This week it was all about seabirds. The undoubted highlight of which was a Red-billed Tropicbird seen [and photographed] by just one lucky observer at Pendeen whilst the other sea-watchers present were oblivious to the bird passing them by! Throw in a handful of Fea's Petrels, the continued presence of the Swinhoe's on Fair Isle and a Macaronesian Shearwater to boot and its just another week in the extraordinary year of 2013. Read the round-up here

Andy Stoddart reviews this innovative and boundary-pushing field guide dealing with the most famous of North America's bird groups - the warblers. Read the review here

Shetland and Fair Isle in particular stole the show this week as a second Swinhoe's Petrel is trapped and then proves twitchable. Elsewhere a Fea's Petrel is photographed from a pelagic off Scilly. Read the round-up here

Although there are now multiple sightings of Fea's Petrel in British and Irish waters each year, an encounter with this Pterodroma is still top of most birders wishlist. Seabird expert Bob Flood recounts his latest encounter off Scilly and is accompanied with photos from the finder and skipper of the boat Joe Pender. Read the story here

For the first time since the 1960s, Hen Harriers have failed to nest successfully in England, down largely to illegal persecution. Read the story here

A week dominated by seabirds and major rare ones at that. Bulwer's Petrel, multiple Fea's Petrels on the same day and Fair Isle's second Swinhoe's Petrel in as many weeks! With contributions from the finders, this week's round-up is a seabird spectacular! Read the round-up here

Conservationists fear 2013 could be the lowest year ever for Turtle Dove numbers: England's most threatened farmland bird. Records of sightings are down significantly this year and experts believe last summer's extremely wet weather may be the cause. Read the story here

Young North East birder Kieran Lawrence tells how he struck birding gold when on a recent trip to Fair Isle. Read the story here

Fair Isle stole the show this week when a Swinhoe's Petrel was caught during a Storm Petrel ringing session. Ireland scored a first in the shape of a Mongolian Sand Plover in Co.Cork whilst the Two-barred Crossbill invasion spread north to Shetland. Read the round-up here

In the last of our special five book reviews this week Andy gets his hands on the latest field guide from the husband and wife team of Donald and Lillian Stokes. It acts as a companion to The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Western Region, both being a subset of The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America. Read the review here

This entertaining read chronicles the ups and downs birding on the Isles of Scilly in the Autumn of 1984. Capturing a sense of time and place it will no doubt bring back fond memories for many and for those not around to experience Scilly in its heyday it will only add to the islands sense of magic. Read the review here

Another extraordinary week, or maybe this is the new norm for mid summer? Swinhoe's Storm-petrel, Rock Thrush, Mongolian Plover, Fea's Petrel, a Two-barred Crossbill influx as well as Booted and Bonelli's Eagle reports from Norfolk and Kent, did we mention that it's only July? Read the round-up here

Andy reviews the latest addition to the Crossley family of photographic ID guides. This ambitious book covers the identification challenges posed by the raptors of North America. Using superimposed images over 'typical' background scenes the Crossley ID Guide will quickly become a must have for all birders interested in this group. Read the review here

Birds in a Cage is the remarkable story of four British prisoners-of-war and their experience of suffering, privation..... and birds. Peter Conder, John Buxton, Peter Barrett and George Waterston went to war as young soldiers, each yet to find a direction in life but already inspired by birds. Read the review here

Andy Stoddart reviews this New Naturalist volume, in which David Cabot and Ian Nisbet draw on a wealth of new information and research, providing a comprehensive natural history of terns. Covering the history of terns in Britain and Ireland, the authors focus on migrations, food and feeding ecology as well as breeding biology. Read the review here

Each day for five days, starting Monday 22nd July we will be bringing you a review a day of five recently published bird books. And just for RBA users we have secured special discounted prices from Wildsounds.com. More details here

Unlike recent weeks it was a more typical mid-summer lull. The Bridled Tern went south and then reappeared on Inner Farne. From Argyll unconfirmed reports that the Ascension Frigatebird might still be in area tantalised, whilst in Somerset there were four adult Little Bitterns at Ham Wall RSPB. Read the round-up here

