Wild goose chasing in Scotland has always been one of my favourite winter activities and last weekend I took 6 birdwatchers on a 3 day tour of Dumfries and Galloway. As usual we stayed with Linda and David Birdsall at the fabulous Millbrae House B&B and Self Catering Accommodation. Thanks
Continue readingIt’s that time of year again when I look back at 12 months of birdwatching classes and trips with the aim of listing my top 5 birding moments. I think that this year has been easier than most of the others, mainly because so much has happened locally (which gives
Continue readingIt just goes to show that you can’t believe everything you read on the Internet. That was certainly true on Saturday for Start Birding’s trip to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Staveley Nature Reserve near Ripon. We set off in pouring rain with a forecast of an unrelenting downpour for the
Continue readingWhen everyone starts to mourn the loss of the summer and dreads the thought of the dark nights, that is when I start to get excited about the months to come. Am I mad? Well some might say that I am, but I get this feeling because I know what
Continue readingHello birdwatchers I’m feeling slightly embarrassed at not keeping up to my blog as often as I used to although I have been spending a lot of time posting news on my Facebook page. I hope you’ve had a chance to see it. If not then please click on the
Continue readingAs business grows there is always more to do and I’ve realised, now that I have Facebook and @StartBirding on Twitter, that I’ve not been updating my blog as often as I used to. I’ve just got back from leading my annual trip to Northumberland, land of Tommy Noddys and
Continue readingHello birdwatchers March has been an exciting month so far with even a little time to learn a new skill. More of that later. Over the last month, my indoor classes have focused on what to expect during the spring migration. We’ve looked at the birds that are leaving the
Continue readingHello birdwatchers I hope that you’ve managed to stay dry if you’ve been out to watch wildlife over the last month. The terrible coastal storms have hit many people hard this winter and, although the news coverage has dwindled, I’m sure people are still suffering the damaging effects. As you
Continue readingHello birdwatchers. You’ll have noticed that more and more of our birds are now starting to sing in the mornings as the sun comes up and you may be wondering why this is happening when spring is a long way off. Well, it’s due to a physiological change that is
Continue readingHello birdwatchers January 1st marks the start of a birder’s year list and many of my birding colleagues will be out “listing” today. This is the only day in the birding calendar when a bird as common as the great tit ranks as highly as a waxwing! Great tit
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