A sanctuary in the shadow of industry

DINING OUT: Greenfinches get stuck into a feeder at Saltholme nature reserve on Teesside

12:58pm Friday 12th April 2013

RECENTLY my wife and I paid a return visit to the RSPB nature reserve at Saltholme on Teesside. It now seems to be described as more of a wildlife reserve and discovery park than a bird sanctuary, but it is an astonishing place.

Some hardy visitors, but cold comfort for summer migrants

12:56pm Friday 12th April 2013

NO-ONE will be surprised that March, with its bitter cold, was not a good month for summer migrants. Nevertheless, a couple of hardy birds braved the conditions.

Quiet month but birds of prey livened things up

PREY-ING FOR A BITE: a hen harrier was seen at Nosterfield reserve

11:33am Friday 8th March 2013

IT has been rather a quiet winter for local birdwatchers and February was no exception. Waxwings were still around in decent numbers though.

Wading in with memories of the year’s geese and gulls

SEASONAL: A waxwing, flocks of which enlivened winter watching

11:57am Friday 11th January 2013

THIS is a chance to look back on what has been an interesting, if not classic, 12 months for birdwatchers. The year kicked off with large numbers of geese still present from 2011. Snape Mires and the Nosterfield area were particularly attractive and attracted flocks of over 100 Whitefronted Geese and more than 70 Bean Geese.

Rather a gull month in birthwatching calendar

The ring-billed gull at Scorton pictured by Richard Stephenson

8:00am Friday 18th May 2012

There was little doubt about April’s bird of the month, a ring-billed gull which dropped in briefly at Scorton Quarry. This rare American bird looks rather like a small herring gull but with a prominent dark band across its beak. This species had never been seen in Britain before the 1970s but there then followed a sharp rise in sightings. However, it has become rather scarcer again in recent years and it remains a genuinely rare bird in Yorkshire.

The month of the egret - and a little blue mystery

MYSTERY: The Little Blue Heron, pictured by Brian Morland at Bellflask - or is it a Little Egret?

4:41pm Friday 19th August 2011

LAST month will be remembered as the month of the egret.

Don’t be bitten by a bittern if you venture too close

‘THREAT MODE’: one of Brian Morland’s dramatic pictures of the bittern at Bellflask

4:09pm Friday 11th February 2011

WAXWINGS continued to delight local birdwatchers through January, and up to half-a-dozen birds were seen at many places, including three that took up temporary residence outside the booking office of Northallerton station.

Fascinating year ends with an Asian mystery

1:00pm Friday 7th January 2011

THIS is another chance to look back on what has been a really interesting 12 months for local birdwatchers. The year kicked off as it ended with heavy snowfall and very low temperatures.

Waxwing and bittern

Waxwing: arriving in great numbers

12:03pm Friday 17th December 2010

NOVEMBER saw the first local appearance of a bird that is likely to dominate this winter, the waxwing.

Summer migrants overlap with winter visitors

1:48pm Friday 8th October 2010

THERE has been a trend in recent years for summer migrants to linger in the UK later than previously. This September was no exception with birds like Swallows and House martins still present in high numbers throughout the month and even Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs still in song at the month end.

More Birdwatch»








Local Information

Enter your postcode, town or place name

House prices »   Schools »   Crime »   Hospitals »

click2find


About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree