Tweet of the Day

Each year, CEO of the British Trust for Ornithology, Juliet Vickery, waits eagerly to hear the beautiful song of the willow warbler, which migrates from sub–Saharan Africa. However, on her own Cambridgeshire doorstep the willow warbler is increasingly rare. The fortunes of this delicate little bird in the UK is now one of a north-south divide - increasing in the North and West, decreasing in the South and East. Thanks to a network of volunteer observers, we now know this is, at least in part, because it’s breeding less well in the south than the north, almost certainly linked to rising temperatures in southern England caused by climate change.
Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.
This programme features audio by David Pennington from Xeno-Canto (Willow Warbler - XC1000141).

Entomologist George McGavin remembers the first time he saw a hoopoe, an occasional visitor to the UK. The hoopoe is largely insectivorous, and watching it forage for crickets and grasshoppers, and probe deep into the soil for larvae, reminded George just how important insects are for the survival of the majority of birds.
Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.
This programme features audio by Olivier Swift from Xeno-Canto (Eurasian Hoopoe - XC697952).

In early summer at the Knepp Rewilding Project in West Sussex you're almost guaranteed to hear a turtle dove, one of the UK's rarest birds. Conservationist Isabella Tree writes how its gentle soothing sound tugs at the heartstrings, as today fewer than 3000 breeding pairs remain. But at Knepp, turtle doves can find areas of dense thorny thicket where they like to nest, and wildflower seeds to eat. Now every year they count 20 singing males, which is a quater of the population in Sussex.
Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio in Bristol.
This programme features audio recorded by Hazel Reeves at Knepp.

Poet Liz Berry writes about her love for feral pigeons or rock doves, and how they rule the roost in Birmingham.
Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.

The writer Horatio Clare reflects on the many tales told about the grey heron. They were seen as birds of augury by the Romans, or with a religious bent by the poet Dylan Thomas, and for Horatio their appearance makes them seem like judges, rather aloof and out of touch. But Horatio has watched herons, and writes of their patience and spearing in catching fish, and the intensity of their concentration on every eddy of water.
Produced by Sophie Anton for BBC Audio Production in Bristol.
This programme features audio from Xeno-Canto by Joost van Bruggen (XC760392 and XC947557 - Grey Heron)