More ladybird excitement - I found the lavae of a 14 spot ladybird - the ones I saw mating earlier in the year. So cool! 😎

Sooo excited to see my first ladybird lavae yesterday. I think this is from the 7 spots that were around. You can even see the casing from the latest moult!

A little video to show the orchids in our front garden. This year there are over 50!

Very excited to find this narrow bordered 5 spot Burnet in my garden last night - it stayed all night before flying off around 8 this morning. My first burnet moth too!

And that's it! My @cbcreative.bsky.social Curtis Brown Breakthrough mentoring scheme has come to an end. I had my final mentoring session with Polly Atkin, and my agent tutorial. I can't believe how quickly the 6 months have gone. It's been fantastic. I have learnt so much gained #NatureWriting

I made it out yesterday for an hour to the wildflowers bit of the park and saw these beautiful common blues and my first small heath 😍. Also ringlets but no pic

Rubbish day today, always frustrating when feeling worse than I think I should based on how well I have been packing/sleeping Anyway here is a hover fly from the other day

A sneak preview of chapter 1 of my book - about dunnocks and ME. There's an audio for those who struggle to read open.substack.com/pub/annakwoo...

I made cheese scones! The ingredients where weighed out a week ago, then I crashed so couldn't make them

I had the most beautiful message from an acquaintance recently about my 25 Birds book 'the perfect book to inspire an interest in wildlife ' 😊💕 All profits to Biomedical research #mecfs #NatureWriting

Thank you so much for this fabulous review of my book 25 birds, one year one garden - if you'd like a gentle book for the bird liver in your life then find it on Amazon All profits to #MEcfs research

Rooks in a field yesterday! It's a bit of a joke in the birding group that I didn't see my first rook until October last year (more likely just hadn't noticed one). Beautiful birds

Rosebay willowherb - often seen as a weed, but it has the most beautiful flowers, loved by bees and a favourite food of the elephant hawk moth catepillar

Three of our local family of 5 ravens. Nice to see them still around

I sense it's not 'in' in the birding world to have a favourite bird, but I can't help it. Stonechats stole my heart since seeing my first on Barra, 3 years ago. Last week I spent the most amazing 30min photographing a family just a few metres from our cottage. 😍 #UKBirding

A juvenile robin #ukbirds

Gannets on bass rock preening #ukbirds

I haven't had the chance to process many photos from my bass rock trip yet (and most are blurred) but I suspect this is going to be one of my favourites - I loved getting to see puffins 🥰 #ukbirds

I've been trying for years to get a shot like this - I thought I'd have to wait till next year as the blossom is almost over, but this blue tit posed briefly for me 😍 #UKBirds

A dunnock looking dapper in the sunshine #UKBirds

It seems a lot of people are struggling right now - just wanted to say I see you, and have a goldfinch to brighten your day a little

I went out! To feel well enough on the last sunny day of this spell is like all my Christmases coming at once. Plus, saw a sandwich tern which is a lifer for me.

I've made a (gluten free, for Passover) chocolate and hazelnut cake and it's delicious and I don't regret it, but flip I'd forgotten that baking is the quickest way to give me payback - arms all weak and shaky now. Not something I do often for this reason!

Bird track record from last year has just dropped - top bird was black kite on Barra - an amazing experience thanks @barrabirder.bsky.social !

Terrible picture, but saw my first chiffchaff of the year yesterday - they are arriving back about 2 weeks earlier than last year apparently! #ukbirds

I cancelled a birding outing that was planned for today as I knew I wasn't well enough, but I am grateful I could do a shorter trip to the park with a friend. Rewarded by close views of this gorgeous kestrel

My recent eccentric pursuit has been to try to get more 3s than 4s in worlde - today finally I achieved that!

A quick stop on the way back from the dentist to photograph a raven :-) #ukbirds

I've been keeping an eye on the pylon where I saw a peregrine last year - no sign of it, but did spy this beautiful raven 😍

Absolutely delighted to catch the drake ring necked duck - a rare visitor from America today at Victoria park It looks similar to a tufted duck especially when asleep and hiding his beak #ukbirding #ukbirds