This summer, Sandwich Terns at Blakeney Point, Norfolk, have been fitted with coloured lettered rings to enable scientists at the British Trust for Ornithology to further understand their movements. Read the story here

RSPB Scotland are appealing for information after a Black-throated Diver, one of Scotland's rarest birds, was found dead on the shore of Loch Gowan, near Achnasheen in Wester-Ross. Read the story here

A pioneering project to recreate ideal breeding habitat for one of Scotland's rarest birds on some Scottish lochs has met with remarkable success. Read the story here

The latest update from this remarkable conservation project trying secure the survival of the enigmatic Spoon-billed Sandpiper sees twenty of the critically endangered chicks hatching under expert care in the Russian Far East. Read the story here

A tale to warm the hearts of all those who have ever missed a dream bird - you are not alone! Read the story here

Another week in what is usually the 'summer lull' and another monster bird turns up, this time an Ascension Frigatebird on Islay. Unfortunately it didn't hang around for long but just long enough for some very gripping photos to be taken! Elsewhere the Bridled Tern in the North East continued to delight and frustrate birders in equal measure before heading south past Flamborough. Read the round-up here

A trio of male Corncrakes, are performing at the RSPB's Nene Washes nature reserve in Cambridgeshire, in an initiative aimed at expanding the breeding population of this scarce UK species which is the subject of a reintroduction programme in England. Read more here

There are fears that Capercaillie populations in the southernmost part of their range are no longer viable despite intensive efforts to save them. Read more here

A Cumbrian gamekeeper has pleaded guilty to killing Buzzards on a shooting estate near Penrith. Read more here

A tale of delight and despair for the Hebridean White-throated Needletail at the beginning of the week, followed by another 'much-sought-after' mega appearing on the Farne Islands at the end of the week. Read the round-up here

Tickets for this groundbreaking and unique event will go on sale on July 1st, numbers are limited so make sure you don't miss out. More >

The first tagged Cuckoo has left the UK! Sussex, who has been named by the Sussex Ornithological Society, is the first to depart and is now in the Upper Normandy region of France. More >

A relatively quiet week was livened up at the end by the first appearance of a White-throated Needletail for 22 years. Read the round-up here

A Little Tern colony on the beach at Crimdon, near Hartlepool, has had all of its eggs stolen leading to fears that the colony now faces extinction. Read more here

The BTO has announced that will provide a number of grants of up to £200, to support young people looking to visit one of the accredited British and Irish Bird Observatories. Read more here

After sightings in Suffolk, Yorkshire and Lincolnshire a Pacific Swift did what no Pacific Swift had done in the past 20 years and stuck around long to be twitched by the masses. Read the round-up here

Highlights of the week include River Warbler, Collared Flycatcher and Roller all on Fair Isle, a Paddyfield Warbler on Bardsey and news that Little Bitterns are once again breeding in Somerset. Read the round-up here

The RSPB have confirmed that Little Bitterns are once again breeding at their Ham Wall reserve in Somerset Read more here

An excellent contender for a Pacific Swift was seen (and photographed) briefly in Suffolk whilst in Kent a Crested Lark was another 'brief-stayer'. Shetland scored a Pallid Harrier and on the Outer Hebrides the Harlequin Duck remained on North Uist. On Portland an extraordinary movement of Spotted Flycatchers was witnessed on the morning of 1st. Read the round-up here

The RSPB is calling on farmers and birdwatchers to help locate the UK's rarest nesting bird of prey: the Montagu's Harrier Read more here

A coalition of wildlife and countryside organisations has written to the Environment Secretary for a reassurance that no licences will be issued for the removal or destruction of birds of prey or their nests for the protection of gamebirds. Read more here

The two top birds this week were both unavailable to the masses. The first, a presumed male Indigo Bunting, was present for just an hour in a garden on Anglesey. The second, a White-throated Sparrow in Lincolnshire, found on 28th and still present as we go to press is in a garden in Spalding but the location is currently being suppressed by those in the know! Read the round-up here

Scotland's only population of Bean Geese will be better protected in future thanks to the purchase of a site in North Lanarkshire by Forestry Commission Scotland. Read more here

The RSPB has issued a legal challenge to the Government's decision to allow the expansion of Lydd Airport in Kent. Read more here

