Inhoudsopgave van February 2016 - Bird Watching

LAST AUTUMN, I was at the Houses of Parliament for an RSPB reception. The highlight was hearing young birder Findlay Wilde’s impassioned plea, to the gathered politicians and dignitaries, for urgent action to address the many threats facing our wildlife, including the ongoing persecution of Hen Harriers by shooting interests. Findlay is among the young birdwatchers and naturalists featured in our 16-page Bird Watching: The Next Generation section. It would be wrong to be complacent, and a huge amount of work needs to be done, but the message that comes across loud and clear is that there’s no shortage of knowledge, passion, energy and determination regarding conservation from birders under the age of 30. One species that will need the support and advocacy of future generations is the Goshawk, and…

OFTEN THE COLDEST month of the year for many of us, February is a time for catching the odd bird drawn inland by the freeze. But it is also a good time to enjoy the last real month of winter, when the leaves are yet to burst forth and start to mask the woodland favourites from view. Wrap up warm and get out there! RARITY RATINGS Common, widely distributed Localised – always a treat Very scarce or rare MARSH TIT Over most of England and Wales, the Marsh Tit is the commoner of the two very similar brown tit species. Like the Willow Tit, though, they are also in decline. A woodland (rather than marshland) bird, Marsh Tits are best told from Willow Tits by their vocalisations, particularly the distinctive…

“Goosanders can be gregarious in winter, migrating from the breeding grounds and gathering on deep freshwaters in large numbers for communal fishing” A FEW YEARS AGO, Goosanders bred on the Little Ouse, the river that borders the BTO offices in Thetford, Norfolk. With their sharp, serrated bills these specialist fish-eating ducks looked sleek and predatory and exotic next to the fat dabbling town Mallards, and were a welcome addition to the local river fauna. Goosanders breed on lakes and larger rivers in forested areas; it’s very unusual to see breeding birds in lowland England, but clearly the large area of Thetford Forest was to their taste. They need forested areas because they nest in holes in mature trees, up to 15m high. This must be quite a drop for the…

“Our staked out first target of Peregrine fell very quickly with a pair already back near their nest site on the edge of the city” JUST DON’T MENTION OTTERS. Once again, as always, the turn of the year saw me grumpily complaining about the absurd amount of fireworks. Don’t these people know there are New Year Bird listers trying to sleep? This year, there was a bit of a twist as my children, Ed (14) and Jasmine (16), would be joining me on ‘The Day’, birding around the Peterborough area. Neither are what you would call ‘birders’, but they both greatly enjoy wildlife in all its forms. I mention Ed’s name first because he would start the day with me, heading out on our bicycles to Ferry Meadows CP while…

NEARLY 800 PROTECTED birds of prey have been illegally killed in Scotland since 1994, according to a review by RSPB Scotland. Most of the deaths occurred in areas associated with game shooting, especially upland areas used for driven grouse shooting, with deaths being caused by shooting, poisoning and trapping. Among the deaths were more than 100 Red Kites and 10 White-tailed Eagles, along with numerous Golden Eagles, Hen Harriers and Goshawks. As the report deals only with incidents confirmed to have been caused by criminal activity, it is likely that the true figures are higher. There was some slight good news, however, in that the number of cases in lowland Scotland seem to be reducing. 28: the combined number of domestic cats and dogs killed by poison bait set out…

UK BACKS EU DIRECTIVE The RSPB has welcomed an announcement that the UK government does not want to renegotiate the EU Nature Directives which have done such a good job of protecting Europe’s wildlife and biodiversity. In a statement given to a meeting of the EU Environmental Council, UK Environment Minister Rory Stewart said that biodiversity was at the core of our society and economy, and called instead for better implementation of the directives across Europe. BEST LADE PLANS As part of their ongoing successful relationship with the RSPB, quarrying firm CEMEX UK has handed over its 70-hectare Lade Pits site to become a home for nature. Work began on restoring the quarry, situated next to the existing RSPB Dungeness reserve in Kent, during its working lifetime, as part of…

