Up to Trelleck Hill via Wentwood, Chepstow Park Wood, Ninewells, Beacon Hill, back via Whitebrook, the dismantled Tintern-Chepstow railway, etc. Highlights: Wood Warbler, Firecrest, Tree Pipit, Red Kite, Ringlet, Painted Lady, etc. #speedbirding #birdingbybike #gwentbirding #lowcarbonbirding

Ynysyfro WeBS: not much in the way of waterbirds but Red Kite flopping about and 2 male Red-veined Darter at Fourteen Locks on the walk over. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera, fortunately, one showed down to doughnut distance. #gwentbirding #lowcarbonbirding #gwentdragonflies

How Climate Change is Making Your Life More Expensive #climatecrisis HT @carbonbrief.org time.com/article/2026...

Second significant upgrade to the hardtail: RockShox SID SL 3P 100mm fork and Shimano XT rotors (180/160mm). Just tinkering from here on. #shiny #birdingbybike #speedbirding

Red-footed Falcon has now made it to Massachusetts (3,000 miles across the Atlantic) and Barbados (4,000 miles across the Atlantic),… yet to be seen in Gwent (zero miles across the Atlantic). 🤦‍♂️

cc @ruthjoneslabour.bsky.social

cc @ruthjoneslabour.bsky.social

cc @ruthjoneslabour.bsky.social

Siri, define ‘invertebrate’,… *boink*,…

Reform UK in govt would destroy UK's green economy "On whose behalf do they make this choice? Not their own voters, who strongly support renewables.... But its funders. 2/3 of the money it has received comes from very rich people with interests in oil and gas" www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

For anyone *still* on Facebook or Twitter/X.

Perfect day out: Western Reef Heron, a very impressive castle, an impromptu meeting of the early 1990s Hants/Surrey Border Twitching Team, a 160kW charger in the middle of nowhere, and three Osprey. #dirtytwitching #EVbirding #rarebirdsUK

Goldcliff Point 10:40-12:10 - an hour and a half humming 1980s TV theme tunes to myself as a series of showers scudded up the estuary, highlights: Sanderling dc, Storm Petrel dc (both close-in) and an adult BH Gull uc. #gwentbirding #TheATeam #Knightrider #TheMuppetShow

Marjane Satrapi (22nd November 1969 - 4th June 2026). #Persepolis #ChickenwithPlums #Embroideries www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

Goldcliff Point 10:10-12:10. Manxies - 56 dc + 5 uc; Storm Petrel (2+) - 1 lingering 10:10-10:20, 1 close-in dc 11:20, 1 vaguely uc/lingering at 11:25, 1 lingering just off point getting (briefly harrassed by HGs) at 11:35; Kittiwake 6 dc. Also Cuckoo, Swift in-off, etc. #gwentbirding

Vote for a bunch of talentless racists,… get bonus unelected talentless racists. #Reform #Wales www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

#dirtyoil #Shell www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Wales’ Net Zero Economy Now Worth £4 Billion businessnewswales.com/wales-net-ze...

Had a few days on Dartmoor, mostly just pottering around mires and rush pasture. Looked at *a lot* of Bogbean. Did not see Eristalis cryptarum. Did find a good few Microdon myrmicae/mutabilis (myrmicae on location/habitat). #syrphing #hoverflies #Dartmoor

Do you live in Wales? Did you vote for Reform? You OK with this? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A long account in @lrb.co.uk by Stefan Collini of the causes of what feels like a death spiral for UK Universities. Recent estimates are that UK HE contributes >£130Bn annually to the UK economy, resulting in >750 000 jobs across all regions of the UK lordslibrary.parliament.uk/higher-educa...

Quick stop at @nationaltrust.org.uk Piddledown Common, Castle Drogo. Bit ‘roasty’ but Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Garden Warbler, iced latte, etc. #flutterbies #butterflies

Cracking views of a 2nd cal-yr Goshawk along the towpath whilst rolling back from Cwmcarn. Initially on prey on the towpath, then sat just above eye-level less than 10m away, before turning and heading off through the trees with its Grey Squirrel lunch. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

Just been watching Sand Martins nesting in the wall of a dilapidated farmhouse, so, I guess, ‘house Sand Martins’. #gwentbirding

Siri, show me a graph of a nation in decline,… *boink*,…

Zone 2 up to Crickhowell along the canal. Highlights: 2-3 singing Firecrest, c.6 Red Kite, a drowned deer, a drowned Hedgehog, the loss of a cleat bolt, and a sighting of Miles Jupp/a chap who looked the spitting image of Miles Jupp. #warm #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