Britain's first twitchable Dusky Thrush in 50 years is found in Kent and stays long enough for the keenest to connect. Shetland hosted, albeit briefly, the first summer-plumaged Pacific Diver to be found in Britain. Another Collared Flycatcher (three this spring and counting) was in E.Yorks whilst the east coast gets a big fall of rare and scarce migrants. Read the round-up here

The 6th-8th September will see Britain's first national migration festival held at the iconic East Yorkshire site of Spurn. Read more here

Andy Stoddart reviews this vividly illustrated book depicting the most endangered birds in the world. It provides the latest information on the threats each species faces and the measures being taken to save them. Read the review here

The highlights of the week include a brace of Collared Flycatchers, one in Shetland the other on the mainland in Northumberland, Pied-billed Grebe in Ireland plus a large skua passage on the Outer Hebrides Read the round-up here

No new major rarities this week but still enough migrants to keep birders interested including a flock of Red-footed Falcons in Cambridgeshire, a trio of Bonaparte's Gulls and a Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll on Orkney Read the round-up here

A camera set up to capture images of Scottish wildcats in Sutherland has photographed a White's Thrush! Read more here

Over the last 25 years we have lost two-thirds of our breeding House Martins, with the greatest losses in England and Wales. During the last year, the BTO have received several reports of long-established colonies being abandoned, possibly due to the cool, wet 2012 summer but in order to fully understand the declines, they need more information. Read more here

According to the BBRC "this delightful 'Sibe' has been showing a steady increase in numbers recently with typically from 10 to 20 birds each year. But in 2012 there was a major influx of close to 50 birds, and that meant our criteria for removal. Read more on their decision here

A two-day female Rock Thrush in East Yorkshire was undoubtedly the stand-out bird of the week. Elsewhere there was a trio of Iberian Chiffchaffs, a very showing Eastern Subalpine Warbler entertained many in Suffolk whilst in Aberdeenshire there was a record breaking count of White-billed Divers Read the round-up here

April 2013. Police in Derbyshire are investigating after a dead buzzard was found on land near Turnditch with its beak apparently bound. Wildlife crime officers are working with the RSPB to investigate the circumstances surrounding the bird's death. Read the story here

In a week which saw some typically variable April weather there was a very nice mix of new arrivals to report on. A Baillon's Crake in Gloucestershire was unfortunately found freshly dead. Elsewhere there were two Pallid Harriers plus plenty of rare and scarce passerines, mainly in the south. Read the round-up here

Well, not quite, but on Sunday 5th May runners and a lone cyclist will be traversing these 2 counties in aid of the Wetlands and Wildfowl Trust Conservation breeding project for the Spoon- billed Sandpiper. Read the story here

At last spring seemed to arrive this week. A female type Red-flanked Bluetail was a very nice find at Horsey in Norfolk. However it was the [brief] appearance of an exotic duck at Flamborough which makes the headline this week. Read the round-up here

Another week and another Killdeer, this time in Britain on the mainland in Lancashire. Unfortunately much like the bird in Co.Donegal ten days previous it didn't hang around for the masses. Read the round-up here

The bodies of eight Stone Curlews have been found in fields in Norfolk, Suffolk and Wiltshire in the past few days having died of starvation due to the cold weather and lack of food. Read the story here

In a double find like no other, Gavin Thomas recounts how, in the space of 10 days, he finds a north American mega wader in two different countries: One whilst on a family holiday, the other whilst working his local patch! Read Gavin's extraordinary story here

Another chilly week but at last some new birds to report on. In Co.Donegal Ireland scored a March Killdeer whilst in Surrey a splendid male Pallid Harrier became only the second March record but unfortunately being a one day wonder meant it wasn't 'available' to the masses. Read the round-up here

The delicate Lesser Redpoll is sweeping into a record number of gardens this spring, thrilling householders as it goes. The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) has produced a free factsheet to help people to discover more about this bubbly newcomer. Read more here

In a week when much of Britain shivered and migration was largely halted a few good birds managed to make landfall. The best of the scarce migrants were to be found on the south coast and in the south west whilst in Scotland a Black-throated Thrush turned up in a birders mum's garden! Read the round-up here

