Birdwatch Magazine

27 November, 2025

Northumberland is one of the best areas in Britain for birding, and Alan Tilmouth should know – he’s spent his life in the county. He reflects on his many years in the region and the special birds he’s seen along the way. 2025 marks 75 years since the first attempts to reintroduce White-tailed Eagle to the UK began. Dave Sexton takes a look at the history of returning this iconic bird of prey to our skies. For a long time, the identification of juvenile Rough-legged Hawks on this side of the Atlantic has been near-impossible. However, cutting edge tips now make this ID possible, as Jack Ashton-Booth discusses. Bonaparte’s Gull has enjoyed a remarkable rise in Britain in recent years – but why? Josh Jones investigates. One of the greatest winter birding spectacles in Britain comes on Islay, where thousands of geese can be seen. Dan Brown introduces the island and explains what the visiting birder can enjoy there. October 2025 produced some huge stories across Britain and Ireland and we have finders’ accounts of the White-throated Needletail in Yorkshire, the British-first Great Crested Flycatcher in Shetland, the Scilly Mourning Dove and Ireland’s first Harlequin Duck. Pittas have long captured the imagination of birders. Chris Gooddie completed a mission to see all the world’s species in a year, and he outlines 10 reasons for their appeal. Also in this issue, Chris Harbard gets his hands on the new Birdfy Bath Pro. There’s also advice on bird photography, December patch memories and birding in Jamaica, while our columnists discuss rarities in gardens, the royal family’s involvement with wildlife and the Listers film.