Magic Moments with Birds

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Magic Moments with Birds Helping you experience wonderful birdlife in memorable settings.
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Happy to make the connection between birds and the beautiful game. My excuse is it's the Euros!
22/06/2024

Happy to make the connection between birds and the beautiful game. My excuse is it's the Euros!

Football is Britain's – and indeed the world's – most popular sport. And among the thousands of football clubs across the planet, birds have inspired nicknames for decades. Ed Stubbs explores some of the avian monikers that have made it into 'the beautiful game'.

Yesterday’s bird count before the nightjar evening encounter!
20/06/2024

Yesterday’s bird count before the nightjar evening encounter!

19/06/2024

Out this evening in Dunster Forest with some of the group from our week at Lee Abbey Devon. We were treated to incredible views of Nightjars flying around us and churring in trees very close to us. Here’s a clip of one just warming up its vocal chords with the accompaniment of a Tawny Owl in the background. Magical!

Today’s bird tally from walking in the woods on the Lee Abbey Devon estate, as well as in the Valley of Rocks. Unfortuna...
18/06/2024

Today’s bird tally from walking in the woods on the Lee Abbey Devon estate, as well as in the Valley of Rocks. Unfortunately the wind direction put paid to our planned boat trip, but great views of acrobatic Peregrine falcons were a consolation. Here’s the group enjoying parts of the walk. Hopefully some bird pictures to come later in the week.

Second full day of our birding trip based at Lee Abbey Devon. This is each of the last 2 days’ species counts and scenes...
22/05/2024

Second full day of our birding trip based at Lee Abbey Devon. This is each of the last 2 days’ species counts and scenes from today along the Taw estuary and at Braunton Burrows. Also a Dipper feeding its young, courtesy of Caroline Rhymes Walker from yesterday. Another great day out and more to come tomorrow!

Day one of our Exmoor birds week. Great weather for our Valley of Rocks and Lee Abbey estate walk and also our boat trip...
22/05/2024

Day one of our Exmoor birds week. Great weather for our Valley of Rocks and Lee Abbey estate walk and also our boat trip. Lee Abbey Devon

11/05/2024

Reed warbler singing from a ditch yesterday. Wherever there are reeds they are taking up residence in May. They are also often chosen as host parents by cuckoos! Join one of our walks to learn your spring warbler songs.

On the same day as the Waxwing sightings a lone summer Swallow was sighted and warblers were in full voice. April is cer...
20/04/2024

On the same day as the Waxwing sightings a lone summer Swallow was sighted and warblers were in full voice. April is certainly a crossover month! This is an action shot of Andy, one of our keen photographers, focussing on a Mandarin Duck.

The real osprey nest is way in the distance through the telescope. Sadly both birds had gone fishing so the nestcam show...
10/04/2024

The real osprey nest is way in the distance through the telescope. Sadly both birds had gone fishing so the nestcam showed only the empty nest. Still it’s exciting to know they are nesting in Cumbria. Day 3 of my Magic Moments with Birds northern recce and the rain is not giving up (or dampening my spirits!) The wonderful hospitality @ Thornleigh Grange-over-Sands helps to make up for the challenging weather!

This Saturday join us for an early spring walk around Buckland Warren. Ravens are just one of the specialities that nest...
26/03/2024

This Saturday join us for an early spring walk around Buckland Warren. Ravens are just one of the specialities that nest here. Signing up is easy via .

**Buckland Warren is an SSSI site in the Vale of White Horse that is of interest for its birding potential. It is an area of largely sandy soil and the nearest thing to hea

This Sunday sees our group return to a favourite site, Port Meadow on the Thames at Oxford. The wet meadows always host ...
09/02/2024

This Sunday sees our group return to a favourite site, Port Meadow on the Thames at Oxford. The wet meadows always host interesting waders and wildfowl in the winter months, and we will be aiming to spot some of these!

