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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Bull Point yesterday a.m: modest visible migration, mainly Meadow Pipit (105), Skylark (23) & Linnet (73). 3 Great Sp Woodpecker high over the lighthouse were bizarre! A Goosander was a patch scarcity, and mating Wall Browns a delight. Nice views of feeding Rock Pipit too. #UKBirding #patchbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

An autumnal Wheatear on equally autumnal herb-rich grassland at NT’s Woolacombe Down this morning. Steady passage of Meadow Pipits & Skylarks after early low cloud lifted. Single Cetti’s Warbler and Mistle Thrush presumed migrants too. Trickle of Swallows through #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Distant Bonxie (pic!), 23 Common Scoter, 8 Sandwich Tern, 2 Manx Shearwater, 2 Turnstone – all W out of the Bristol Channel at Bull Point, after clearance of a cold front first thing this a.m. A burst of Swallow, House Martin & Meadow Pipit passage too. #UKbirding #DevonBirds #patchbirding

A distant Bonxie flying low, right to left and slightly away from the observer, over a bright but choppy sea and showing big white flashes on both upper and undersides of its wings

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

At Bull Point, three reeling Grasshopper Warblers at dawn this morning, plus good numbers of grounded Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Blackcap feeding in flowering blackthorn scrub. Single flyover Tree Pipit, Redpoll & Curlew. Continued strong passage NW of Linnet & Goldfinch #devonbirds #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

At a blustery Morte Point this a.m. an odd mix of seabirds displaced on the southern edge of Storm Dave, incl 65 Kittiwake & 35 Manx Shearwater, heading back W, and 130 Swallow & 204 Linnet piling N as skies cleared and winds dropped. Also 11 Turnstone, 11 House Martin & 3 R-t Diver. #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

Bull Point this morning: modest movements of finches, Meadow Pipits & Pied/alba wagtails. Highlights: 1 Swallow W at 07:30, 2 Sand Martin, 5 Common Scoter W. Grounded migrants = 16 Chiffchaff, 2 Willow Warbler, 2 Blackcap, 8 Wheatear, 13 Stonechat. Also 7 Peacocks & 1 Comma #devonbirds #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

Bull Point: busiest morning of spring passage so far, with 3 Sandwich Tern W, 18 Sand Martin, 11 Chiffchaff and a Wheatear. Plus migrating finches (incl 44 Goldfinch & 62 Linnet), wagtails (15 Pied & 11 unidentified albas) and small numbers of Woodpigeons. Mostly before 08:00. #devonbirds #ukbirding

Looking east from Bull Point just before sunrise

Classic spring Wheatear sitting on the very edge of the headland facing out north out to sea

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Bull Point calm but heavily overcast & chilly this morning. A few migrants on the move, incl 3 Sand Martin, 4 Skylark, 9 Pied Wagtail, 3 unid’d alba wag, 1 Grey Wag, 46 Meadow Pipit, 23 Linnet & 4 Goldfinch. Noticeable influx of 6+ Chiffchaff. #UKbirding #devonbirds

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

This was a first “in all my years etc…” 🤣 Spoon feeding – or at least spoon watering – a Tawny Owl!

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

But… it was clearly fit enough to have escaped its confinement before dusk! I let it be and opened the shed door and windows. It flew strongly, sat in the hedge for a few minutes – much to the consternation of nearby Blue Tits – then off it went into the wood. So a successful ending.