“With these species, the shape of the head and length and shape of the bill can be strong clues to the bird’s ID” HEADS AND TAILS Apart from ducks, many surface-diving, fish-eating birds, out of breeding plumage, have pretty nondescript plumage. Most are dark above and pale beneath. With essentially similarly coloured birds, you need something to cling to for the first stage in identification. Concentrate on the head and tail ends. The shape of the head and the length and shape of the bill can be strong clues to the bird’s ID. For instance, cormorants have ‘blunt’-ended, hooked bills; grebes have pointed, dagger like bills; Divers have longer, dagger-like bills. The tail end is also significant. Cormorants have short, but noticeable, tails, which rest on the water surface. Grebes…

HOW MANY PENGUINS? Top marks to anyone who sits and counts all these birds! The man who took this photo, travel industry expert and old friend of Bird Watching, Keith Betton, estimates that there were as many as 250,000 King Penguins in this colony, in Salisbury Plain, South Georgia. Keith’s trip took in the Falklands and Antarctica, resulting in lots of photos of incredible wildlife, but it was just the vast numbers of penguins – and how close they all are to the camera, that really caught our eye.…

Wildlife author James Lowen rounds up the non-avian highlights of February, from moths to Mountain Hares. See p12 Author and bird guide Dominic Couzens asks why we overlook the imposing Great Black-backed Gull. See p30. Connor Mark Jameson shares his passion for Goshawks. Just how are they doing after years of persecution? See page 39. Ian Parsons delves among the reedbeds to look for that skulking squealer the Water Rail. Find out all about it on p62. Urban Birder David Lindo reports from Paris, where rare birds are as big a draw as fine food and exquisite artwork. See p68. Optics expert David Chandler has been testing Leica’s 1.8x extender. Does it deliver bang for your buck? Find out what he thought on p72.…

PINE GROSBEAK There have been just 12 accepted UK records of this spectacular northern finch. Most are from north-east England or Shetland, where the most recent turned up at Urafirth, Mainland in November 2012, later taking up residence at North Collafirth on the same island through most of February 2013. The Arctic-breeding beauty was noticed by a garden birdwatcher, who took a snap of it and showed a friend, and the rest is history... SLATY-BACKED GULL With just one accepted record, this is a seriously rare species. The only accepted bird was a sub-adult found at Rainham Marshes RSPB, on the outskirts of London, on 14 January 2011. It goes to show how even urban sites can produce spectacularly god rarities. And surely we are due another… HOW DID WE…

Find the location closest to your destination and add or subtract the hours and minutes from the high tide time at London Bridge, below. SOUTH WEST Weston-Super-Mare(+5:05)Barnstaple (+4:30)Newquay (+3:32)Falmouth (+3:30)Plymouth (+4:05)Torquay (+4:40)Bournemouth(-5:09)*Portland (+4:57)St Peter Port(+4:53)Swanage (-5:19)*Portsmouth (-2:29)Southampton (-2:53) SOUTH EAST Ryde (-2:29)Brighton (-2:51)Eastbourne (-2:48)Dungeness (-3:05)Dover (-2:53)Margate (-1:52)Herne Bay (-1:24)Southend-on-sea (-1:22)Clacton-on-sea (-2:00) EAST ANGLIA FelixstowePier (-2:23)Aldeburgh (-2:53)Lowestoft (-4:23)Cromer (+4:56)Hunstanton (+4:44) WALES Colwyn Bay (-2:47)Holyhead (-3:28)Barmouth (-5:45)Aberystwyth (-6:11)Fishguard (+5:44)Swansea (+4:42)Milford Haven (+4:37)Cardiff (+5:15) NORTH WEST Whitehaven (-2:30)Douglas (-2:44)Morecambe (-2:33)Blackpool (-2:50) NORTH EAST Skegness (+4:29)Grimsby (+4:13)Bridlington (+2:58)Whitby (+2:20)Hartlepool (+1:59)Blyth (+1:46)Berwick (+0:54) SCOTLAND Leith (+0:58)Dundee (+1:12)Aberdeen (-0:18)Fraserburgh (-1:28)Lossiemouth (-2:00)Wick (-2:29)Lerwick (-2:50)Stromness (-4:29)Scrabster (-5:09)Stornoway (+5:30)Ullapool (+5:36)Gairloch (+5:16)Oban (+4:12)Greenock (-1:19)Ayr (-1:44)Campbeltown(-1:12)Girvan (-1:51)Kirkcudbright Bay(-2:25) IRELAND Londonderry (-5:32)Belfast (-2:47)Donegal (+4:20)…

“It is a verdant ribbon sandwiched between industrial and residential developments” NATURE RESERVES get their fair share of problems. Inadequate and unreliable funding, vandalism, invasive species and pollution are constant bugbears for those wardening them. Near my home in Bristol, a unique reserve faces a unique threat. Portbury Wharf Nature Reserve, managed by Avon Wildlife Trust (AWT), doesn’t carry the same cachet as famous birding sites such as Fair Isle, Spurn Point or Cley, but is arguably as significant as them all. Across the 117 acres of wetland, grazing marsh, hay meadow and mature hedgerows, Water Voles are now thriving in the drainage ditches, while volunteers who have laboured for several years at the encroaching scrub have been rewarded with a rich patchwork of wildflowers. Birds such as Ring-necked Duck,…

A CHAMPION SPORTSWOMAN and conservationist is aiming to come from Russia with swans, equipped only with a parachute wing and a small propeller engine. Sacha Dench, a former free-diving champion, and WWT conservationist, will be using the paramotor to follow the migration route of the Bewick’s Swan all the way from the Russian Arctic to the UK, in an attempt to both study the birds and raise awareness of their decline. Beginning in September 2016, Sacha and her team will be trailing the birds on their 4,500-mile journey, exploring new research opportunities, from an aerial survey of the breeding grounds to documenting the turbulence caused by wind turbines. Sacha says the expedition is a chance to unite people from different cultures, tell them the swans’ story, and invite them to…

“It was at this point that the Swift nearly parted my hair. We watched it for 10 minutes going so fast and close I could hardly get my bins on it” IT’S STILL AS prevalent as feral pigeons in Trafalgar Square. It doesn’t matter that, 10 years after her passing, one of the world’s top 10 listers is female, nor that many top writers, bloggers, conservationists, film makers and ornithologists are women. Birding is blokey. It’s as oriented towards male values as motor racing, football and hiding from the wife in the shed. I’ve noticed that many middle-aged birdwatchers drift away from ‘twitching’. It could be they want to find their own rarities, or that they love the solitude of patch working or the joy of seeing new behaviours rather…

LEK Deriving from the Swedish word for ‘play’, lekking is a type of mating behaviour in which males gather en masse to indulge in competitive displays, hoping to entice females to mate with them. These displays range from the wide-ranging and noisy ‘exploded leks’ of the Kakapo (an extremely rare nocturnal parrot in New Zealand), where the birds are out of visual range of each other but can still be heard, to the more familiar ‘classic’ visual displays of species such as the Black Grouse and Capercaillie. These visual displays themselves vary widely from species to species, from the colourful and flamboyant displays of the Ruff, to the jumping of the Great Snipe, but all give the choice of mate to the female. Leks can be violent places for males,…

IN SOME RESPECTS, winter isn’t the easiest time of year to start creating a wildlife garden. The days are very short, meaning that all work has to be done at the weekend, and of course Christmas brings work of all sorts to a grinding halt – not that I’m complaining! But there are advantages, too, not least that the lack of leaves allows you to get a good look at exactly what’s there and what isn’t. I took Liz and Adrian’s advice from our last issue and created a scale plan of the garden, including all the main features – I’m now in the process of adding an inventory of the plants we already have, so that we can decide exactly what to keep. There’s a decent-sized patch of honeysuckle,…