Yet more fascinating findings, this time on Snow Buntings, from ringing recoveries and the folk at the BTO ringing team. Read the story here

The week was largely dominated by the presence of long-staying rarities. Rather fittingly as we are in the middle of the dates for first Lesser Scaup record for Britain two counties scored their first. And as we go to press late news of a White-throated Sparrow in Somerset which unfortunately is no longer present! Read the round-up here

Project Director Tony Martin gives an update from South Georgia where the mammoth task of eradicating rats from a huge area of the island is continuing. Read more here (opens a PDF)
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In a week dominated by rain, cold winds and snow it was unsurprising that very few new birds were found. The rarity highlights included the continued presence of the Harlequin and Pied-billed Grebe in Britain whilst in Ireland the American Coot and Northern Harrier were also still present. Read the round-up here

Caerlaverock's WWT warden Mike Youdale is back with his diary from the Dumfries and Galloway reserve. In his first entry of 2013 Mike summarises the highs and lows of 2012 which proved to be a year dominated by extreme weather. Read more here

As the first summer migrants began arriving in the south it was a mammalian species from the Arctic, on a brief stopover on North Ronaldsay, which provided the biggest surprise of the week. Read the round-up here

A new project to find out why storks are changing their migratory patterns has been launched by the University of East Anglia. Read more here

The recent deaths of two White-tailed Eagles in south-west Ireland have once again raised serious concerns over the continuing incidents of illegal poisoning in the country. Read more here

With a life list of over 520, accumulated over three decades one could be forgiven for thinking that Mark Golley would have the art twitching down to a tee. However after recently failing to connect with the long-staying Pine Grosbeak on Shetland Mark explains why he has now ordained himself as "Britain's Worst Twitcher"! Read more here

A week of little change with the drake Harlequin staying put on the Western Isles as did the Pied-billed Grebe in Somerset. The Pine Grosbeak appeared to depart Shetland whilst on the mainland a male Snowy Owl is found atop the Cairngorms. Read the round-up here

In the largest worldwide bird count ever, bird watchers set new records, counting more than 25 million birds on 116,000 checklists in four days - and recording 3,138 species, nearly one-third of the world's total bird species. Read more here

New Zealand Storm-petrel, thought extinct for 200 years, found breeding just 50 km from Auckland City. Read more here

When a Pied-billed Grebe was found in Somerset during the early part of the week few would have predicted that it would get trumped. However nobody had accounted for a splendid drake Harlequin Duck turning up on North Uist! Read the round-up here

Researchers in Bulgaria have taken the largest ever catch of Endangered red-breasted geese and fitted satellite tracking devices in a bid to unlock one of the biggest mysteries of the natural world. Read more here

Another week in February and another mega! Tacumshin in Co.Wexford hosted an all too brief Baikal Teal, Ireland's second record if accepted. Meanwhile on Shetland the very showy Pine Grosbeak remained on Mainland albeit giving a few a run around at times. Read the round-up here

A number of important nature reserves around Gateshead are under threat as the council looks to make the last remaining Countryside Rangers redundant. Read more here

A tour company specialising in birding and wildlife tours on Shetland are part funding a project and working with local landowners to plant 'sacrificial crops' to provide habitat for birds on Unst. Read more here

A twitchable Pine Grosbeak on Shetland brought a sudden and much welcome end to the rarity drought. A juvenile American Herring Gull in Cork was a great find whilst in neighbouring Kerry another gull provided plenty for the larophiles on both sides of 'the pond' to talk about. Read the round-up here

In a week where we saw the last significant fall of snow (for now at least) there was little change in the way of new birds. Berkshire of all places was the place to be where the American Buff-bellied Pipit remained as did the Pallas's Warbler, whilst in Dorset an unusually elusive and equally unseasonal Hoopoe was a surprise find. Read the round-up here

The huge logistical challenge of eradicating rats on South Georgia is continuing but already conservationists are seeing increases in some bird populations. Read the article here

A significant fall this week, unfortunately not of an avian nature rather one of Snow, meant little in the way of new discoveries. Still there was plenty of winter fayre on offer across the country for those brave enough to venture into the freezing temperatures. Read the round-up here

