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Wader numbers increasing on the Tyne over the last month. C200 lapwing and 40 redshank roosting Dunston Staiths. Greenshank this morning Timber beach, and 3 dunlin last night.

Juvenile Ruff on patch this afternoon. Roosting at Dunston Staiths with a Dunlin and 85 Redshank. Patchwork Challenge

Three black-tailed godwits Timber beach Gateshead on the Tyne. New bird for patch for me. #pwc2023 Patchwork Challenge Durham Bird Club

Hen harrier, merlin, kestrel x3, sparrowhawk, buzzard and red kite (x5 south) on a short walk around Hunstanworth Moor in Durham Dales this morning. Big movement south of 1000s of meadow pipits and 100s of swallows

Two Jack Snipe at Cramlington in Northumberland. Thermal monocular a game changer fornfinding these birds without disturbing them. Both birds left in peace once recorded. UK Half Snipe Northumberland & Tyneside Bird Club

Two broods (3 & 5) of sparrowhawk ringed in Northumberland by Northumbria Ringing Group. Even at ~12 days old the females are noticeably bigger and need a bigger ring. Only 144 ringed in 2022 (Vs 280 goshawk), so important data collected for the Nest Record Scheme BTO

Another brood (of 5) sparrowhawk rung in Northumberland. Feet of song thrush and starling in the nest, along with an uneaten female siskin. Feathers from robin, swallow, blackcap and chaffinch at plucking post. Younger brood of 5 not quite old enough.

Returned to check a brood of sparrowhawk that were too small to ring and miraculously all five chicks had survived the heavy rain of the last 11 days, but the large weight discrepancy suggests the largest male (130g vs 115 & 80!) and female (230g vs 190) are dominating the feeds.

A really important thread on the causes of Dartmoor's poor ecological state. Grazing at the right time of year and by the right animals key. Along with peatland restoration.

Good start to the Autumn with five barn owls caught and ringed in Gateshead borough in the last two weeks. Four out of five were you first year birds, which is pleasing considering the poor breeding season they seemed to have had.

It's been a dire year for Hawthorn in Northumberland with most shrubs bare before the migratory thrushes even arrived. An orchard I ring at had a similarly bad crop so the owner left the apples to feed the blackbirds, redwing, song thrushes, mistle thrushes and fieldfare.

The orchard continues to be a vital food resource this winter, even more so with frozen fields all around. 85 fieldfare and 5 blackbirds this weekend, plus 3 sparrowhawks and a kestrel that were hunting them. #NorthumbriaRingingGroup

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A long slog looking for sparrowhawks. Two hours searching before finally finding some plucks (jay, blackbird and wood pigeon), a moulted secondary and finally a female sparrowhawk sat tight on a nest

Third sparrowhawk nest of the year in SW Northumberland, but not yet hatched. Lots of moulted feathers from the female and plucks littering the floor - woodcock, great spotted woodpecker, jay. Plus jackdaw, song thrush, wren and blackbird (not collected)

Tony et al collect an amazing amount of data on breeding sparrowhawks for BTO in County Durham, probably about 1/3 of all sparrowhawks ringed in the UK. Let's hope others get inspired by this to do the same as numbers ringed have gone from >1000 in the 90s to 140 in 2023.