Jack Snipe at Pontefract Park today #PWC2026

Sometimes it's easy to overlook the things you see all the time when you're out birding. This lovely Mallard just sat beside me at my local park, relaxing in the sunshine.

Big surprise on patch today at Pontefract Park. Kittiwake present on the big lake for a brief moment. #patchgold #PWC2026

An amazing find just up the road from me today. This Black Redstart male was happy to pose for some rooftop photos. Thanks to the finders @consideratebirders.bsky.social for sharing the news quickly and a big well done for spotting it.

Clean Water Now - tell your MP to take action Take action A new water law is coming. Soon, MPs will decide whether to finally clean up our rivers, lakes and seas − or let toxic pollution continue unchecked. Right now, sewage, farming pollution an...

I just emailed my MP through the #CleanWaterNow campaign 🌊 calling for a new water law to stop pollution and restore rivers, lakes and seas. Every voice matters – will you join me? action.friendsoftheearth.uk/target/clean...

Gotta’ love a Blackcap eating an apple in your back garden #PWC2026

Seven satellite-tagged Hen Harriers lost on English grouse moors in 2025 The RSPB has announced that seven satellite-tagged Hen Harriers are suspected or confirmed to have been illegally killed in England during 2025, renewing calls for licensing of all gamebird shooting to tackle raptor persecution.

The RSPB has reported that seven satellite-tagged Hen Harriers are suspected or confirmed to have been illegally killed in England during 2025, all on or close to land managed for grouse shooting:

It's here, Big Garden Birdwatch has finally arrived.

We're off to a great start, with Woodpigeon, Robin, two Great Tits on the feeder and a Blackbird rummaging for berries.

Let us know in the comments what you're seeing and share your photos with us too we'd love to see them.

A Big Garden Birdwatch bingo card with the following squares: House Sparrow Nice cup of tea Any pigeon Phone OFF Door goes during your count Any gull Blackbird Blue Tit Great Tit Goldfinch Magpie Starling Robin ID debate Biscuits A profound appreciation of nature Coal Tit Bird song Any bird of prey A oneness with birds Slice of cake A sense of enormous well-being Crisps Wren

Who'll be doing the #BigGardenBirdwatch this weekend?

And how many of these do you think you'll cross off? 😁👇

A great visit to Pontefract Park today. Found x2 Jack Snipe. Patch lifer for me 💪🏻 #PWC2026

Badger Predation on Lapwing Nests Is Rare, six-year study finds Badgers are often blamed when wader nests fail on British farmland, but new evidence suggests their role may be far smaller than assumed

Lapwing eggs only rarely taken by badgers, new data shows

Badgers are often blamed when wader nests fail on British farmland, but new evidence suggests their role may be far smaller than assumed and is largely driven by prolonged cold weather. www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/B...

As part of @wclnews.bsky.social, we’re warning MPs about the loss of nature already being seen in their area 📢

The #PlanningBill as it stands is an application to demolish wildlife even further 🚨

We cannot accept this - it simply must be amended.

Take action today 👇
rspb.org.uk/planning

Please ALSO report any sightings of dead and sick birds to @birdtrack.bsky.social through www.birdtrack.net for monitoring purposes. Thank you.

Deceased Common Gull on ground with wings outstretched. Image by Dawn Balmer.

⚠️ Please report all sightings of dead birds for possible testing for Avian Influenza. #UKBirding
📌In England, Wales & Scotland: www.gov.uk/guidance/rep...
📌In Northern Ireland: www.daera-ni.gov.uk/services/dae...
📌In Republic of Ireland: aviancheck.apps.services.agriculture.gov.ie/report

Common Snipe today on my local patch #PWC2025

Surrey Wildlife Trust urges better control from dog owners Surrey Wildlife Trust has teamed up with the Dogs Trust to appeal to dog owners to keep their pets on leads at the county's many sensitive sites for ground-nesting birds. The charities are warning how unsupervised dogs can cause birds to abandon their nests, leaving eggs and chicks unprotected. With...

Surrey Wildlife Trust has teamed up with the Dogs Trust to appeal to dog owners to keep their pets on leads at the county's many sensitive sites for ground-nesting birds:

Top environmental petition is quite something. Plz help us get this over 100,000 signatures. Thanks v much.

A farmer drives a small blue tractor through a field of tall, swaying grass, framed by thick, green hedgerows. The sky is bright and clear, a picture of productive land working in harmony with nature. This is what a nature-friendly future looks like...farming that supports wildlife, healthy soils, and thriving landscapes. But without stable support, this future is uncertain.

UK Government has halted SFI applications, cutting off support for nature-friendly farming in England. ❌🍃

Farmers need certainty, not funding that’s switched on & off.

Pulling the rug from under them erodes trust, disrupts farming, and stalls critical progress on nature & climate.

A beautiful Little Owl today at Pontefract Park for a year patch ✅ @patchbirding.bsky.social

Share your BirdTrack records with others over social media

x44sp. today at Pontefract Racecourse,Pontefract on 02/03/2025, 09:00 - 13:30. View my #BirdTrack list: app.bto.org/birdtrack/pu... @patchbirding.bsky.social

With the first Wheatear and Sand Martins in Britain, and a House Martin in Ireland, plus large movements of wildfowl along the south coast over the week, what will turn up on your patch this weekend? Good luck and remember to keep us updated by using the hashtags! #patchbirding

youtube.com/watch?v=AE1c...

Habitat-restoration project to boost Dorset's heathland birds A two-year, £1.2-million habitat-restoration project is set to boost wildlife at a Dorset heath. Dorset Council is removing hundreds of invasive pine trees from Avon Heath Country Park to help rejuvenate the heathland. The 210-ha site is home to all of Britain's native reptile species including Smo...

A two-year habitat-restoration project is set to boost wildlife at a Dorset heath:

Petition: Ban driven grouse shooting Chris Packham, Ruth Tingay and Mark Avery (Wild Justice) believe that driven grouse shooting is bad for people, the environment and wildlife. People; we think grouse shooting is economically insignifi...

I would like you, please, to sign this petition to ban driven grouse shooting. The first under a Labour government.

10k signatures gets a government response, 100k a debate in Westminster parliament. UK residents & UK citizens living abroad can sign.

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/70...

Last chance to order our 2025 calendar this weekend! Final numbers go to print on Monday so order now to avoid missing out! Featuring 10 of the best bird artists around. Funds raised from the sale of calendars helps support our small charity spurnbirdobservatory.co.uk/news/spurn-2...

A lone Puffin stands in silhouette on a grassy cliff, framed by a vivid orange sunset. Its distinctive beak and rounded form are stark against the fading light, evoking both beauty and fragility. The scene captures a quiet urgency, reflecting the gravity of nature's erasure from the latest #COP29 text.

BREAKING: The latest #COP29 text falls woefully short.

The finance package is too low, too weak, while critical acknowledgement of nature has been entirely erased.

This is more than disappointing, it's dangerous. 🚨

Leaders—don't walk away without fixing this.

Share your BirdTrack records with others over social media

A bit of local patch birding this morning at Pontefract Racecourse,Pontefract on 22/11/2024, 10:13 - 14:17. View my #BirdTrack list: app.bto.org/birdtrack/pu... #birds #yorkshirebirding #ukbirding @btobirds.bsky.social

A reminder about BTO's website apps and surveys being offline from 5pm.

Barn Owl snoozing in the Pontefract sunshine this morning. #yorkshirebirding #ukbirding

From this morning’s edition of Shooting Times. Hang on a minute, isn’t this the industry that claims to be self-regulating & not shooting Woodcock until after 1st December to protect resident UK red-listed population?! Idiots.