Where do you start if you want help enthuse beginners with the benefits of city bird watching? In this column I share what I learnt from a group of beginner bird watchers in an urban cemetery.
One very early morning back in July I had the privilege of joining a bird ringing session on Swanscombe Peninsula, which is just outside the M25 on the south side of the Thames. Terry Hilsden was a fantastic guide and a great advocate for the vital role bird ringing plays in conservation. I also caught […]
An ongoing dilemma in conservation is balancing public access with protecting nature from disturbance. In my September column I explore the issues in the context of Beddington Farmlands, a fantastic but permit-only nature reserve in Sutton, South London.
What’s the best bird ever? The one you finally found on a roof just off Oxford Street of course.
Golf courses might not be the most obvious places to go birdwatching – I visited 3 for my July column – but just think of the possibilities…
In which I make a trip to a fun city in search of a bloody brilliant bird which is officially extinct in London… but sadly it wasn’t to be, this time.
There’s no doubt in my mind that sorting water pollution should be a national priority – and it’s one which does seem to bridge the political spectrum. In my May column I investigate the impact which river pollution is having on birds and have a fascinating chat with Professor Steve Ormerod about his research on […]
London might be heralded as one of the greenest cities but we can’t take our green spaces for granted. If, like me, you find the subject of this month’s column – the threat to Crossness Nature Reserve – really worrying, then please do offer your support to the Save Crossness Nature Reserve campaign.
I can’t think of a better way to start a new year bird list than to spend the first week of the year urban birding. And what a bird I found.
Cardiff is one of my favourite cities and a fantastic place for a couple of days of urban birding. It was great to catch up with my birder friend Cindy, and to meet Phil Bristow, BTO county bird recorder for East Glamorgan.
The Urban Naturalist 