The first juvenile waders are arriving from their breeding grounds. How quickly do they learn to feed efficiently on shellfish and polychaetes? wadertales.wordpress.com/2026/02/05/l... #ukbirding

4/4 Improving nesting success for threatened species may require sensitive landscape-scale planning, e.g. when new forests are planted. Estonia: wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/03/16/k... Iceland: 1. wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/06/18/i... 2. wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/08/27/i... #ornithology

3/4 Perhaps surprisingly, research in Iceland showed that waders that nest in the open (e.g. Golden Plover) are as successful as waders that hide their nests (e.g. Redshank), but see more deatils here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/03/17/w... #ornithology

2/4 Wader nests provide a great food resource for species as diverse as foxes, hedgehogs and sheep. Examples here: Foxes & sheep: wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/02/24/c... Introduced hedgehogs: wadertales.wordpress.com/2016/01/20/p... #ornithology

At the end of July, I check whether French authorities have reauthorised the temporary ban on shooting Curlew. They did! Curlews are still shot, but it is illegal. More here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2018/07/30/b... Birds tagged in France breeding in UK ⬇️ #ornithology

You may hear that 'species x is moving north', particulalrly in discussions about climate change. A range may be 'moving north' but individuals rarely change where they breed or spend winter. Juveniles drive change, as discussed here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/07/29/g... 🎂7️⃣ #ornithology

How to increase number of breeding waders/shorebirds? Spread volcanic ash? wadertales.wordpress.com/2015/09/28/t... 🎂 Eruptions can bring long-term gain ... ... but can cause short-term pain: wadertales.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/b... #ornithology

Impacts of ticks on wader chicks discussed here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/06/04/c... Research by @davidjtdouglas.bsky.social & James Pearce-Higgins

Learn more about wader migration to/from/through UK & Ireland. wadertales.wordpress.com/2017/07/20/w... Published 20 July 2017 🎂 Over 17k reads #ukbirding #birds

Hiding Skylarks? One of the interesting things about keeping lists of birds you see and hear on your walks is that you appreciate the birds you miss. As in every July, Skylarks have 'disappeared' (while moulting?) Graph from @birdtrack.bsky.social (Britain & Ireland) @jengill.bsky.social

Buffy, naive young Black-tailed Godwits and Redshanks. How quickly do juvenile waders become proficient food-finders? wadertales.wordpress.com/2026/02/05/l... Paper by Josh Nightingale #ornithology

The first Black-tailed Godwits to return from Iceland are failed breeders so lots of early birds is not a good sign. Productivity is lower in colder springs & after volcanoes ⬇️ 2026 warm/dry spring may mean poor grass growth (to hide nests). wadertales.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/b... #ornithology

A 36-year-old Avocet has hit the BBC headlines by breaking the UK's longevity record for the species. The only wader that has been shown to live longer is the Oystercatcher at 40+. Curlew and Bar-tailed Godwit also 30+ More here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2018/01/16/w...

Seeing some lovely pics of summer plumage Black-tailed Godwits on this platform, fresh in from Iceland. These birds only completed spring moult in April and now they're going to moult again! Blog: wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/10/09/m... #ornithology

Unseen, out over the Atlantic Ocean, the first Whimbrel will soon be passing Ireland, on their way south from Iceland to West Africa. What determines the timing of their migratory journies? wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/07/02/w... 🎂7️⃣ Paper by Camilo Carneiro et al. #ornithology

Ever seen a migrating Great Snipe? Look up! A long way up! Especially during daylight hours! Blog from 30 June 2021 🎂5️⃣ wadertales.wordpress.com/2021/06/30/f... Paper by Åke Lindström et al #ornithology

A forty-year-old Oystercatcher will have been hatched when Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister of the UK ... ... and will soon see its eleventh PM. Records for BTO-ringed waders and thoughts about longevity and survival. wadertales.wordpress.com/2018/01/16/w... #ornithology

Trees v waders Problem 1 - planting trees close to breeding areas: wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/06/18/i... 🎂4️⃣ Problem 2 - trees spread outside planted areas: iris.hi.is/en/publicati... #ornithology

First sign of autumn? The @birdtrack.bsky.social graph for Black-tailed Godwit is about to kick upwards, as the first failed breeders return from Iceland, to join flocks of immatures on British & Irish estuaries. Learn more about wader migration: wadertales.wordpress.com/2017/07/20/w... #ornithology

WIN-WIN-WIN Win for breeding waders (wet features where chicks feed) Win for farmers (water to keep grass growing) Win for local area (flood alleviation in winter) Perhaps my favourite WaderTales blog 🎂7️⃣ wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/06/14/m... Celebrating much-missed Mark Smart

On this day in 2017, I asked what would happen to head-started Black-tailed Godwit numbers: wadertales.wordpress.com/2017/06/13/s... 🎂9️⃣ Here's an assessment from 2024: wadertales.wordpress.com/2024/09/26/h... And some 2025 stuff about inbreeding: wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/04/29/i... #ornithology

Pioneering Oystercatcher! Up until about 1840, British Oystercatchers were coastal breeders. Inland nests first appeared in Grampian (Scotland), a trend that spread to England by about 1900. Now, many pairs breed on roof tops. More here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2016/06/13/o... #BirdingScotland

This weekend, UK birdwatchers will be counting Wetland Birds for @btobirds.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social @jncc.bsky.social. With most waders away, breeding, this is a great opportunity to count non-breeding 'teenagers'. Why are they important? wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/08/28/t... #ornithology

Breeding waders and power lines. The effects of power transmission lines can be seen 500 metres away. wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/06/09/p... 🎂4️⃣ #birds

The move from oil/gas to electricity is going to mean lots more power-lines. Hopefully they won't go through important wader breeding areas. Useful info about impacts of power-lines on breeding waders: wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/06/09/p... 🎂4️⃣ #ornithology

As wader chicks forage for insect food in the grass, they are easy targets for ticks. Blog about the impacts that ticks can have on chicks, based on paper by David Douglas and James Pearce-Higgins: wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/06/04/c... #birds

How quickly do juvenile birds learn to feed effciently? Neat Black-tailed Godwit paper by Josh Nightingale, summarised as a WaderTales blog: wadertales.wordpress.com/2026/02/05/l... #birds

Most waders lay four eggs (Ringed Plover in photo). Why not lay a fifth egg? Blog about paper by Oddvar Heggøy et al: wadertales.wordpress.com/2026/03/06/f... #ornithology

There are huge pressures on UK-breeding Redshank, especially on the coast. 🎂 Blog from 28 May 2019 based on paper by Lucy Mason and @rspbscience.bsky.social colleagues: wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/05/28/r... #ornithology

A Knot does not know which subspecies it belongs to! Mixing on migration: wadertales.wordpress.com/2021/05/27/s... #ornithology 🎂5️⃣