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Russ Boland

@russboland.bsky.social
611 followers 361 following 383 posts

Birder, Sketcher, Travel Bug, Runner, Booze, Northumberland, 80's Cheese and Barnsley FC

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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Field sketches of two White-billed Divers recently at Inverkeithing, Fife for #SuperSeabirdSunday with a bit of color added later. An absolute privilege to sit and sketch these! A British tick and what absolute stonkers! Cheers 🍻
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Patchwork Challenge @patchbirding.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
The Patchwork Challenge 2025 article is now out in the latest issue of @birdguides.bsky.social's Birdwatch Extra Magazine! We hope all subscribers enjoy the write-up, it was a brilliant collaborative effort and we thank those patch birders that helped! Enjoy!
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
There are only about 100 Black-tailed Godwits breeding in England. Many of these 'limosa' birds have been to Africa for the winter. More here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2020/03/04/b... #ornithology
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Stewart @stewchat.bsky.social · 23/02/2026
A few recent sketches...from poor phone scoped videos back home. #birdart #sketchbook #Northumberland #UKBirding
Red necked GrebeStoat with RabbitWhite billed Diver
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
Field studies of the regular 2nd W Caspian Gull at Worsbro' Reservoir recently. A difficult bird to capture accurately despite me spending loadsa time over the years sketching big gulls. Need to get back into it! Cheers
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Mike Carr @mike-carr.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
www.countryside-jobs.com/job/mar26/sh...
countryside-jobs.com
Natural England: Shorebird and Engagement Assistant Ranger advertised with CJS
Contract: Fixed Term 27th April – 4th September Location: Based at Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve, Northumberland Hours: 37.5 hours per week on rota and will include weekends and bank holidays Sa...
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
Field studies of an adult Shag I chanced upon at my local reservoir this morning. The first here since March 1988, which I also found! 🤭A rather unusual submission for #SuperSeabirdSunday Obviously one of a recent influx in the region. Cheers
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 17/01/2026
A beautiful day along the north coast yesterday, I was really lucky that the Harlequin was again showing really well for a few hours before work. I will be back again next week and can only hope for more good weather!
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
A quick painting of the Harlequin that is still hanging about in north Donegal. I am really looking forward to getting back to the coast later this week and hope to see him again.
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BirdGuides @birdguides.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
Rarity finders: Short-billed Gull in the Faroe Islands What began as routine winter harbour checks in stormy Faroese conditions culminated in the discovery of a second-ever record for the Western Palearctic for Ragnar Smith:
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Rarity finders: Short-billed Gull in the Faroe Islands
Ragnar Smith describes the discovery and identification of the Western Palearctic's second-ever Short-billed Gull in the Faroe Islands in January 2026.
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Golden Plovers don't like neighbours! Many anthropogenic changes affect Iceland's Golden Plovers, as you can read here, but particularly building a new house in an open landscape: wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/12/02/r... Species newly added to VULNERABLE section of Icelandic RED LIST. #Ornithology
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Curlew and Grey Plover studies from a post Xmas visit to the excellent Welwick Marshes reserve near Hull. I must have sketched pages and pages of the latter species but still struggle with the subtleties of them! Cheers
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Dunlin now VULNERABLE on Iceland's RED LIST. One of the waders most impacted by new forestry plantations: wadertales.wordpress.com/2022/06/18/i... Over 50% of Europe's Dunlin nest in Iceland so recent declines are of concern to whole East Atlantic Flyway. #ConservationScience🌍
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
Sketchbook highlights from 2025. The rare, the common, lifers and the familiar. All a joy. Thanks for the interest over the year and a Happy and Healthy New Year to you all! 🎉🍻#Birding #BirdArt
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 31/12/2025
A wonderful, but cold and breezy morning back at Trà na gCloch in north Donegal ahead of my last survey of the year. A huge thank you to everyone who has liked, shared and bought my work throughout the year, I am eternally grateful for all the support. Best wishes for 2026
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 28/12/2025
Find the best #birding in #Belgrade @ the Dorćol Quay (📷) and the Zemun Quay, overlooking the #Danube. These days, look out for Black-throated Diver (2), Velvet Scoter (3), Red-necked Grebe (3) ▶️ 10000birds.com/december-bir... 🌳 #goBirding 🌳 #birdsuniteourworld 🌳 #seetheunseen 🌳 #fortheloveofnature
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 28/12/2025
1/10 The first WaderTales blog of 2025 summarised a paper by @amigodeaves.bsky.social et al: How are migration sites connected? Study combines ringing, colour-ringing and tracking data, to identify key sites on East Atlantic Flyway. wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/01/09/h... #ornithology
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Dr Toby Driver @drtobydriver.bsky.social · 25/12/2025
Still one of my favourite memes from last Christmas...😉 #StarWars #Snowman
A meme showing the boy in the snowman with a light saber killing the snowman
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Steph' Thorpe @stephbirdart.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
I want to wish everyone a Happy Christmas to those celebrating, and Happy Holidays to everyone else and say a big thank you to everyone who has commissioned paintings in the last year. May we all have a wonderful time.
