A frustrating moment on the patch this morning. Had a very distant flock of c42 Swan sp fly east over SW Cov. Too far to ID in bins and couldn't hear any calls. From pics bill shape maybe suggests Whooper but couldn't extricate any real detail from my crap pics. Thoughts welcome.

Ok, so most respondents saying Whooper but I’ve had several suggesting that shape and proportions suggest Bewicks, improbable as that is. Further input very welcome, but I fully accept I/we may not be able to fully resolve this.

A polar vortex (the brutal cold!) & a New Year 4-night stand at Carnegie Hall 10 years ago. A meandering acoustic journey through the past ~ Neil Young performing touching tributes to Bert Jansch (debut of Needle of Death, that Ambulance Blues emerged from) & Phil Ochs' Changes.

In Leeds today so spent a few hours at St. Aidans. What a superb site it is. 67 sp, highlights Glossy Ibis, Water Pipit, Whooper Swan, Bearded Tit, Brambling, Marsh Harrier, GWE, Little Owl. Good times.

The local Redwing seem to have discovered the berry-ridden bush in the neighbours' garden. A glimmer of hope perhaps that our crested trilling friends might finally grace our neighbourhood with their presence...

A shame there isn't reliable data on this. Folk lamenting a supposed lack of young birders has been a constant since I started birding in 91. To me there seem to be more young all-round birders (but fewer twitchers) than in the 90s, although I appreciate that's merely anecdotal!

This is the eBird distribution map for Willow Tit records 2020 onwards. Records in Norfolk and North Hants may relate to just single birds, and others may, I suspect, not withstand more robust scrutiny. Basically gone from East Anglia, SE, SC England and even south Mids.

Bad photos from a patch stroll around Warwick Uni campus this morning: Red Kite, Goosander, Cormorant and mixed thrush flock.

For second consecutive night I have dreamt of there being Waxwings in my garden. Such are the rather unsophisticated unconscious desires of the frustrated birder: sometimes a Waxwing is just a Waxwing.

Nice visit to Brandon Marsh first thing which yielded 58sp: "record shot" of a Bittern in the half light and a rather more obliging GWE. ebird.org/checklist/S160…

For some reason most dabbling duck species seem to have an aversion to my local patch, so these Teal on Tocil Lake by Warwick Uni campus were, for me anyway, much the most exciting of the 54sp I encountered on a patch stroll this morning.

The latest in my occasion series, “birds in totally random situations in horror TV/cinema”. The crime family in the Netflix horror series ‘ The Fall of the House of Usher’ funding egg collecting on Keyhaven Marshes…

OK everyone. My lack of enthusiasm for right-wing extremism and sexbots means I'm outta here for now - will only post on here if I find a Chestnut-sided Warbler on my patch - but have migrated to the other place: bsky.app/profile/jdean1….

This is Maria, Jonathan's partner. I wanted to share details of 2 events we’re organising in Leeds + Scotland this summer to celebrate Jonathan's life. All the info is here: sites.google.com/view/celebrati… Thanks for all your kind words over the past few weeks - they make a difference!