Bardsey Lodge & Bird Observatory
One of two Bird Observatories in Wales. Monitoring the wildlife on Bardsey Island since 1953. Come and stay in our comfortable accommodation at Bardsey Lodge. www.bbfo.org.uk
- After a tough recruitment process BBFO has appointed Joel Tragen and Ezra Sherwell as Assistants for the 2026 season on Bardsey.
- Only four days left to apply - get those CVs sent in now!
- We are recruiting. If you want to find rare birds and witness spectacular falls & live among 30,000 Manx Shearwaters get your application in for the Bardsey Island Assistant job (Mar-Oct 2026) before 10 Dec. Apply here: tinyurl.com/2026-Assista... #RareBirdAlert #BardseyIsland #ConservationJob
- We are recruiting. If you want to find rare birds and witness spectacular falls & live among 30,000 Manx Shearwaters get your application in for the Bardsey Island Assistant job (Mar-Oct 2026) before 10 Dec. Apply here: tinyurl.com/2026-Assista... #RareBirdAlert #BardseyIsland #ConservationJob
- Above link fails! tinyurl.com/2026-Assista...
- Adult Sabine’s Gull Cattle Egret Male Common Rosefinch Great Northern Diver this am Also 600ish Swallows. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- One Grey Phalarope still on Solfach today and an immature Pom Skua off the north end. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- Sea passage this morning. 0700-1015 3 Sooty Shearwaters, 4 Grey Phalaropes, 34 Gannets, 94 Razorbills, 3 Common Scoters, 9 Fulmars, 14 Sandwich Terns, 10 Arctic Terns, 1 Great Black-backed Gull, 2 Arctic Skuas, 4 Whimbrels, 149 Manx Shearwaters, and 100 Kittiwakes. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- Two Black Terns, Sooty Shearwater passing at sea and a Wryneck in the South Gorse this morning. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- Another day on Bardsey and another Blyth’s Reed Warbler - the third of the year! This one found by Greg in Cristin Withy this morning.
- Good sea passage 0700-1200 2 Great Shearwaters 2 Balearic Shearwaters 1 Sooty Shearwater 1200 Manx Shearwaters 2 Grey Phalaropes 19 Arctic Skuas 1 Great Skua 1 ad Long-tailed Skua Small number of Arctic and Sandwich Terns. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- Sea watching today was slow but productive. Three Roseate Terns were the highlight. Also three Arctic Skuas and a small number of both Sandwiches and Arctic Terns. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- Well it’s been a fantastic week for our University students over the past seven days. We’ve been so busy with them we have hardly had time to post updates so here goes. First and foremost thanks to our sponsors. @westmidbirdclub.bsky.social @britishbirds.bsky.social @birdsinwales.bsky.social
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View full threadNext morning was a mix of ringing - not much unfortunately, sea watching and wader roost. Sea watching produced a juvenile Sabine’s Gull and 30 Common Dolphins. The afternoon was free time for the students, then the evening saw the whole team out after dark.
- An impromptu- let’s do Stormies evening, as there was supposed to be cloud and calm weather, had the group down on the shoreline at 2320. Within 1/2 hr we were watching a Storm Petrel circling the nets under a quite bright full moon. Over the next 2 hours we trapped three Stormies and a Manxy.
- And wildsounds.com So our ten fresh faced students arrived last Saturday on a bumpy crossing, given the intro talk and walk and the fed copious amounts of Chilli on a beautiful evening, followed by a few beers and awesome views of the full moon in our @darkskyintl.bsky.social Dark Sky Sanctuary
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- Happy with her Magpie!
- Ringing at the Obs this morning produced a few local breeders including this Magpie.
- Our first Storm Petrel ringing session of the year tonight saw about 25 birds flying around close inshore (as seen through the Thermal Imaging Scope). However, catching the first one of the year is always a delight.
- And this singing immature male Common Rosefinch was found by @ewanturner.bsky.social at Nant today.
- This superb male Red-backed Shrike was found by Colin (our volunteer) yesterday morning. It was still present today. Occasionally singing today and becoming more wide ranging, even visiting the Obs at one point.
- Rather nice male Red-backed Shrike found by Colin our volunteer yesterday morning.
- We still have three places left. Book now before it’s too late!
- We are pleased to announce the we will be running another Student week for 18-24 year olds from 9th to 16th August this year. The week is funded by West Midland Bird Club, British Birds and West Midlands Bird Club. See tinyurl.com/Bardsey-stud...
- Manxies are the best!
- Seabirds!
- Seabird monitoring is now in full swing
- We are pleased to announce the we will be running another Student week for 18-24 year olds from 9th to 16th August this year. The week is funded by West Midland Bird Club, British Birds and West Midlands Bird Club. See tinyurl.com/Bardsey-stud...
- BLACK STORK north 1455 New for the island! Photo credit @ewanturner.bsky.social
- Yesterday’s Woodchat
- Truly memorable day, began with a Nightingale singing in the Obs garden which was later trapped. Then a Woodchat Shrike was found. At least 49 Whimbrels were seen, and a Hooded Crow on the South End. Next came a Hoopoe that gave folk a run around followed by A Red-rumped Swallow that flew north
- A rather nice end to April, with a Nightingale in full song early morning before being trapped and then a smart Woodchat Shrike near the farm mid-morning.
- Rather splendid Hornemann’s Redpoll this evening. A real bruiser of a bird. 6th Arctic Redpoll for Wales, all previous records have been Exilipes.
- Three Hoopoes on the island today. One at the obs, two at Tŷ Pellaf/Pen Cristin @rarebirder.bsky.social
- A Great White Egret has just flown north this morning. @rarebirder.bsky.social
- A Hoopoe was singing in the Obs garden on Friday. Archive pic.
- See what we have been up to in the fort weeks since getting back to the island. bbfo.blogspot.com
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- If you need any info Annie just get in touch with Emma at stayonbardsey@gmail.com
- Help us to rebuild our seawarching hide gofund.me/7a28b393
- This LBBG was photographed by John Jarju / Kartong Bird Observatory in the Gambia on 4/2/25. It was ringed on Bardsey on 8/7/24. Distance between the two sites was 4534Km.
- And like Busses another was seen there a couple of days later!
- We are pleased to welcome @ewan_turner23 and @GJLee122 who will be our Assistants for 2025. Ewan was our intern in 2024, he first visited on one of our University weeks where he was sponsored by @birdsinwales. Greg has been Assistant @Sandwichbirdobs for the past 3 years.
- We are currently seeking staff for 2025. If you are interested, you must possess exceptional birding skills, strong interpersonal abilities, and preferably a BTO ringing license, although latter is not essential.
- We finally have our first Yellow-browed Warbler of the autumn. A little late to the party but at least we have arrived!!!
- A bit more life outside now the rain has stopped. The first Jack Snipe of the autumn was flushed from the wetlands. A Tree Pipit flew south. A small number of Chiffchaffs were in the withies and at Nant. But still nothing scarce!
- One of three Grey Herons trapped and ringed last night. A loose flock of six were on the rocks in Henllwyn.
- A Long-eared Owl has been seen by Ewan on a couple of occasions this week on his way home to the LSA hut. Tonight Ed trapped what was presumably the same bird and found it was one that we ringed in October 2022. I wonder where she has been since?
- A Shoveler circled the Narrows this morning was the highlight of a pretty quiet day so far. A Lapland Bunting was on the South End and a Spotted Flycatcher was at Nant.
- Hello BlueSky!! We will be slowly moving Bardsey Obs news away from Twitter/X over the coming months. So let’s begin with a nice serene night-time post from a few nights ago.
