Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Tweet of the Day

Author Jasmine Donahaye observes a winter flock of female chaffinches.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

RSPB President and NHS GP Dr Amir Khan has made his garden a haven for birds, with feeders and nest boxes. The sparrowhawk is among his garden visitors, a bird of prey which he describes a complicated relationship with.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Regina Eidner (Eurasian Sparrowhawk - XC818384).

Nature writer Sophie Pavelle has been searching for the merlin, but is yet to see one.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

For broadcaster and musician Tom McKinney the autumn arrival of fieldfare to the UK's east coast is one of the country's greatest wildlife spectacles. He describes being immersed in fieldfare at places like Spurn Point in East Yorkshire, with a constant stream of flocks coming in off the North Sea, and the noise of their cackles and wheezes becoming an overwhelming cacophony.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio by from Xeno-Canto by Simon Elliott and Stanislas Wroza (XC633551 and XC600107 - Fieldfare).

After seeing a flock of goldfinch in a neighbour's garden, comedian Susan Calman suffered from a bout of 'bird jealousy', and describes the great lengths she went to in order to entice them into hers.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio by David Bissett from Xeno-Canto (XC811560 - European Goldfinch).

Every autumn naturalist Mike Dilger looks forward to the arrival of pink-footed geese to the Moray coast in Scotland. With its feet always caked in brown estuarine mud, Mike thinks this might be one of the more confusingly named British birds, and wonders if the 'chocolate-headed goose' would be more appropriate. Mike describes the spectacular skeins of birds as they arrive at the coast, and fly between mudflats and their farmland feeding grounds.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Agris Celmins (XC1049856 - Pink-footed Goose).

Conservationist Isabella Tree describes how the bill-clattering of white storks has become a characteristic sound of spring at Knepp in West Sussex. Since 2020 they've been nesting at the top of oak trees, and are the first to breed in England for centuries. Knepp is one of two sites where the White Stork Project has established a colony, where wild white storks are now breeding with re-introduced birds.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded at Knepp by Hazel Reeves.

On a hot summer walk, author Jasmine Donahaye feels refreshed by the sound of mallards, as it announces the hidden presence of water. She's reminded that the familiar quack sound is the voice of the female, as they dabble on the water, corralling ducklings and sounding alarms. In summer the males molt their bright feathers and temporarily resemble the females, though their quieter, raspy quack gives them away.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Nature writer Sophie Pavelle describes why the skylark has become an iconic avian muse. From Shakespeare and Wordsworth to First World War battlefields, the skylark has become a symbol of love and new beginnings. Despite being one of the UK's fastest declining birds, skylarks have soundtracked some of Sophie's most cherished memories walking Devon's coast and moorlands, hearing its liquid song tumbling from the air.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Simon Elliott (XC590432 - Eurasian Skylark).

Writer Horatio Clare describes why he finds the herring gull to be a fascinating and surprising bird, from their use of vomit in courtship, to how to deter them from stealing your chips.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Jack Berteau and Irish Wildlife Sounds (European Herring Gull - XC717834 and XC741653).

Common whitethroats arrive back at the Knepp Rewilding Project in West Sussex just as the hawthorn begins to bloom. Its numbers have increased there nearly 300% over the last 20 years. The secret of its success is the mass of scrubland habitat which has colonised this land since they gave up farming, providing insects and berries to eat. Conservationist Isabella Tree describes begin able to pick up the fast, scratchy, song of this long-distance migrant, above the cacophony of the dawn chorus.

Presented by Isabella Tree and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded at Knepp by Hazel Reeves.

On a summer walk in Upper Teesdale on her way to the great Cow Green Reservoir, nature writer Anita Sethi realises she is lost. Without her map, she turns to nature for a sign of where she is, and is rewarded with the call of the dunlin.

Once known as the red-backed sandpiper because of their rusty-red and black summer plumage, dunlins are small waders that nest on upland landscapes in the summer months, where peaty pools provide habitat for food. In the winter, their plumage transforms to greyish-brown and white. They can also be found on the UK's coastline and estuaries all year round.