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Heard a strange noise coming from our chimney flue this morning. After a challenging extraction, with crucial help from Matt, our local sweep, we managed to free this adult Tawny Owl. We checked it over, made sure it drank some water, and kept it in a box for dusk release this evening. #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Sunrise at Bull Point was accompanied by singing Chiffchaffs and followed a bit later by the first Sand Martin of the year – my earliest site record. 14 alba wagtails & a Grey Wagtail overhead, c100 staging Meadow Pipits feeding. #devonbirds #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

Also during my spring-like, SUNNY, patch visit: single Woodcock & Firecrest, and three Red-throated Divers offshore. Frog tadpoles already in newly created ponds, and 'pussy willows' just breaking bud. Plus @lundybirds.bsky.social clear as a bell on the western horizon! #UKbirding #devonbirds

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 14/02/2026

At Bull Point today a Curlew (very unusal in Feb) flew in calling and *landed* (exceptional) revealing a GPS-tag, leg-flag and colour-rings! The bulge of the GPS tag shows up in the flight pic. Evidently a @curlewrecovery.bsky.social 'head started' bird; awaiting info on release site/date #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

Thrilled that last weekend’s @birdobscouncil.bsky.social AGM at @btobirds.bsky.social HQ in Thetford confirmed @lundybirds.bsky.social has successfully completed its 3-year probationary period and is once again a fully accredited member of the British & Irish Bird Observatory network 🥳 #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 10/01/2026

At Bull Point this morning, 2 Red-throated Diver feeding close inshore, 4 male Common Scoter flying W quite far out, and a Little Egret doing its best Cattle Egret impression, feeding among the Belted Galloway conservation grazers – white speck in the foreground😁 #ukbirding #devonbirds

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

New Year's Day patch birding at Bull Point yielded three Fulmar and single Gannet, Snipe, Sparrowhawk, Raven & Goldcrest among other species – very much a "winter on an exposed, blustery headland" feel to my notebook! Great to see new small-scale wetland creation by @nationaltrust.org.uk #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Highlight of a sunny New Year’s Eve walk on the Exmoor coast near Trentishoe was a wintering Ring Ouzel feeding on hawthorn berries at the head of this sheltered combe #ukbirding #devonbirds

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 19/08/2025

Five late(ish) Swifts heading ESE were the highlight of a couple of hours’ birding at Bull Point this morning, following an ethereal sunrise. #ukbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 15/08/2025

Reconnecting with my Bull Point birding patch after a spring & summer surveying elsewhere… This a.m: 1 Common Scoter, 4 Sandwich Tern, 430 Manx Shearwater, 20 Swallow, 9 Willow Warbler, 10 Whitethroat. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 20/04/2025

The best sighting of the day was not a bird but this pristine male Orange Tip butterfly, still drying itself out in the sun after emerging in the garden at home. What extraordinary beauty in those transluscent hindwings! 🤩 💚

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 20/04/2025

Bull Point quiet for late April. 35 Swallow, 9 Sand & 3 House Martin a poor showing for hirundines over several hours. Single Tree Pipit & Grasshopper Warbler, 4 Whitethroat & 8 Willow Warbler. Sunrise well round to the NE – over the Welsh coast already. Amazing how quickly that happens! #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

Surveying this morning for NT-led Landscape Recovery Scheme linking Arlington Estate with West Exmoor. Great to find 3 territorial male Yellowhammers – very scarce these days in this part of N Devon. Also Red Kite, another locally scarcity, and an obvious influx of phylloscs & Blackcaps. #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

Yesterday a.m. (5 Apr) at Bull Point: Osprey E at 10:15, 18 Sandwich Tern, 79 LB-b Gull, 3 Manx Shearwater, 127 Sand Martin, 51 Swallow, 17 House Martin, 7 alba wagtail, 2 Tree Pipit, 51 Meadow Pipit, 160 Linnet, 138 Goldfinch. Everything going E into the wind, gusting at F7, except the terns – SW!