SITE 5 ANGLESEY MILES ON FOOT: 2 TIME: 1-2 HOURS BEDDMANARCH BAY IS the northernmost section of a twisting, at times very narrow, tidal channel, which separates Holy Island, the most westerly part of Anglesey, from the rest of the island. The Bay is extensive with sand and mudflats, while close to the west shore is Penrhos Coastal Park. A stroll through the park is always worthwhile, the woodlands and scrub attracting a variety of small birds including wintering Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs. The first record of a pale-breasted Brent Goose in Anglesey was in 1973 though a further 24 years were to elapse before they became regular visitors. In January 1997, 52 were counted in Beddmanarch Bay, and this has since become the main wintering area in North Wales, with…

WHEN I FIRST heard the name Velvet Runner I have to admit it conjured up an image of some dodgy 1970s glam rock band. However, of course it isn’t the name of a band, just an old name for one of our widespread, yet difficult to see, resident birds; the Water Rail. Water Rails are beautiful birds to behold, with their blue-grey face, neck and breast contrasting with the more camouflaged spotted brown back and wings. The slightly down-curved red bill and reddish brown legs, as well as the creamy undertail feathers, add to the features of this attractive bird. If you didn’t know Water Rails, you would think that with having red, white and blue in the plumage they would be an easy bird to see. But of course…

AS FAR AS combination tours go, this Birds and Wine tour of South Africa is rather unique, combining a mix of South Africa’s long-established wine estates and also lesser-known ones, with some of its superb birding locations. While the producers of Stellenbosch, Constantia and others need no introduction to the wine enthusiast, this tour visits some less famous but equally impressive producers in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, Oudtshoorn, Prince Albert and McGregor regions. One of the great things about this tour, is that the birding areas and wineries fall together in the same general region, meaning that most days will entail some of both. The route will take participants on a journey of discovery though the Western Cape Province, from Hermanus on the coast, a top land-based whale watching spot, to…

SOUTH WEST Highlights The Pacific Diver saw out the year, to help annual listers on their way in 2016, though it wandered a bit along the coast in the Penzance/Newlyn area of Cornwall. Almost as rare, a third-winter American Herring Gull was around St Just, Penzance and Mousehole during the month. AVON HIGHLIGHTS: The male Lesser Scaup remained at Chew all month but was elusive. SEVERNSIDE: Windy conditions early in the month produced a Pomarine Skua (1st), a Black-throated Diver (6th) and up to 65 Kittiwakes. There were good numbers of Black-tailed Godwits, peaking at 280 (13th), and a good count of seven Jack Snipe (5th), but a flock of six Whimbrel (12th) was unexpected. A lingering Red-breasted Merganser (10th–12th) was unusual and a couple of Brent Geese and up…

“That week in France reconnected me with what started it all off for me. Yes, when I take photos and film I still avidly watch animal behaviour and spot as many species as possible, but when forced to forget the camera, I took everything for what it is” BEING A WILDLIFE photographer and cameraman is awesome. In my opinion, it is the best job in the world. Every time I meet up with old schoolmates or meet new people, they tell me how cool and amazing my job is. Apart from carrying a camera, and filming and taking photos of animals, there’s no difference between me and any other bird/nature watcher, yet a lot of the same people who tell me how cool my job is, will probably laugh at…

OSCAR DEWHURST, 20 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? OD: Growing up I always showed some interest in nature. There are photos of me feeding ducks in our local park, poring over my dad’s large hardback copy of an AA field guide to the birds of Britain, and one of me showing my grandma (for about the 1,000th time) my favourite photo in a wildlife photography book, which depicted a Grizzly Bear about to pluck a Salmon out of mid air from a North American river. I have been birding and watching wildlife since I was 10; in fact I still remember my first outing with a pair of binoculars. It was to Chiswick House Park with my dad, on Christmas Day 2004. Armed with his…

TOBY CARTER, 14 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? AR: When my grandparents took me to RSPB Titchwell Marsh for the first time and I saw all the birds close up – my favourite was the Oystercatcher. BW: Which bird surveys/conservation projects are you involved in? I’m involved in a few of the BTO’s surveys; Nest Record Scheme (NRS), Ringing Scheme – in which I’m part of Rutland Water Ringing Group (RWRG) and the Humber Wader Ringing Group (HWRG), in which we colour ring Bar-tailed Godwit, Redshank and Curlew. I also enter my bird sightings onto Birdtrack and my local birding club, which is Leicestershire and Rutland Ornithological Society (LROS), plus my dad and I have started a House Martin survey which links in with the…

