Bird Watching: June 2026 As most of our members weren’t available for our June meeting it was cancelled. We will be meeting up again the second Friday of September. So this will be my last posting til then. I thought I’d raise a concern with you all re feeding garden birds May to October. Apologies if you already know this! The RSPB advise not to feed birds during this time unless it’s a few mealworms suet or fat balls that would be eaten quickly. This is to encourage the birds to forage They also advise to not use flat feeders… Read More

Bird Watching: May 2026 What a lovely day for our walk round the Rivendell Field and the Netherfield Lagoons. Certainly was a big difference to our last outing there when the weather was dreadful. The only downside was that the hedges bushes and trees were all in extensive leaf cover, but we soldiered on using the wonderful Merlin App to help us identify birds by their song and calls. We all got to be experts in identifying Wrens and Cetti’s Warblers as their calls are so distinctive. Sedge and Reed Warbler's were also around the area too. This year I… Read More

Bird Watching: April 2026 What a fantastic day out at Rutland Water. The sun shone, the birds were in fine voice and the Ospreys could be seen soaring above us in the clear blue sky. Magic!!  Not too many water birds but after some of the awful days where we couldn’t venture out it counted as one of our better birding outings! Mind you I’ve only to see some long tail tits and I’m made up - we had the additional pleasure of spotting Coal Tits which are far from common.  Paul and John took some great snaps of the… Read More

Bird Watching: March 2026 Yes! A successful days birding at Attenborough Nature Reserve! The weather was a bit breezy and chilly but sunny and fine - ideal birding weather! We were hopeful that we’d at least see something and we were not disappointed. The highlight of the day was seeing the Great Crested Grebes eyeing one another up with a bit of a courtship display and some nest building. They went off and a little Coot popped over to give their nest a close inspection and looked like he or she thought it was a des res and was going… Read More

February 2026 Well Friday the 13 was a rainy drizzly horrible day. The birders left McDonald’s more driven by hope than being convinced we’d see anything. So setting off to the lagoons via the field near the new estate we were most chuffed to see a group of Long Tail Tits in the trees just as we walked onto the path by the dyke. A few other small birds were out n about but we were nearly all defeated by the grim weather. Paul having his full kit of waterproofs on trudged onto the lagoons n the rest of us… Read More

Bird Watching: January 2026 Well, I’m beginning to think we are doomed. Another birding day cancelled due to the weather. However that hasn’t stopped our eagle eyed members keeping a look out for birds whether in their back gardens, their local area, in the hedgerows and fields or even in more exotic locations. All in all members have seen over 30 different species of birds over the last several days.  Our first photo shows (not too well) the Redwing in the hedgerow near my house taking advantage of the Hawthorn berries. No they definitely don’t stay in one place for… Read More