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 24/03/2025

Proud to announce a new guide to Lundy’s commoner birds, aimed especially at helping day-trippers & families, has today hit the shelves of the island shop😊 With pics by Richard Campey⁩ and text by Tim⁩ Davis & myself, we hope this will also raise awareness of the Bird Observatory. #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

I took a winter break from posting but Spring Equinox has got me going again😃 At Bull Point, the first of 55 Sand Martins zipped through before sunrise. Also 3 Swallow (1st of yr), 141 LBB Gull coasting E, 219 Mipit, 47 Linnet, a songflighting Wheatear & a single subsinging Blackcap. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

Seems like we’re getting towards the fag-end of Chaffinch migration at Bull Point, with just 128 through in a couple of hours from dawn this a.m. Also 96 Woodpigeon, 31 Redwing, 6 Fieldfare and a female-type Black Redstart on the very highest bit of the lighthouse. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 26/10/2024

Back on my mainland patch at Bull Point this a.m., strong passage of c.2K Chaffinch, 6 Brambling & 43 Siskin – all undercounts due to tricky viewing conditions with clear skies & low sun. Also my 1st patch Yellow-browed Warbler plus 2 f-type Black Redstarts feeding around the lighthouse. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 26/10/2024

3/3 A Barnacle Goose flew in over the Cory's seawatchers on 17th, followed in short order by a Gt White Egret, and I stumbled on an Ortolan Bunting creeping in the tussocks nearby. Something of a Lundy 'purple patch', with the goose & egret being scarcer than the bunting in island terms! #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 26/10/2024

1/3 Recently back from @lundybirds.bsky.social An excellent trip with a good range of scarcities, incl. the long-staying Greater Short-toed Lark, Yellow-browed Warblers most days, and an elusive Wryneck. Rather low numbers of 'common' migrants but enough to keep multiple Merlins well fed. #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 06/10/2024

Hardly any visible migration at Bull Point this morning. A few Meadow Pipits and 6 Swallows was about it. On the plus side, an evident influx of 8 grounded Song Thrushes, with a few more Chiffs & Goldcrests about, along with this delightful (if rather distant) presumed 1st-yr Whinchat. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 04/10/2024

Also at Bull Pt this a.m. the first migrating Chaffinch flocks of autumn (75) plus first trickle of Redwing (4), Skylark (4) & Siskin (9). Offshore, steady passage W of 68 Common Gull & 96 Black-headed Gull, and 5 Cormorant E. Few grounded migrants after a starry night and clear dawn. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 04/10/2024

The unusual sight of 2 migrating Great White Egrets passing feeding Gannets off Bull Point this a.m. Also in the shot (the fuzzy brown dot between the egrets!) is a Meadow Pipit flying in off the sea, likely having left the Welsh coast earlier. I didn't even notice it at the time! #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 29/09/2024

BTO Winter Gull Survey (WinGS) on Taw Estuary last night, avoiding gales & horizontal rain forecast this pm... Frustratingly (but as expected) most gulls came in when almost too dark to count, let alone ID, but >3K on our sector. Beautiful light & plenty to watch whilst waiting for gulls😁 #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 26/09/2024

Dramatic skies at Bull Point early this morning. Unsurprisingly, not much on the move but 66 Linnets, 65 Meadow Pipits, 4 alba wagtails & 4 Swallows battled through the brighter breaks, as a noisy flock of about 20 Gannets plunge-dived among Harbour Porpoises off the lighthouse. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 22/09/2024

A very high spring tide & heavy rain combined to make today one of the soggiest Taw Estuary WeBS counts I can remember. Plenty of Wigeon in on the recent easterlies. Also notable were single Great White Egret & Great Crested Grebe (local scarcity) and an Osprey tucking into its breakfast. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 21/09/2024

Recently back from a bucket-list trip to see the spectacle of migration across the Strait of Gibraltar. 1000s of Honey Buzzards + numerous Black Kites, Short-toed & Booted Eagles, Egyptian Vultures, White & Black Storks, Bee-eaters & much else. Essential kit: comfy chair, multi-clicker, neck yoga 🤩

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 21/09/2024

From a murky but dry Bull Point this a.m. in a F5-6 ENE, 15 Common Scoter and – patch gold! – 2 Wigeon. Virtually no passerine movement; zero hirundines! This heron flew in from W, struggling to hold steady in the wind, with a GBB in hot pursuit but stabilised in the lee of the headland😁 #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 28/08/2024

