Show Notes
Euan, The Edinburgh Birdwatcher, is celebrating 20 years of birding. He tells Suzy about his birding style and what birdwatching means to him. Also, there's big news from the Blue Tits that Suzy is watching via remote camera and, in Last Call, listen to a glorious, uninterrupted 5 minutes of dawn chorus birdsong from the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire. Timestamps & Links 00:00:00 Pre-roll and intro music 00:00:56 Opening & Announcements Last Episode - Springtime Birding Last episode Global Big Day On 14th May The Casual Birder Podcast Team will be taking part in the Global Big Day on 14th May 2022 . I would love you to join us! We will all be birding in our own locations, and sharing our checklists to the team account giving us a combined total of species for the team. You do not have to be an expert to take part, and you can bird from your back garden if you wish. There will be exclusive team events in the run-up to the Big Day so sign up now! Join the team for the Global Big Day Podchaser's #Reviews4Good During April, Podchaser runs #Reviews4Good - donating 25 cents for every podcast review, and doubling it when the podcaster posts a reply. This year's charity is World Central Kitchen, which provides meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. Leave a review for The Casual Birder Podcast here: 00:02:58 Euan, The Edinburgh Birdwatcher, Part 1 The Edinburgh Birdwatcher website 00:14:15 Podcast Promo - The Wild Podcast The Wild Podcast 00:15:12 Euan, The Edinburgh Birdwatcher, Part 2 00:23:28 Support the Show Buy me a virtual coffee on Ko-Fi.com 00:24:22 Euan, The Edinburgh Birdwatcher, Part 3 Euan's past appearances Episode 48 Euan's past appearances Episode 74 00:37:08 Suzy's birding notes Suzy has been visiting the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire and spent a lovely day birding with listener Anneke. 00:41:12 Nestbox News The Blue Tits have been busy: 11 eggs being incubated in one box, and a nest finally being built in the other 00:44:28 What have you seen? Tell me about your bird sightings 00:46:06 Wrap and Close 00:46:50 Last Call Last Call is an uninterrupted recording of bird song and sounds from a specific location, that gives you a flavour of what it was like to be there. This episode, Last Call is provided by John Buttress, recorded in the Forest of Dean on 16th April 2022 at 6:00am In the layers of sound you can hear: Great Tit, Carrion Crow, Blackbird, Nuthatch, Blue Tit, the high-pitched call of a Goldcrest, Wren, Blackcap, Stock Dove, a Pheasant calling and flapping its wings in display and a great Spotted Woodpecker drumming
Don't miss an episode - follow the show! Thanks to Randy Braun for designing the artwork for the show. The theme music is Short Sleeved Shirt by The Drones. Thanks to them for letting me use it. Check out their website at www.dronesmusic.net
More from The Casual Birder Podcast
Bill Oddie has sadly passed away. He was a well-loved birder, conservationist, author and entertainer. He also presented popular wildlife series such as Birding with Bill Oddie and Springwatch, and was respected by birders for his knowledge and expertise. Stephen Moss produced many of Bill's wildlife shows and worked closely with him over the years. In this episode, Stephen shares his memories of Bill and provides some delightful behind-the-scenes anecdotes.
Another amazing Global BirdFair has finished and Suzy speaks with a selection of presenters, podcasters and attendees about their experience of this awesome event: Jamie Ward and Amy Squire speak about their presentation on capture methods for bird ringing (banding)
Suzy is joined by her husband John to review their birding experiences from February 2026. From trying to spot a Snow Goose amongst a flock of Whooper Swans (in a blizzard!) to seeing Spoonbills and Slavonian Grebes on a cold rainy day, their experiences highlight the realities of birding in February in southern England. Despite the weather, their report of their favourite sightings and the friendly birders they met provides an engaging listen. So grab a cuppa, and enjoy their birding tales. Chapters 00:00:36 Introduction 00:02:07 Abberton Reservoir 00:13:46 John solo birding 1 00:15:07 Deeping Lakes 00:21:23 Nene Washes 00:29:38 Snow Goose search 00:31:37 Willow Tree Fen 00:33:49 Grafham Water 00:36:03 New Forest 00:37:30 Normandy Lagoon, Lymington 00:44:26 John solo birding 2 00:47:11 Final species for February 00:48:57 Join our community Links Alex (photographer) - we met at Deeping Lakes Instagram link
Suzy speaks with Mary Colwell, founder of Curlew Action, who describes her fascination with Curlews, and the need for urgent conservation to reverse their population decline in the UK. Advocating an approach that engages with policymakers, farmers, and field workers, Mary emphasizes the need for landscape management and public engagement to support Curlew conservation. This interview was recorded in front of an audience at Global BirdFair. Thanks to Curlew Action for the beautiful Curlew recording used in this episode, to Charlie Bingham for scheduling and organisational help at Global BirdFair and to Oscar Henderson for recording and producing the shows. Links Curlew Action Global BirdFair
Suzy is joined by her husband John to review their birding experiences from January 2026, covering winter birding in Norfolk, and coastal birding in Hampshire, UK. They each saw over 100 bird species including two lifers (birds they had never seen before): a Taiga Bean Goose and a Killdeer. See the list of the birds that Suzy saw, along with some photos, here