In September last year, I was invited to speak to a group of MPs at the RSPB Summer Reception held in Westminster. The theme of my talk was putting nature at the heart of every decision and asking the politicians to think 500 years ahead and not just a political term of five years. But it’s not just the politicians that need to think like this, we all do. It’s clear that our wildlife needs help. It’s clear that it isn’t enough just to care. It’s clear that we all need to work much harder to change things. So what is important? This question gets me thinking all the time, and no more so than recently while out birding off the Mersey Estuary. We were watching a flock of more…

FROM A VERY young age, I was lucky enough to know what I wanted to do with my life... see the world and all the awesome wildlife it had to offer. After graduation with a degree in Zoo Biology four years ago, I decided the best way to do that would be to pursue a career in wildlife tourism. Guiding is not only a great way to see wildlife yourself, but it works as a fantastic platform to educate others. It gives me an opportunity to permanently extend my education, learn as much as I can about an ecosystem, then regurgitate it to whoever is willing to listen. Growing up in the countryside, surrounded by farming and conservation land, meant that birds were in no short supply, so, as you…

ALEX RHODES, 19 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? AR: I’m confident that my parents’ decision to move out of the city when I was just a year old led to my love for the great outdoors. Pinpointing my interest for birds is more difficult. It may have been as simple as picking up a book and thinking “hey these look far more interesting” than, say, a bunch of plants, but you also need to consider as a kid, with a short attention span, the fact birds are so visible and easy to encounter meant they were more captivating than any other creature. BW: Which bird surveys/conservation projects are you involved in? AR: I am a C-permit bird ringer under the BTO and send in sightings…

MAMMAL RED SQUIRREL Red Squirrels remain active throughout winter, and February sees an uplift in activity since these attractive mammals are bent on procreation. The intent necessary for successful courtship makes squirrels less wary than usual, enabling you to enjoy prolonged views at close range. To see them, avoid wet or windy days when squirrels are relatively immobile. To up chances further, visit a feeding station such as Loch Garten (Highland), or join a guided walk, such as at Formby (Lancs). HABITAT “Ancient Yew woodlands stand out in winter by dint of being evergreen and offering mammals and birds a bounty of berries. Kingley Vale in Sussex is a classic location” FEBRUARY SEES AN AWAKENING AMONG PLANTS; LOOK FOR THE GOLDEN TASSELS OF HAZEL CATKINS INVERTEBRATE THE HERALD Poke around…

THE BTO NEED YOUR HELP in preventing a Curlew Catastrophe. The Curlew is our largest wading bird, easily recognised by its long curved bill and evocative bubbling call, and there is a real danger that seeing them in the UK may become a thing of the past. The Curlew is one of our most rapidly declining species, and has recently been placed on the UK Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern, as well as being listed by the IUCN as ‘near threatened’, one of the few British bird species to receive that unfortunate accolade. English populations declined by 46% between 1994 and 2010, with Scottish and Welsh Curlews faring even worse. Take into account that almost a third of all of Europe’s Curlews live in the UK, and these…

Just weeks after the Tawny Owl was placed on the UK Amber List, comes news that fewer sightings of the species have been reported to the BTO. Fewer than 4% of the BTO’s Garden BirdWatchers have seen the species this winter, the second lowest figure for the season in a decade. Tawny Owls are usually very vocal at this time of year as pairs communicate with their familiar ‘kewick’ calls and hoots. The reasons for the decline are unclear, and the BTO is asking us to help by leaving some areas of lawn long to help the birds feed, putting up owl boxes, and reporting any sightings through the BTO Garden BirdWatch at bto.org.uk IN NUMBERS 3.6%: the number of BTO Garden BirdWatchers who have reported seeing Tawny Owls this…

