Rodrigues for these two special endemics: Rodrigues Fody and Rodrigues Warbler where they were easily found and gave great views in the upland areas. #birds #birdsoftheworld

Throwback to my Svalbard work visit in April 2023 where birding was limited with seeing 10 high arctic species, however the scenery was spectacular and will be forever memorable #birds #birding

Pacific Golden Plover - a smart wader familiar in parks, open gardens and fields of #Hawaii. This was a bird we saw well just meters away from our feet in #Oahu as the birds were just returning from their breeding grounds.