Despite their relatively small size, dunlins are capable of producing a very loud song. Anita follows the bird's low burrs and high trills and eventually finds herself at the edge of the vast reservoir, nestled between the North Pennine hills - a perfect spot for birdwatching.

Presented by Anita Sethi and produced by Jo Peacey. A BBC Audio Bristol production.

Each year, CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology, Juliet Vickery, waits eagerly to hear the beautiful song of the willow warbler, which migrates from sub–Saharan Africa. However, on her own Cambridgeshire doorstep the willow warbler is increasingly rare. The fortunes of this delicate little bird in the UK is now one of a north-south divide - increasing in the North and West, decreasing in the South and East. Thanks to a network of volunteer observers, we now know this is, at least in part, because it’s breeding less well in the south than the north, almost certainly linked to rising temperatures in southern England caused by climate change.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features audio by David Pennington from Xeno-Canto (Willow Warbler - XC1000141).

Entomologist George McGavin remembers the first time he saw a hoopoe, an occasional visitor to the UK. The hoopoe is largely insectivorous, and watching it forage for crickets and grasshoppers, and probe deep into the soil for larvae, reminded George just how important insects are for the survival of the majority of birds.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio by Olivier Swift from Xeno-Canto (Eurasian Hoopoe - XC697952).

In early summer at the Knepp Rewilding Project in West Sussex you're almost guaranteed to hear a turtle dove, one of the UK's rarest birds. Conservationist Isabella Tree writes how its gentle soothing sound tugs at the heartstrings, as today fewer than 3000 breeding pairs remain. But at Knepp, turtle doves can find areas of dense thorny thicket where they like to nest, and wildflower seeds to eat. Now every year they count 20 singing males, which is a quater of the population in Sussex.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded by Hazel Reeves at Knepp.

Poet Liz Berry writes about her love for feral pigeons or rock doves, and how they rule the roost in Birmingham.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

The writer Horatio Clare reflects on the many tales told about the grey heron. They were seen as birds of augury by the Romans, or with a religious bent by the poet Dylan Thomas, and for Horatio their appearance makes them seem like judges, rather aloof and out of touch. But Horatio has watched herons, and writes of their patience and spearing in catching fish, and the intensity of their concentration on every eddy of water.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Joost van Bruggen (XC760392 and XC947557 - Grey Heron)

As a child growing up in Manchester, nature writer Anita Sethi used to dream of becoming a bird and flying away to the hills and moors beyond the city. Always on the lookout for signs of nature thriving in urban parks and streets, one of her favourite birds to spot was the noisy and sociable house sparrow.

With greyish-brown plumage and a loud, chattering song, house sparrows aren't particularly flashy or exciting birds to many people, but they are highly resourceful and adaptable creatures and have made the city their home. Sadly, their numbers are in decline in many parts of the UK, but they still remain one of Manchester's most populous birds.

Presented by Anita Sethi and produced by Jo Peacey. A BBC Audio Bristol production.

Conservationist Isabella Tree tells the story of a remarkable cuckoo called Sayaan, who in April this year returned to her home and rewilding project at Knepp for the third year running. They are part of the British Trust for Ornithology’s Cuckoo Tracking Project, putting GPS trackers on cuckoos so we can learn about their migrations and help conservation. Sayaan left his overwintering grounds in the Congo in January, and crossed Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, refuelling on insects before heading off across the Sahara desert to Algeria, Ibiza and the Pyrenees. Finally he made the last 1000 km sprint to Knepp. For Isabella, the sound of every cuckoo, is the sound of triumph.

This programme features recordings by Hazel Reeves recorded at Knepp, and audio from Xeno-Canto by Frode Falkenberg (Common Cuckoo - XC1139781).

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

We join explorer Roland Arnison on a kayaking expedition to the outer Hebrides on a quest to record the call of the storm petrel. These small and elusive seabirds spend most of their time at sea, nesting on rocky isles around the western coasts of the UK. While camping on the coastline of a remote uninhabited island, Roland patiently waited through the night until he heard the digital trill of the 'stormy' ring out in the dark.