A painting of 3 Bramblings, beautiful orange and black birds with the words Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year across the top.
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 24/12/2025
A Merry Xmas to friends and followers! Goosander sketches done recently at my local reservoir in tribute to The Snowman genius Raymond Briggs. Have a good 'un! 🌲🎉🍻#Birding #BirdArt Cheers
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
Researchers share their findings about the effects of tracking devices on survival etc., so that others can learn how to study waders as safely as possible. 1/4 New paper suggests that Kentish Plovers are not affected by tracking devices. nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1... BUT ...
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Maudeux.creations 🎨🐦 @maudeuxcreations.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
The Common Redpoll survives Arctic cold by burrowing into snow ❄️ Snow traps air, making it a powerful insulator against wind and freezing temperatures. This watercolor comes from my Arctic terrestrial birds poster. #wildlifeart #scienceart #ArcticBirds #sciart #birdart #bird
Naturalistic and scientific watercolor illustrations of a male and female Common Redpoll, showing detailed plumage and color differences.Watercolor of a male Common Redpoll in progress, with only the pink areas of the plumage painted.Overview of the Arctic terrestrial birds poster, featuring the Common Redpoll among other northern species.
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BirdGuides @birdguides.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
The world's oldest known bird has returned to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge for the 2025-26 breeding season:
bit.ly
Wisdom the Laysan Albatross returns to nest at Midway Atoll
The world's oldest known bird has returned to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge for the 2025-26 breeding season. 'Wisdom', a female Laysan Albatross, has reoccupied her regular nest site and is now preparing for another chance at parenthood. Wisdom was at least five years old when ringed in 1956, putting her age at approximately 75 years old.
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
Ring-billed Gull sketches for #SuperSeabirdSunday from a recent trip to Toronto. No interesting imms in this gathering alas. I'm also not sure if anyone can be arsed looking at this stuff anymore but thanks for those who do.🍻
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BirdGuides @birdguides.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
Counts carried out this autumn on the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan border have logged more than 5,000 Sociable Lapwings – one of the largest gatherings of this Critically Endangered species recorded in recent decades:
bit.ly
Bumper Sociable Lapwing count offers hope for global population
More than 5,000 Critically Endangered Sociable Lapwings were counted at a major migration stop-over in Turkmenistan in autumn 2025. The record high offers rare good news for the species and highlights the importance of key staging sites.
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
What lessons can we learn from the demise of the Slender-billed Curlew? Blog published on 12 Dec 2024, based on paper by Graeme Buchanan et al in @bou.org.uk journal IBIS. wadertales.wordpress.com/2024/12/12/l... #ornithology
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Ed Keeble @edkeeble.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Not a field sketch that's for sure, but just pencilling out a top nice thing from the Stour today- wind lifting the nape of a Black-throated Diver enough to make a white crescent from the underlay. #BirdArt
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
The annual post-breeding moult of a shorebird lasts about three months - that's as long as a successful breeding season. Monitoring moult using digital cameras: wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/10/09/m... #ornithology
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Steph' Thorpe @stephbirdart.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
Quick for information post... Sorry if folk have messaged me etc and haven't heard back, I haven't felt like dealing with work and art at all due to illness still and not knowing what's going on. I will try to start getting back to people soon🙏
Watercolour of an immature White-billed Diver swimming to the right.
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BirdGuides @birdguides.bsky.social · 07/12/2025
Counts carried out this autumn on the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan border have logged more than 5,000 Sociable Lapwings – one of the largest gatherings of this Critically Endangered species recorded in recent decades:
bit.ly
Bumper Sociable Lapwing count offers hope for global population
More than 5,000 Critically Endangered Sociable Lapwings were counted at a major migration stop-over in Turkmenistan in autumn 2025. The record high offers rare good news for the species and highlights the importance of key staging sites.
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 07/12/2025
A few days in Toronto last week produced a couple of lifers. White-winged Scoter was one of 'em. Drawn from memory due to very blustery conditions. Trumpeter Swan the other. 100's of Long-tailed Ducks to sift thru, too, for #SuperSeabirdSunday Cheers
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
Not everyone relies on AI ... So far this year, over 19,000 people in 139 countries have read at least one WaderTales blog. wadertales.wordpress.com/about/ The most popular of this year's blogs is "Making full use of tracking data". wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/05/06/m... #ornithology
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
#Birding #Beljarica, #Belgrade, a spacious flood retention basin of seasonally inundated riparian forests of willow and poplar, had a great observation of Black Woodpeckers, Great White Egret, 📷 White-tailed Eagle, Mistle Thrush, Meadow Pipit, Water Pipit, Hawfinch 🌳 #ForlandLeveObaleDunava NR 🌳
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
#Colombia 🇨🇴 is one of those countries my dreams are made of, and Hilty’s "#Birds of Colombia" is a stunning book with beautiful artwork, authoritative, if concise texts and easy to navigate maps. Highly recommended! ▶️ 10000birds.com/hiltys-birds... #birding #lynxnaturebooks #birdbooks #fieldguides
10000birds.com
Hilty’s Birds of Colombia field guide review
Birds of Colombia (Lynx and BirdLife International Field Guides) by Steven L. Hilty “Sadly, a few specimens, salvaged from these shipments, were so rare that they have never been found in the wild”…
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Those wild landscapes that I know, love and study: #birding #DeliblatoSands Reserve, 1hr east of #Belgrade www.youtube.com/watch?v=TM0e...
youtube.com
CiROCCO Serbia Use Case - Deliblato Sands
YouTube video by CiROCCO EU Project
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Earlier in the autumn a stunning Red-breasted Goose appeared along the north coast. It was a bit early to be considered a genuine vagrant, but it was a stunning looking bird. It was my first time to see the species anywhere, and I was glad to spend a bit of time sketching it.