Get in touch with Bird Watching Bird Watching, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA birdwatching@bauermedia.co.uk facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag twitter.com/BirdWatchingMag Little Egret by Don Davis Camera: CanonEOS-1D X Lens: 600mm Shutter speed: 1/6400 Aperture: f5.6 ISO: 500 Snow Bunting by Don Davis Camera: Canon EOS-1D X Lens: 600mm Shutter Speed: 1/1000 Aperture: f5.6 ISO: 1250 Blue Tit by Dick Hawkes Camera: Olympus E-M1 Lens: 40-150mm Shutter speed: 1/400 Aperture: f7.1 ISO: 640 Reed Bunting by Peter Sharpe Camera: Nikon D4 Lens: 600m Shutter Speed: 1/800 Aperture: f6.3 ISO: 1600 SPONSORED BY LEICA BIRDING – closer than ever before. Experience nature with unmatched intensity WIN! Send us your best birding/ wildlife photos to birdwatching@bauermedia.co.uk every month to be within a chance of winning a mystery prize. This month’s winner is Don Davis. All…

Yes, please, for some more on monoculars (Letters, December). Quite apart from their portability, there must be many, like me, with only one good eye, for whom binoculars have no advantage. A review of the range available would be a good start, for they rarely feature in the adverts, which give a very good idea of the binoculars on the market. Hugh Green, Hythe, Kent In response to the question raised in the magazine, yes, monocular reviews would be very welcome. There must be many birders with impaired vision in one eye, as well as monoculars having the advantages of light weight and pocketability. Dave Maddox, email Bird Watching says: We’ll be running a monocular test later in the year – there are plenty of good models available, such…

1 LOCH OF STRATHBEG Winter goose flocks are just the start at this superb year-round coastal reserve 2 CALGARY BAY A magnificent Mull beach with great views of both eagle species, plus waders passing through and a chance of rarities 3 WETHERAL WOODS Varied riverside birding around the site of a historic abbey 4 HESLINGTON TILMIRE Explore a tranquil marshland and farmland setting, and its many and varied birds, just a few miles from the historic city of York 5 BEDDMANARCH BAY Rare trans-Atlantic gulls are among the main attractions at this sheltered and quiet inlet on Anglesey 6 HILL HOOK An easy winter stroll with lots to offer for beginner birders 7 BIRCHES FARM Find a wide variety of hedgerow and woodland birds on this walk through picturesque couuntryside…

Trying to see a Water Rail well can be an exasperating experience, yet other times it can be ridiculously easy. Two of my own Water Rail examples taken from my birding diary sum up the enigma that is this attractive water bird: “The squealing pig call was loud and close but all we could see were reeds. Some movement in the long stems attracted our attention and we watched intently waiting for the bird to appear. Nothing, then more movement, but still nothing. Another loud call, so close yet still no bird! After an hour of movements and squealing we left frustrated.” “We walked into the hide, opened the flap and the first bird we saw was a Water Rail, right out in the open on the grass about 15…

DAYS 1-3: We’ll head for the holiday village of Hermanus, stopping at Rooiels for Cape Rockjumper and Betty’s Bay to photograph African Penguins. Our first wine tasting will be at superb wineries, such as Bouchard Finlayson and/or Hamilton Russell. Overnights - Hermanus DAYS 4 & 5: After an early breakfast, we’ll visit De Hoop Nature Reserve. In the afternoon we’ll go to to Wildebraam Berry Estate for liqueur tasting. On Day 5 we’ll explore the Langeberg range followed by lunchtime wine tasting at Barrydale Cellars. Overnights - Swellendam DAYS 6 & 7: Venues for these days will be Bontebok National Park for its good birds and the endemic Bontebok. For lunch with wine we’ll drive to De Doornkraal Winery on the Garden Route. Next day our main venue is Woodville…