This programme features audio recorded by Roland Arnison, and it was produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

For Naturalist Mike Dilger the whimbrel has just as much star power as the curlew. He likes to spot whimbrel on the Severn estuary as they migrate north on route to their breeding grounds in Scandinavia, Iceland and Russia. But to see this wader at its best, Mike recommends heading to their solitary British breeding outpost in Shetland where whimbrel combine their distinctive piping call with a bubbling flight song.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology, Juliet Vickery, describes an encounter with a patrolling male woodcock 30 years ago, watching it circle its territory from high in the sky. Apart from this display these waders are very hard to see, usually inhabiting dense woods and heathland, which also makes them hard to monitor. However thanks to generations of volunteer observers, we know that the distribution of breeding woodcock in the UK is sadly less than half of what it was in the 1960s.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Author and conservationist Isabella Tree began inviting friends over to hear nightingales at Knepp, her home and rewilding project in West Sussex, 15 years ago. Nightingales used to be associated with coppiced woodland, but at Knepp they’re thriving in dense, thorny scrub which provides protection for their nests, which they build a foot or so above the ground. Though nightingales are still one of the UK's rarest birds, today Knepp has around 60 singing males a year – around 1% of the UK population.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded by Hazel Reeves at Knepp.

Ornithologist Jack Baddams remembers chancing upon his first spotted flycatcher nest at Creswell Crags in Derbyshire. He became hooked on them after that, and fitted the adult birds with coloured rings to see who had safely returned from Africa. Although the spotted flycatcher may not have the most interesting song, Jack was drawn to them by their behaviour, and the way they would dart out from the limestone crags to snatch an insect on the wing.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Bristol.

Entomologist George McGavin worked at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History for 25 years, where each year he looked forward to the return of swifts to their nest boxes.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Poet Liz Berry has been sailing the Shropshire Union canal on a narrow boat since she was young. She describes the canal winding out of Wolverhampton into beautiful emerald green cuttings, where if you're lucky you might see a kingfisher. The canal's shallow and slowly moving waters are perfect hunting grounds. For Liz the azure and copper flash of a kingfisher darting low across the water is a magical sight.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

Explorer and wildlife filmmaker Roland Arnison has been kayaking along Scotland's west coast on a quest to record the sounds of seabirds. Of all the many species he's encountered, it was the fulmar that really captured his heart.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded by Roland Arnison on the Isle of Mingulay.

Non-fiction writer Polly Atkin tells the story of a magical moment when a grey wagtail joined her swimming by a waterfall in a tree-lined gorge.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Featuring audio recorded by Jarek Matusiak from Xeno-Canto (Grey Wagtail -XC360715).

The zoologist and writer Jo Wimpenny shares a story of a close encounter with a red kite in the Chiltern Hills, which swooped in to steal some food. This has become a more common experience in the area with the bird's population having grown by over 1,000% since the 1990s. Jo points out that although the return of a species that lives so well alongside humans won't always be welcomed, it's helpful to remember our shared past, like when hundreds of years ago red kites were valued for clearing streets of carrion and waste.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio recorded by Simon Elliott from Xeno-Canto (Red Kite - XC1070598).

For ornithologist and wildlife researcher for BBC's Springwatch, Jack Baddams, March is 'siskin season'. As a licenced bird ringer, he puts ID rings on wild birds so we can learn more about their lives. One of Jack's favourite bird encounters while ringing was during a bird ringing demonstration for the public. The crowd was fascinated by a female siskin with its delicate citrus green and yellow plumage, but then she became even more amazing when they discovered she was already wearing a ring of Swedish origin.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto recorded by Simon Elliott (Eurasian Siskin - XC594919).

Naturalist and TV presenter Mike Dilger remembers spending a bird breeding season 30 years ago surveying the Cetti's warbler. The Cetti's has a secretive nature, and like most birders Mike is more familiar with its explosive song rather than it's appearance, which has been described as ‘someone dropping a saxophone in a reed-bed’. Since Mike's foray into the world of conservation science in the mid-nineties the population of the Cetti's warbler has increased rapidly in the UK, most likely due to milder winters.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto recorded by Simon Elliott (Cetti's Warbler - XC792549).

CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology Juliet Vickery fell in love with dippers while studying them during her PhD in south-west Scotland. She finds them packed full of character, and perfectly adapted to life between water and land. Dippers have to make sure their complex song is heard above the sound of rushing water, and for Juliet the combination of bubbling bird song and bubbling brook is completely magical.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

In 2024 and 2025 expedition leader and film-maker Roland Arnison kayaked along the west coast and isles of Scotland to find and record the sounds of seabird species. As part of his quest he stopped on the island of Lunga, a protected area for its breeding seabird colonies and incredible place to spot them. One night Roland climbed the cliffs to find a colony of Manx shearwaters and recorded them calling from their burrows.

Presented by Roland Arnison and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol

This programme features audio recorded on Lunga by Roland Arnison.

The writer Horatio Clare remembers the buzzards of his childhood, which soared above his home in the Black Mountains in south Wales.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Poet Liz Berry lived near the Wren's Nest Nature Reserve in the Black Country for years, but it was only recently that she stopped and listened to a real wren there. It made her think how the bird was hiding in the place name, which is one of Britain's most important geological sites. The wren's latin name Troglodytes troglodytes means 'cave-dweller', reminding Liz of the folk that used to work in the mines that have shaped the Wren's Nest landscape.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Every Spring wildlife filmmaker Hannah Stitfall heads out to look for long-tailed tits. She hopes to film them building their nests - intricate, domed structures built out of moss, feathers and spider silk. Unlike many other small birds, the long-tailed tit is capable of cooperative breeding, and will help relatives raise their chicks if their own don't survive. For Hannah the long-tailed tit is one of the quiet wonders of the countryside, and a reminder that even the smallest creatures live fascinating lives.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

The non-fiction writer Polly Atkin is particularly fond of owls. Tawny owls surround her home in Grasmere in Cumbria, and she has observed the wintering of short-eared owls at the coast. One which remains elusive is the highly secretive long-eared owl, which Polly has never seen in the wild. Considered to be thinly but widely-spread in the UK, they are a scarce breeding species and very difficult to survey. Polly recalls stories from centuries ago of large colonies of long-eared owls resident in the Cumbrian woodland.

Polly Atkin is the author of The Company of Owls (Elliott & Thompson).

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

As a child, the entomologist George McGavin found a dead gannet on the beach, and set about extracting the skull for his collection. He was fascinated to discover the hundreds of pointed barbs in its mouth. Now years later he marvels at this clever bit of evolution which prevents fish falling out of gannets' beaks as they dive into the water then become airborne again.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology Juliet Vickery is particularly fond of brent geese, having studied them on the Norfolk coast for three winters. They are our smallest goose, which migrate from the Arctic Circle every year. She describes what she learnt about fluctuations in their population, and the fascinating connection with lemmings in the Siberian tundra.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features recordings from Xeno-Canto by David Darrell-Lambert (XC994302 and XC994306)

The writer Horatio Clare has a message from the rooks, pointing out the ways they differ from crows.

Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto recorded by Olivier Swift (Rook - XC703729)

Conservation biologist Tolga Aktas shares his fascination with watching jackdaws. He was struck by the contrast between its black plumage and piercing pale eyes, which they likely use as a communication tool. Jackdaws form large, noisy communal winter roosts with other species, and aren't afraid to mob predators behaviour which Tolga finds spectacular to see.

Presented by Tolga Aktas and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

The poet and non-fiction writer Polly Atkin observes the wintering of short-eared owls in Cumbria. They are the UK's most nomadic owl, with residents joined by migrants from Scandinavia, Iceland and Russia, seeking a gentler version of the season. Fellow owl-lovers have told Polly of the moment they arrive exhausted at the coast, and she has watched a pair nest in a building site near the sea, concerned how they would survive.

Polly Atkin is the author of The Company of Owls (Elliott & Thompson).