Rats are to set to be eradicated from two of the Islands, St.Agnes and Gugh to protect the island's seabirds. England's only population of Storm Petrel is said to be at risk from the rats. Read the article here

A ringed Slavonian Grebe found dead in Inverness city centre has been found to have come from Iceland. Read the article here

Four Spoon-billed Sandpipers found at Fucheng, near Leizhou, south-west Guangdong Province in December 2012. Together with several other recent sightings this record indicates that Spoon-billed Sandpiper is a more widespread wintering species on the coast of southern China than was previously known. However, evidence was found of large-scale trapping of shorebirds an Read the article here

In terms of new birds there wasn't a lot on offer this week, the highlight being the reappearance of the two American Buff-bellied Pipits in Berkshire. However the corpse of a White-tailed Tropicbird found on a Cumbria beach will provide much discussion for some time to come and somewhat of a headache for the rarities committee. Read the round-up here

A Lincolnshire gamekeeper has been convicted of killing two Buzzards and possessing a quantity of an illegally-held poison, which the RSPB says would have been enough to destroy all the birds of prey in Lincolnshire. Read the article here

The first full week of 2013 was very much a case of "as you were" with long staying rarities such as American Coot and Northern Harrier still present in Ireland. Read the round-up here

Norfolk rarities committee member Graham Etherington reviews Birds of Central Asia. It is the first field guide to include the former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, along with neighbouring Afghanistan. Read the review here

The first weekly round-up of 2013 is a double edition covering the last two weeks of 2012 plus New Years Day. It was somewhat quiet in terms of new birds but perhaps unsurprising given the atrocious weather across large parts of the UK during the fortnight. Read the round-up here

Mid December threw up a couple of excellent, if somewhat unseasonal, birds in the shape of a Rose-breasted Grosbeak on Scilly and a very showy Buff-bellied Pipit in Berkshire! Whilst in Suffolk the Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll continued it's stay at Aldeburgh. Read the round-up here

As part of bringing RBA users special discounts on bird and natural history books we have three fantastic offers from WildSounds.com. Get great savings on the Birds of Central Asia, Large Format Collins Bird Guide and also Tracks & Signs of the Birds of Britain & Europe. Full Details Here

An extremely showy Hornemann's Arctic Redpoll at Aldeburgh in Suffolk drew the crowds over the weekend and will undoubtedly be highlight of the week for many. Elsewhere the adult Pacific Diver returned to West Cornwall for another winter and on the Western Isles a very smart Gyr was present. Read the round-up here

The battle to save England's most threatened nesting bird of prey from illegal persecution is going increasingly high-tech as a technique used for the first time in the UK confirms that a female Hen Harrier which was found dead in the Yorkshire Dales, North Yorkshire, had been shot. Read the article here

Following a programme to eradicate feral cats from the Island, Ascension Frigatebirds have been found nesting on Ascension Island once again, after 180 year absence. Read the article here

The latest wild bird indicators, just published, show farmland birds are still declining, some woodland birds are declining whilst others increase, breeding water and wetland birds remain stable, whilst seabirds and wintering water birds remain well above 1970s levels, despite some recent declines. Read the article here

A veritable mixed bag with some 'interesting' new arrivals worthy of discussion plus Ireland gets it's third American Coot in County Galway and Shetland gets a late Black-throated Thrush. Read the round-up here

Illegal shooting, trapping, nest destruction and poisoning continue to pose a significant threat to Scotland's birds of prey, according to the latest annual report by RSPB Scotland, covering 2011. Read the article here

Latest figures from the BTO show that the 2012 breeding season was the worst on record for many species after a year of unpredictable weather. Read the article here

A double-header on South Uist in the shape of an American Coot and a Pied-billed Grebe were the undoubted highlights of the week. Cambridgeshire hosted it's first Blyth's Reed Warbler, whilst in Rhyl the Desert Wheatear continued to show very well. Read the round-up here

Two birds, both of which showed only very briefly at opposite ends of Britain, were the week's highlights. An Asian Desert Warbler was found in Kent whilst on South Uist a white Gyrfalcon was found and although only stopping briefly both were photographed. The other main highlight was the continued presence of a number of Hornemann's Arctic Redpolls on Shetland. Read the round-up here