HAMPSHIRE BIRD ATLAS 2007-2012 Edited by John Eyre Hampshire Ornithological Society, 2015, HBK, BW Bookshop price £37.99 inc P&P County bird atlases have improved immeasurably over the last 10 years or so. They’ve always been thoroughly useful and often essential works for anyone birding in a particular area, but now, as often as not, they’re thoroughly enjoyable books to browse in their own right . This is no exception. Its 450 or so pages are glossy and packed with excellent quality colour photographs, while the species accounts are thorough and informative, but succinct and readable, too. There are fewer ‘extras’ than is sometimes the case, beyond a brief discussion of habitats and a few appendices, but that actually works well to keep the book to a manageable size. A fine…

“This blacker-than-black bird, with a streak of cardinal red crowning its head, is twice the size of the Great Spotted Woodpecker” IT FLEW AWAY from me with a yaffle, the familiar musical alarm call of the Green Woodpecker, a streak of green-gold diving and dipping along a tall hedgerow. I hear their laughter throughout the year as I walk the footpaths, ubiquitous but often invisible companions. I will never forget watching a pair of them pecking for ants on my lawn, oblivious to watching eyes. I was struck by the size of these perky near-passerines – sturdy, bulky birds more than a foot long. I was awed too by the beautiful olive-green plumage, the yellow rump, the vivid red cap, the long, strong beak. In spring, the drumming of the…

TOM MASON, 22 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? TM: I first became interested after moving house. My family and I relocated to a farm in the local countryside and suddenly I found myself surrounded by nature. I spent hours playing out in the fields and woodland around my new home, exploring, watching and discovering about my local wildlife and this was where I first started to get a keen interest, first in nature watching, and then wildlife photography. BW: Which bird surveys/conservation projects are you involved in? TM: In the past, I have worked photographing all kinds of wildlife, from Ptarmigan to Foxes, but currently I am focusing on photographing Little Owls close to my home in Hertfordshire. Additionally, I volunteer my time with the…

DEVELOPING A PASSION for birdwatching at an early age is a great start, but how do you go about broadening and deepening your knowledge, meeting like-minded young people, and contributing to preserving the natural world in the face of multiple threats, all without breaking the bank or taking up every waking minute? Getting involved in the varied work of the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) and other conservation organisations can help you to do all of that, and much more – read on for some brilliant ideas on how to improve your birdwatching, enjoy the best of Britain’s wildlife and landscapes, all while making a real difference to the natural world around us. BIRD RINGING Learning to ring birds (or band them, as US birders would say) is a fantastic…

MATT WILLIAMS, 29 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? MW: One of my first memories is from a family holiday in Poole, Dorset. As a treat, my brother and I would get taken to Burger King. As we exited the car park, I looked up and saw a flock of birds on the roof of the restaurant. Their feathers glistened purple and green in the sunset light and they were whirring and clicking like mechanical toys. Then, as if with a collective mind, they fell silent and all took off at once. Those Starlings forged an early connection with nature. And it was thanks to my parents and grandparents fostering that interest that it really took flight. They bought me a youth RSPB membership, bird guides…

JOSIE HEWITT, 17 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? JH: I have had an interest in the natural world for as long as I can remember, but as I’ve got older this vague interest has turned into a passion that I hope to turn into my career one day. BW: Which bird surveys/conservation projects are you involved in? JH: I started bird ringing in 2011, having been captivated by a ringing demonstration at Birdfair that August. I now have my C-permit and carry out ringing in my local area where the data I collect helps the landowners know whether their habitat management is working effectively. Last year, I also started nest recording – I’m not very good at it, as I only managed to find a…

ELLIS LUCAS, 12 BW: What first got you interested in birds and wildlife? EL: Going out with my parents to the countryside/coast. I was absolutely amazed at the variety of wildlife we came across. BW: Which bird surveys/conservation projects are you involved in? EL: The Nest Record Scheme, bird ringing, Garden Birdwatch and the Breeding Bird Survey. I also help my Dad with a heronry census. BW: What was your most memorable birding moment? EL: After a year or so of having a very keen interest in birds, a flock of Waxwings took up residence on a Rowan tree right outside my house. The excitement of returning home from school and seeing them flocking on my doorstep was so exciting. BW: What would be the one piece of advice you’d…