3/2 😉 The supporting cast included a gorgeous juv Sabine's Gull, Long-tailed Skuas + numerous European Storm-petrels zig-zagging & dipping over the chum-enriched wake of 'Sapphire'. Thanks to Joe Pender, Bob Flood and the whole Scilly Pelagics team, including @scottreidscilly.bsky.social #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 28/08/2024

2/2 As a young birder, the notion of South Polar Skuas in UK waters was the stuff of myth & legend. Were they really ID-able in the field? Would I know if I ever saw one? 4 decades on, I can reassure my younger self on both counts! This 1st-yr bird put on an epic show off Scilly on 24 Aug #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 28/08/2024

1/2 Last weekend I realised a long-held dream, joining Scilly Pelagics for 4 unforgettable days of seabirding. Staggeringly close views of Great, Cory's & Sooty Shearwaters + Wilson's Storm-petrel. South Polar Skua & 2 Scopoli's Shearwater (pic) the cherries on the icing of a huge cake. #UKBirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 22/08/2024

Superb views of Cory’s, Great & Sooty Shearwaters from the Scillonian today and Pectoral Sandpiper at Lower Moors, St Mary’s at 18:25. Presumably the one reported from Porth Hellick earlier. @UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 16/08/2024

Bull Point from before sunrise today saw the first obvious return passage of Swallows, with 85 through by 9am. Also 41 House & 2 Sand Martins. Otherwise rather quiet on land & offshore. A few Willow Warblers & Whitethroats, c400 Manxies & 40 Gannets. And a close encounter with a Roe Deer. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 15/08/2024

A seawatch from the tip of Morte Point early this morning in a fairly stiff SSW breeze yielded 1,354 Manx Shearwaters, 137 Gannets and 19 Fulmars but just 2 Whimbrel & 3 distant ‘comic’ terns by way of greater variety. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 13/08/2024

Working on NT Arlington estate today setting up survey routes for baseline bird monitoring ahead of landscape-scale nature recovery work. Excited to find 2 singing Yellowhammers (wiped out across most of Devon since 1980 by changing farming practices) and successfully fledged Barn Owls #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 11/08/2024

First post in a while... At Bull Point this a.m. a fall of 32+ Willow Warbler, with a few Whitethroat & Blackcap, plus 1st Spotted Flycatcher of autumn. Significant W-bound passage of mainly juv Herring & LBb Gulls plus a patch-record flock of 29 Oystercatchers😁 #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 04/05/2024

Didn't expect to run into a singing Hoopoe at Bull Point this morning...🤩 Typically elusive but after hearing it only at first, eventually caught up with it visually – perched and in flight. Also singing Lesser Whitethroat, Grasshopper Warbler and steady W-bound passage of hirundines. #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 27/04/2024

Other notables: Hooded Crow, Greylag Goose (rarer than Golden Oriole!), Bar-tailed Godwit, late Purple Sandpiper📷, and Jackdaw & Rook (barely annual). Visiting ringers Chris Dee & Brian Milligan, plus the Obs team, ringed >500 birds, 275 on 17th alone. www.trektellen.nl/count/view/3... #UKbirding

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 27/04/2024

A superb week with @lundybirds.bsky.social 13-20 Apr brought an amazing run of early overshoot migrants: ad male Golden Oriole, 2 Night Herons, Purple Heron & Woodchat Shrike. Also Cuckoo, good pushes of Willow Warbler & hirundines, plus first Swifts. On the other hand, I didn’t see a Whitethroat…

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Tim Jones @timjones-devon.bsky.social · 30/03/2024

At Bull Point this a.m., a flock of 18 Common Scoter W & 3 R-t Diver the best offshore. On land, 16 Chiff, 5 Wheatear, 5 Sand Martin, 4 Swallow & a Willow Warbler. Also my first patch redpoll of the year. Two Carrion Crow headed off high towards Lundy & 6 Jackdaw came in very high from N. #UKbirding

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