Luke Phillips
@lukephillips.bsky.social
Nature stuff!! Mainly birds, bird ringing and moths but probably other stuff as well. Based in west Dorset.
When your social media team have really lived life...
February 14, 2026 at 5:37 PM
When your social media team have really lived life...
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Happy Valentine’s Day, from us to you. Tag your exes. Xoxox
February 14, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Happy Valentine’s Day, from us to you. Tag your exes. Xoxox
Reposted by Luke Phillips
The RSPB is looking for surveyors to census the UK’s largest Storm Petrel colony on Mousa, Shetland.
We need 2-4 volunteers who are comfortable working and camping in a remote location with limited facilities, to help complete playback surveys during mid-July 2026. 🪺🏝️🏕️
We need 2-4 volunteers who are comfortable working and camping in a remote location with limited facilities, to help complete playback surveys during mid-July 2026. 🪺🏝️🏕️
February 10, 2026 at 12:08 PM
The RSPB is looking for surveyors to census the UK’s largest Storm Petrel colony on Mousa, Shetland.
We need 2-4 volunteers who are comfortable working and camping in a remote location with limited facilities, to help complete playback surveys during mid-July 2026. 🪺🏝️🏕️
We need 2-4 volunteers who are comfortable working and camping in a remote location with limited facilities, to help complete playback surveys during mid-July 2026. 🪺🏝️🏕️
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Please help to end the senseless harvesting of Gannets. It’s a ‘tradition’ that needs stopping.
Please sign the petition which is already over 80,000 and I’m told the highest signed petition ever for a Scottish Parliament petition.
#birdingScotland
Please sign the petition which is already over 80,000 and I’m told the highest signed petition ever for a Scottish Parliament petition.
#birdingScotland
Petition: Stop the Guga Hunt
Calling on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to amend Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to remove the power to grant licences for taking Gannets on Sula Sgeir.
petitions.parliament.scot
January 29, 2026 at 9:36 PM
Please help to end the senseless harvesting of Gannets. It’s a ‘tradition’ that needs stopping.
Please sign the petition which is already over 80,000 and I’m told the highest signed petition ever for a Scottish Parliament petition.
#birdingScotland
Please sign the petition which is already over 80,000 and I’m told the highest signed petition ever for a Scottish Parliament petition.
#birdingScotland
Reposted by Luke Phillips
There are few Baikal Teal (Sibirionetta formosa 花脸鸭 Huāliǎn yā) wintering at the Yellow River estuary in Shandong Province. Photo by "菜小hua". #birds #china #yellowriver
January 30, 2026 at 6:35 AM
There are few Baikal Teal (Sibirionetta formosa 花脸鸭 Huāliǎn yā) wintering at the Yellow River estuary in Shandong Province. Photo by "菜小hua". #birds #china #yellowriver
Reposted by Luke Phillips
BREAKING: A Gamekeeper has pleaded guilty in England’s first-ever Hen Harrier persecution case.
Covert video and audio gathered lawfully by the RSPB Investigations team has helped expose the deliberate targeting of a Hen Harrier, leading to a landmark guilty plea:
www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happen... 👈
Covert video and audio gathered lawfully by the RSPB Investigations team has helped expose the deliberate targeting of a Hen Harrier, leading to a landmark guilty plea:
www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happen... 👈
January 29, 2026 at 5:11 PM
BREAKING: A Gamekeeper has pleaded guilty in England’s first-ever Hen Harrier persecution case.
Covert video and audio gathered lawfully by the RSPB Investigations team has helped expose the deliberate targeting of a Hen Harrier, leading to a landmark guilty plea:
www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happen... 👈
Covert video and audio gathered lawfully by the RSPB Investigations team has helped expose the deliberate targeting of a Hen Harrier, leading to a landmark guilty plea:
www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happen... 👈
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Tears of joy! SCOTLAND HAS JUST PASSED SWIFT BRICKS INTO LAW unanimously!
4 years of asking England & Scotland sorts it in a month led by ACE MARK RUSKELL MSP ♥️The RELIEF is unreal! Tell England to follow 🏴by emailing [email protected] now!WOOP!
4 years of asking England & Scotland sorts it in a month led by ACE MARK RUSKELL MSP ♥️The RELIEF is unreal! Tell England to follow 🏴by emailing [email protected] now!WOOP!
January 27, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Tears of joy! SCOTLAND HAS JUST PASSED SWIFT BRICKS INTO LAW unanimously!
4 years of asking England & Scotland sorts it in a month led by ACE MARK RUSKELL MSP ♥️The RELIEF is unreal! Tell England to follow 🏴by emailing [email protected] now!WOOP!
4 years of asking England & Scotland sorts it in a month led by ACE MARK RUSKELL MSP ♥️The RELIEF is unreal! Tell England to follow 🏴by emailing [email protected] now!WOOP!
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Well today is a HUGE DAY for swifts in Scotland. I’ve travelled with my swift brick to witness Scottish Parliament in action & to thank @markruskell in person for his leadership. This evening swift bricks will be put to a vote. Will they pass into law? Watch this space!!
January 27, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Well today is a HUGE DAY for swifts in Scotland. I’ve travelled with my swift brick to witness Scottish Parliament in action & to thank @markruskell in person for his leadership. This evening swift bricks will be put to a vote. Will they pass into law? Watch this space!!