Presented by Polly Atkin and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

This programme features recordings from Xeno-Canto by Lars Edenius (XC731000 and XC731272 - Short-eared owl)

For poet Liz Berry, December is the robin's month, when our hearts are warmed by its singing under frosty streetlights. She wonders if its midwinter song is one of the reasons why we feel close to robins, and imagine them as our companions in the thin places between living and dying. Liz tells the story of how the robin brought her hope during a difficult pregnancy, inspired by its fierceness and willingness to survive.

Presented by Liz Berry and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features a recording by Martin Billard from Xeno-Canto (XC871726 - European Robin)

The author and journalist Horatio Clare reflects on the cultural history of the human relationship with pheasants. Its Latin name Phasianus Colchicus links the pheasant to the ancient kingdom of Colchis on the shores of the Black Sea, made famous in Greek mythology as the land of the Golden Fleece. These large, colourful long-tailed birds are native to Asia, and likely journeyed to western Europe with the Romans, becoming a symbol of wealth and status. The Normans are credited with popularising the shooting of pheasants in the 11th century, an industry which today releases an estimated 30-45 million captive-bred pheasants into the British countryside every year.

Presented by Horatio Clare and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto recorded by Simon Elliot, David M and Tanguy Loïs (XC155202, XC640749 and XC727854 - Common Pheasant).

In the season where starlings gather to murmurate in our winter skies, poet Paul Farley is admiring this dazzling bird up close. Every spring a pair of starlings used to nest in a hollow wall in the house where Paul grew up, and he never got tired of studying its dark iridescent plumage. Laying in bed at night Paul would hear the starlings' impressive mimicry, and remembers the sound of a radio being tuned and even human voices, imagining that these intelligent birds have been curiously studying us.

Presented by Paul Farley and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

This programme features a recording by Oliver Swift from Xeno-Canto (XC710439 - Common Starling)

When nature writer Amy-Jane Beer moved to her current home, it seemed like the perfect rural dream. However, there then came an insistent knocking sound every morning - a pair of carrion crows would tap the windows, affronted by their reflections. Amy describes watching and learning to love these birds, which she sees as her quirky, idiosyncratic neighbours.

Presented by Amy-Jane Beer and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Featuring a recording by Martin Billard from Xeno-Canto (Carrion Crow - XC929595)

The home of poet and non-fiction writer Polly Atkin is surrounded by tawny owls. They are the most common owl in Britain, ranging from 20,000 to 50,000 breeding pairs, though we don't know exactly how many. Polly describes hearing the first melancholy call of a tawny owl in autumn, echoing around the lake at Grasmere. Kept awake by chronic illness, the owls' nighttime calls remind Polly that we are not alone, the sound means company, community and home.

Polly Atkin is the author of The Company of Owls (Elliott & Thompson).

Presented by Polly Atkin and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.

Poet Paul Farley welcomes the return of the shelduck to our shores, back after their summer migration to the Wadden Sea. These vast mudflats off the coast of The Netherlands and Germany provide a refuge for shelducks as they go through their so-called 'catastrophic moult' where they simultaneously loose all their flight and tail feathers. Paul imagines this vast gathering of around 200,000 birds as sort of 'Shelduck Glastonbury' where they get completely flightless, and is always glad to see them home.

Presented by Paul Farley and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol

In 2024 and 2025 expedition leader and film-maker Roland Arnison kayaked along the west coast and isles of Scotland to find and record the sounds of seabird species. His quest took him 40 miles out into the Atlantic to St Kilda in search of the Leach's petrel, one of Britain's rarest birds that only nests on a handful of offshore rocky islands. We join Roland scrambling up a cliff at midnight to hear the extraordinary call of this nocturnal bird.

Presented by Roland Arnison and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol

This programme features audio recorded on St Kilda by Roland Arnison.

Entomologist and wildlife presenter George McGavin describes his lifelong fascination with the red-backed shrike. When George bought his first bird guide at the age of 10, this small shrike caught his eye because of its habit of impaling large insects and small vertebrates on thorns. This 'butcher bird' was once a common visitor to the south of England but was lost as a British breeding species by the 1990s - and it wasn't until 50 years after first reading about it that George finally got to see one.

Presented by George McGavin and produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol

Featuring a recording from Xeno-canto by Elias A. Ryberg (Red-backed shrike - XC676551)