Another quick spin up to Cwmcarn: 3 Wood Warbler, 1-2 Tree Pipit and 6 drunk blokes along the canal. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

Large Red Damselfly exuvia and teneral in my experimental (all native plant) pond tubs. Must have bred in the first season of the tub’s existence. Two seen ‘in cop.’ earlier too. #win #gardensafari

Send help! I’m trapped in a bleak absurdist landscape draped in a shroud of existential uncertainty. #VisitWales

Shocking stats: Climate change is ALREADY costing the UK £60bn every year, or 2% of GDP Without climate adaptation, this could rise to £260bn (5% of GDP) by 2050, says CCC's Baroness Brown The committee says UK should invest £11bn a year to become more resilient

Late (and moist) Ynysyfro WeBS: 20-25 Swift, 150+ hirundines, Red Kite, 9 Greylag Goose (incl. brood of 5), 7 GBB Gull, and a furtive looking male Tufted Duck. #gwentbirding #moist

Over to Northwick and Aust ferry via Caldicot Moor, the Nedern, etc. Highlights: Red Kite at Caldicot Moor, some nice street art, and a bloke in Newport puking his guts up while his dog looked on with an expression of profound resignation. Lowlight: Bob’s gone! 😭 #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

Llandegfedd Res 10:15-11:30: Lapwing over S then SW, 2 Shelduck, Little Egret, etc. #gwentbirding

Highlights from a quick spin up to Cwmcarn yesterday afternoon: Wood Warbler, Redstart, Tree Pipit, Kingfisher, etc. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

“… like so often with Reform, there is something very fishy about the whole story." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Highlights of a day in the hills: a singing and displaying Whinchat with his missus, prolonged view of a Goshawk slowly going stratospheric, and a Green Hairstreak. #prettybirds #scarybirds #prettybutterflies

cc @ruthjoneslabour.bsky.social 👇

Goldcliff Pools: Wood Sand, LRP, 74 Blackwit (incl. colour-ringed bird), 3 BH Gull, Pochard, Marsh Harrier and a little bit of corvid/Avocet chick carnage. Also 3 Painted Lady, 2 Small Copper, etc. #gwentbirding

Time for Knepp to round up their avian litter and stick it back in their cages. And then they should be slapped with a massive fine.

Polite reminder: don’t vote Reform. #Farage #Trump #clowns

Someone should tell Farage that everyone thinks his best mate is a twat.

Quick look at Goldcliff Pools at HT: Great White Egret in full breeding plumage, Yellow Wag, 2 Pochard, a few hirundines moving through, zzzzzzz. #gwentbirding #yawn

This #InternationalDawnChorusDay I ‘ave mostly been listening to Wood Warblers, Firecrests and Tree Pipits. Over to Chepstow Park Wood and back via Caerleon, Wentwood, Earlswood and Itton Common. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

Goldcliff Pools this morning: male Garganey, 2-3 Yellow Wag (incl. a possible female Blue-headed), 13 Barwit, 6 Whimbrel, Snipe, 2 Pochard, 2 Teal, 2 Black-headed Gull, etc. Also 4 Porpoise ‘offshore’ and a Painted Lady. #gwentbirding

Up to Cwmcarn and back late afternoon yesterday produced: Kingfisher, Swift and Wood Warbler. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding

EXCL: Nigel Farage was given an undisclosed £5m by crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne shortly before announcing he would stand in general election @annaisaac.bsky.social reveals www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Brexit, Farage’s wet dream, 6-8% loss to GDP, £60-90 *billion* annual reduction in public revenues, investment down by 15-18%, trade with Europe reduced by 15%. observer.co.uk/news/opinion...

Another Reform UK update: three of Farage’s candidates on leaked BNP membership list. hopenothate.org.uk/2026/04/25/t...

I’m sure Starmer, Streeting, Healey, et al. are all over this,… Palantir employees are talking about company’s “descent into fascism”. cc @ruthjoneslabour.bsky.social arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...

Sluice Farm to mouth of Ebbw and Uskmouth to Magor Pill (not including Goldcliff Pools) late am/early pm: 40 Whimbrel, Red Kite, 4 Wheatear, Cuckoo, 3 Barwit, Common Sand, Turnstone, etc. #gwentbirding #birdingbybike #lowcarbonbirding