**Join us as we return to Port Meadow for a winter afternoon birding walk to see what is around on the river and flood meadow.** On our last group walk in September the mea

What a week it's been for the group based at Sheldon Retreat in Devon. The weather has been kind and there have been a l...
03/02/2024

What a week it's been for the group based at Sheldon Retreat in Devon. The weather has been kind and there have been a lot of Magic Moments with Birds for us to enjoy! Here are just a few of the highlights from our time there.
We are always looking for venues that will host us - please make contact if you know of other places in the UK who can offer hospitality. The group loves to travel and see what we can find in different locations!
Thanks especially to Caroline Rhymes Walker for her expert eye with the camera.
RSPB Bowling Green Marsh Seaton Wetlands Otter Estuary Nature Reserve

01/02/2024
Another great day out with the group from Sheldon Retreat at Seaton Wetlands. Another good tally of birds including an e...
01/02/2024

Another great day out with the group from Sheldon Retreat at Seaton Wetlands. Another good tally of birds including an elusive Water Rail and an unexpected Bar headed Goose. boasts a gem of a reserve with easy access for all and lots to see. We hope to be back!

Today’s bird count and scenes from Stover Country Park, Labrador Bay and the Exe estuary with some birds from yesterday,...
31/01/2024

Today’s bird count and scenes from Stover Country Park, Labrador Bay and the Exe estuary with some birds from yesterday, taken by Caroline Rhymes Walker. Another great count today with 16 species not seen yesterday.

What a fantastic first day out with the birding group from Sheldon Retreat. 65 species on our day count from RSPB Bowlin...
30/01/2024

What a fantastic first day out with the birding group from Sheldon Retreat. 65 species on our day count from RSPB Bowling Green Marsh and the Otter Estuary Nature Reserve, including our star bird of the day the Spoonbill. More to follow this week!

Join us this Saturday on our first birdwatch of 2024.Rushy Common & Tar Lakes: our own local Winterwatch! (Grade 1) ...
02/01/2024

Join us this Saturday on our first birdwatch of 2024.
Rushy Common & Tar Lakes: our own local Winterwatch! (Grade 1) https://meetup.com/magic-moments-with-birds/events/298282306/ via

Join me as, for the first walk of the new year, we visit this hidden gem in the **Lower Windrush Valley** taking in various lakes and looking for surprising species which s

Another great example of nature reclamation from an industrial past.
29/12/2023

Another great example of nature reclamation from an industrial past.

Revisiting a hidden gem of a reserve; hopefully one day group visits will be on the agenda. Good views amongst others of...
26/12/2023

Revisiting a hidden gem of a reserve; hopefully one day group visits will be on the agenda. Good views amongst others of Curlews, Willow Tit, Bullfinches and Reed Buntings.

I'm looking forward to hearing people's tales of their best ever encounters with birds. It's a Christmas Creative Writin...
19/12/2023

I'm looking forward to hearing people's tales of their best ever encounters with birds. It's a Christmas Creative Writing Challenge!

**It's Christmas, so it's time to get your thinking caps on and write a short precis about your best ever birdwatching experience.** The incentive for what I judge to be th

Special discount offer on an amazing Devon birdwatching holiday in January. £100 off the original price - available to t...
14/12/2023

Special discount offer on an amazing Devon birdwatching holiday in January. £100 off the original price - available to the first two responding: Be quick so that you don't miss out on the discount! https://www.sheldonretreat.com/visit/events/329

© 2023 The Society of Mary and Martha at Sheldon, Sheldon Lane, Doddiscombsleigh, Exeter EX6 7YT. 01647-252752. Registered charity number 327394. Website developed by Webselect Ltd

Winter may be well and truly upon us now but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad time for birdwatching in our country. Many bir...
13/12/2023

Winter may be well and truly upon us now but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad time for birdwatching in our country. Many birds migrate here from northern climes as it’s much milder in Britain than where they breed. In particular, wildfowl and waders from the north love our estuaries and coasts, and there is the perfect opportunity to spend a short break from January 29 to February 2 with a SPECIAL CUT PRICE offer in glorious Devon with Magic Moments With Birds. But you’ll need to hurry - this offer is limited to the first TWO respondents only!

