Show Notes
Global BirdFair has wrapped up for another year, and Suzy shares her experiences of this incredible festival of nature. The inspiring talks, interactive events, and vibrant community atmosphere made this year's event truly unforgettable (despite the searing heat)! To capture the essence of the event, Suzy spoke with several attendees about their time at BirdFair and asked about a recent wildlife experience that brought them joy: Charlie Bingham shared a frustrating yet beautiful sunset birding attempt
Chris Bell recounted a thrilling Wallcreeper sighting in Romania
Naomi Davis discussed their work monitoring Pied Flycatchers
Kelly Keegan finally spotted an elusive Blackcap
Tom Morath described a magical Barn Owl encounter
Stephen Moss reminisced about an extraordinary butterfly-filled day
Sarah Humphrey shared her joy of witnessing a full Nightingale breeding cycle
Jack Perks found beauty in a newly emerged dragonfly
Whether you're a seasoned birder or simply curious about the natural world, the Global Bird Fair offers something for everyone. Join us as we relive the highlights and look forward to next year's gathering of passionate nature enthusiasts. Links BirdLife international https://www.birdlife.org/donate/
Charlie Bingham - https://linktr.ee/charliebingham Chris Bell - https://www.instagram.com/chrisbellbirding/ and https://birding-experience.com/en/home/ Naomi Davis - @NaturNaomi on Insta, BlueSky, Twitter and Tiktok https://www.instagram.com/naturnaomi/ Kelly Keegan - https://www.instagram.com/bird.brain.pod/ Tom Morath - https://www.hawk-conservancy.org/podcast/ Stephen Moss - https://www.stephenmoss.tv/ Sara Humphrey - https://www.instagram.com/sussex_sara Jack Perks - The Bearded Tit's Podcast https://beardedtit.podbean.com/ Global BirdFair https://globalbirdfair.org/
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The Casual Birder Bird Club The Casual Birder Bird Club is an online bird club that meets every month. If meeting up with a group of friendly people from around the world to talk about the birds you've seen sounds like something you'd like to do, you'd be very welcome to join us. Find out more here: The Casual Birder Bird Club
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Don't miss an episode - follow the show! My thanks to Randy Braun for designing the artwork for the show and to The Drones for the theme music Short Sleeved Shirt. 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