A couple of hours in the St Albans garden 6-8am. A stooping Hobby, Raven and a locally scarce Mistle Thrush were the highlights of 34 species. #vismig action confined to 17 Linnets in small groups heading north. Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪

Pulses of hirundines going through all day and finally a couple of Sand Martins to add to the 2024 Garden list, species #89! Otherwise pretty quiet on the patch, with a dozen Willow Emeralds the highlight. Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪

It's chilly and several hundred House Martins think so too. Migrating visitors have joined the locals overnight and are packed together warming up in the early sun on a couple of chimneys. #vismig Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪

Rupert Evershed Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪 Laurence Drummond Herts Bird News Had to venture into St Albans city to get my Peregrine fix - still needed for the garden year. Stonechat and Whinchat on the distant fence line of the Roman Wall on Gorhambury, just past the gatehouse. #hertsbirds

An afternoon patch walk produced a GWE on floodwater at Redbournbury. Otherwise, new arrivals were a bit thin on the ground with 50+ Linnets and 150+ Mallard! #hertsbirds

A little late but a very welcome addition to the 2024 local patch list. Spotted Flycatcher Gorhambury Estate, St Albans [TL126087]. #hertsbirds Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪

While Pale-legged, Red-flanked and Yellow-browed autumn interest arrives from the east, my latest patch year tick is a lowly Egyptian Goose! Still, 107 species for 119 points isn't too shabby for 3km square on foot, in Hertfordshire. #hertsbirds Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪 #PWC2024

9 Swallows, 5+ distant Snipe, 3 Chiffchaffs and 2 Stonechats were the best of the autumn fayre on the Redbournbury to Gorhambury patch today. #hertsbirds

Garden #vismig 7.30-9am: 80 Redwing & 20 Chaffinches all west but traffic noise on a misty morning made it tricky. 3 Skylark, 1 Siskin, 1 Little Egret also of interest in 32 species. A flock of 100 Wood Pigeons (W) at 9am was the sole sign of WP movement. Brendan Glynn 🐎🐝🇪🇺 🇮🇪 #hertsbirds

Hi UK, here they come! Huge start of bird migration from the Waddensea westwards. Currently an bird migration traffic rate of 9000 birds per km per hour. Enjoy 😉

There's a great deal of enjoyment to be had from an annual garden list and today #71 turned up in the shape of two lowly but distant Greylag Geese also #81 on the local patch. Buzzard next door too. #PWC2025

Off patch and birding in West Dorset. Good to catch up with a variety of residents and new arrivals. 25 Cattle Egret (Abbotsbury) Wheatear, 4 Pintail, 2 Sandwich Tern, 4 Gannet and Cirl Bunting all along the coastal strip.

Out with the old and in with the new today, on my Herts Bird News patch near St Albans. A small flock of Golden Plover (patch year tick) and a final Fieldfare were good to see, while a Yellow Wagtail (another year tick) was a very welcome arrival. #PWC2025

This morning's visit to a West Dorset coastal strip revealed it was alive with Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs and my first Sedge Warblers & Whitethroats of the year. 3 Wheatears lingering but just two Swallows through. Plus two Shelduck halfway up a hill. Dorset Bird Club

Yellow Wagtails aside, times are tough on the patch near St Albans at the moment. Even the Buzzards are turning vegetarian. #PWC2025

A steady fortnight of seasonal migrants plus this Pintail today (a personal patch tick), has brought the patch total to a hundred for the year. Not too shabby for an inland #hertsbirds patch, near St Albans. #PWC2025

2+ Spotted Flycatchers on Gorhambury Estate, St Albans. In willows close to the floodwater pool. Patchwork Challenge year tick. #hertsbirds

It's been a slow but steady few months on the patch near St Albans. At the weekend, a Wigeon was new for the year. But today, I found a #patchgold Dartford Warbler. A patch tick (29 years!) and Herts rarity. Fortunately my photographer Rupert Evershed was on hand today. #PWC2025