Staying in comfort at the well-appointed and very comfortable Sheldon Retreat near Exeter, we will have the opportunity to visit some of the finest estuaries for wintering birds in the country during our days out. We can expect to see birds such as Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit and Cirl Bunting and there is a chance of spotting rarer birds too. Due to cancellations a discount of £100 off the full price is being offered on bookings for the first two people responding. To take advantage of this offer go to https://www.sheldonretreat.com/visit/events/329 , and note that the full price is now £430 for the week (please also confirm your booking with Magic Moments With Birds at https://www.meetup.com/magic-moments-with-birds/events/296254378/ where you can see further information).

© 2023 The Society of Mary and Martha at Sheldon, Sheldon Lane, Doddiscombsleigh, Exeter EX6 7YT. 01647-252752. Registered charity number 327394. Website developed by Webselect Ltd

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Out this evening in Dunster Forest with some of the group from our week at Lee Abbey Devon. We were treated to incredible views of Nightjars flying around us and churring in trees very close to us. Here’s a clip of one just warming up its vocal chords with the accompaniment of a Tawny Owl in the background. Magical!

Today’s bird tally from walking in the woods on the Lee Abbey Devon estate, as well as in the Valley of Rocks. Unfortunately the wind direction put paid to our planned boat trip, but great views of acrobatic Peregrine falcons were a consolation. Here’s the group enjoying parts of the walk. Hopefully some bird pictures to come later in the week.

Reed warbler
Reed warbler

Reed warbler singing from a ditch yesterday. Wherever there are reeds they are taking up residence in May. They are also often chosen as host parents by cuckoos! Join one of our walks to learn your spring warbler songs.

Another great day out with the group from Sheldon Retreat at Seaton Wetlands. Another good tally of birds including an elusive Water Rail and an unexpected Bar headed Goose. #wildeastdevon boasts a gem of a reserve with easy access for all and lots to see. We hope to be back!

Sand Martin colony
Sand Martin colony

See the activity at a Sand Martin colony on a cliff in Southern England. Magic!

The eerie sound of a Nightjar calling at dusk from an oak tree in the New Forest, from our recent group trip to Keyhaven and Pennington.

The sights and sounds of spring along the river. Birdsong and blossom are rife now - so get out if you can and make the most of this time! Thanks to Yioulia Karagkouni for the video.

Listen out now at dusk in your neighbourhood for the Song Thrush announcing its territory. An incredible repertoire of phrases! #birds #nature #sounds #wellness

For anyone disappointed with the starling murmurations at Otmoor recently, try getting along to Eynsham (Spareacre Lane) soon. Literally thousands displaying and roosting in gardens at dusk. Quite a spectacle!

Nightjar calling
Nightjar calling

It's almost dark and the strange churring call of the male Nightjar drifts across the heath. It's calling from the top of a pine tree on the edge of a clearing on Snelsmore Common, Berkshire. Keep an eye out for the announcement of an evening walk here soon!

A real cuckoo fest for us today at Rushy Common! Join us if you can on our next walk along the Thames. See the Meetup link for more.

Nightjar flight calls
Nightjar flight calls

The joy of waiting until dusk for a nightjar to fly around your head calling! A great way to end the day at our group Meetup to Greenham Common this weekend. Thanks to Paul Hart for capturing the moment.

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Magic Moments with Birds

Our encounters with birds can often be very special and evoke magical memories for us. It may be seeing an owl hunting for the first time or hearing the song of a nightingale, or perhaps getting up close to seabirds that you may not have encountered before. It is my aim to help the visitor tap into something of this sense of wonder as collectively we explore special places in the countryside. At the end of our time together my desire is that people leave with memories of exceptional experiences and a desire to discover more about our beautiful bird and wildlife.

Andrew Mann is a lifelong birder who spent three years on Exmoor with the Lee Abbey Community. During this time he took guests at the Conference Centre on bird identification walks, presented illustrated talks and produced the handbook ’The Birds of Lee Abbey Devon’. Since his time on Community, he has been back there to lead groups out exploring Exmoor further and running other birding weeks in Devon and further afield. Now residing in Oxfordshire, Andrew is a Committee member of the Oxford Ornithological Society and runs a Wildlife Group called 'Wild About Oxford' which arranges walks and talks locally.

Andrew is available to lead groups of guests at your centre or hotel and is happy to discuss the practicalities of how this could work in your location. He is also available to act as a birdwatching guide tailored to your requirements.