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 27/11/2025
Late November #birding #DeliblatoSands Reserve, 1hr east of #Belgrade, #Serbia – 350 km2 of forest (40%), scrub (30%) and grassland (20%) in the largest inland dune system of Europe: Lesser Spotted, and Syrian Woodpecker, Mistle Thrush, Meadow Pipit, Hawfinch, Common Linnet, European Serin
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 23/11/2025
Big gull studies for #SuperSeabirdSunday at Old Moor RSPB recently. Herrings (Inc a nice 'argentatus' candidate, Lesser and Great Black-backed Gulls. At the site's quietest times there's always the larids to sketch! Cheers
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
#Birding #Morocco 510sp, 210 breeding in the country, 190sp/12days; regions: Atlas mountains #Ouarzazate (📷 #HôtelLeFintOuarzazate) and #BoumaleneDades; Sahara Erfoud temporary lake of #Merzouga & dunes of #ErgChebbi (📷 #MerzougaDesertGlamping); Agadir coast Souss & Massa estuaries; late Apr-May🌴🌴
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
A small selection of the Christmas cards that are available on my website. You can see the full range at www.robertvaughanillustrations.com
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Stewart @stewchat.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
25 years ago! Where does the time go.... ##fieldnotes #fieldsketches #birdart #notebooks
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
#Birding #Panama: the #CanopyCamp in #Darien lowland rainforest, safari-style tents with wooden floors, beds, fans &private bathrooms: 250sp/5days: Harpy, & Crested Eagle, White-eared Conebill, Red-billed Scythebill, Royal Flycatcher, Pied Puffbird; five-hour-drive from Panama City; Sep to early Nov
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
#Birding the saline desert of #LittleRann which floods every monsoon, #Dasada, #Gujarat, #India: 250sp 🦩🦩🦩, MacQueen’s Bustard, Indian Courser, Long-legged Buzzard, Greater Hoopoe-Lark, Sykes’s Nightjar, Pallid Scops Owl, Variable Wheatear; #RannRiders Lodge, 2.5hrs by road from Ahmedabad ✈️; Dec-Feb
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
Each spring, shorebirds gather in Delaware Bay to feast on the eggs of horseshoe crabs. What happens when this food is not available? Red Knot suffer more than flexible Ruddy Turnstones. wadertales.wordpress.com/2019/11/15/r... Blog from 15 Nov 2019 🎂 Paper by Anna Tucker et al #ConservationScience🌎
wadertales.wordpress.com
Red Knot pay the price for being fussy eaters!
In a fascinating comparison of weight gained by Red Knot and Ruddy Turnstone during spring migration in Delaware Bay, on America’s east-coast flyway, Anna Tucker and colleagues show that Knot are f…
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
White-tailed Eagles are becoming an increasingly regular sight in Donegal, and can almost be guaranteed at a few favoured locations. This was a rough study from a few years ago to help me age the birds I was seeing.
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Russ Boland @russboland.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Latest watercolor effort - two Lapwings at the Northumberland coast. Worked up from various field sketches. Cheers #BirdArt
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Robert Vaughan @robertvaughani.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
I was glad to see the 2 Taiga Bean Geese last week at Dooey in West Donegal. Having managed brief views of 1 of the 9 Taiga's that had been at Inch, it was a great opportunity to be able to take in the structure and details. A Pink-footed sleeping in a roadside field made for a much better subject.
This adult Pink-footed Goose showed particularly well, sleeping in a roadside field with some Greylags.It was a great opportunity to sketch the details of what is still a relatively scarce bird away from a few sites.The 2 Taiga Beans remained distant, but gave an opportunity to focus on the structure, being quite distinct from the more regular Tundra.Hopefully they remain for the winter now and I will be able to return for better views and more sketching.
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Dragan's Birding Travel Tips @albicilla66.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
#Birding tropical moist and dry deciduous forests of #Nagarahole Tiger Reserve, #India, 330sp: endemic Malabar Trogon, M. Grey Hornbill, M. Parakeet, White-bellied Woodpecker, Indian Pitta, the largest population of Asian Elephants; 📷 #KAAVSafariLodge @ #Kabini, 5hrs drive from #Bangalore ✈️; Oct-Mar
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
f you have ever reported a colour-ringed Black-tailed Godwit, you have helped to establish connections that cross national and continental boundaries. Here's how the Wash links to other sites. Draw your local map using a ShinyApp: wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/01/09/h... #UKbirding
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