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Bird Camps are back! 🙌 Apply for a FREE place now ➡️ www.bto.org/birdcamps
If you’re a nature lover aged 11-17 (12-16 in Scotland) join us and fellow nature enthusiasts for a weekend of birding, exploring and nature-based activities. 🐦🦋 @scottishbirding.bsky.social
If you’re a nature lover aged 11-17 (12-16 in Scotland) join us and fellow nature enthusiasts for a weekend of birding, exploring and nature-based activities. 🐦🦋 @scottishbirding.bsky.social
January 26, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Bird Camps are back! 🙌 Apply for a FREE place now ➡️ www.bto.org/birdcamps
If you’re a nature lover aged 11-17 (12-16 in Scotland) join us and fellow nature enthusiasts for a weekend of birding, exploring and nature-based activities. 🐦🦋 @scottishbirding.bsky.social
If you’re a nature lover aged 11-17 (12-16 in Scotland) join us and fellow nature enthusiasts for a weekend of birding, exploring and nature-based activities. 🐦🦋 @scottishbirding.bsky.social
Reposted by Luke Phillips
2025 has been confirmed as the third warmest year on record, following 2024 and 2023, in a series stretching back to 1850.
Data from the Met Office, @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social and @ncas-uk.bsky.social shows 2025 was 1.41 °C above the average for 1850-1900.
Read more 👉 bit.ly/3NkfQH9
Data from the Met Office, @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social and @ncas-uk.bsky.social shows 2025 was 1.41 °C above the average for 1850-1900.
Read more 👉 bit.ly/3NkfQH9
January 14, 2026 at 5:30 AM
2025 has been confirmed as the third warmest year on record, following 2024 and 2023, in a series stretching back to 1850.
Data from the Met Office, @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social and @ncas-uk.bsky.social shows 2025 was 1.41 °C above the average for 1850-1900.
Read more 👉 bit.ly/3NkfQH9
Data from the Met Office, @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social and @ncas-uk.bsky.social shows 2025 was 1.41 °C above the average for 1850-1900.
Read more 👉 bit.ly/3NkfQH9
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Country diary 1926: Hunting the tide wrack for ringed birds
Country diary 1926: Hunting the tide wrack for ringed birds
15 January 1926: Nowadays any bird may carry a small, metal ring on one leg, placed there by some student of migration
www.theguardian.com
January 12, 2026 at 6:04 AM
Country diary 1926: Hunting the tide wrack for ringed birds
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Siskins! 2024 was an ‘influx year’ & bird ringers caught & ringed 63,815 across the UK! This was the highest number ever recorded. 😮 Among birds caught in the UK were Siskins previously ringed as far away as Russia & the Czech Republic.
📖 www.bto.org/ringing-...
📷 Siskin by Graham Catley / BTO
📖 www.bto.org/ringing-...
📷 Siskin by Graham Catley / BTO
January 9, 2026 at 7:00 AM
Siskins! 2024 was an ‘influx year’ & bird ringers caught & ringed 63,815 across the UK! This was the highest number ever recorded. 😮 Among birds caught in the UK were Siskins previously ringed as far away as Russia & the Czech Republic.
📖 www.bto.org/ringing-...
📷 Siskin by Graham Catley / BTO
📖 www.bto.org/ringing-...
📷 Siskin by Graham Catley / BTO
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Hear from Dr Ellie Leech, Head of our Ringing & Nest Recording Team, as she talks about positive breeding success for 14 species, and the value of data gathered by BTO bird ringers. #Ornithology
UK’s warmest spring on record led to rise in songbirds breeding, data shows
UK’s warmest spring on record led to rise in songbirds breeding, data shows
Dry and warm 2025 spring gave glimmer of hope for threatened wild birds but many remain in long-term decline
The warmest and sunniest spring on record this year led to an increase in the breeding of some of Britain’s best-loved songbirds, data has shown.
Scientists said the dry and warm spring had provided a glimmer of hope for threatened wild birds. In the 2025 breeding season, from May to August, there were higher than average breeding successes for 14 species including the chiffchaff, garden warbler, whitethroat, coal tit, blue tit, great tit and robin. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 8, 2026 at 9:38 AM
Hear from Dr Ellie Leech, Head of our Ringing & Nest Recording Team, as she talks about positive breeding success for 14 species, and the value of data gathered by BTO bird ringers. #Ornithology
If there was ever a map to demonstrate how important the UK is for wintering wildfowl, this is it!
An amazing set of maps….We’ve received the migration data for a ringed db Brent Goose ‘SY’ seen at Baiter during Christmas, plus its movements around the harbour since its arrival in early November….migration route is 4800km!
📸 Simon Johnson
@dorsetbirdclub.bsky.social
@btobirds.bsky.social
📸 Simon Johnson
@dorsetbirdclub.bsky.social
@btobirds.bsky.social
January 7, 2026 at 6:26 PM
If there was ever a map to demonstrate how important the UK is for wintering wildfowl, this is it!
Reposted by Luke Phillips
1/2 Thanks to all who visited their Heathland Birds Survey sites to record Woodlark, Dartford Warbler and Nightjar. An impressive 5,600 sites were allocated across the three species, providing us with a valuable update of their current breeding populations and distribution.
January 7, 2026 at 7:00 AM
1/2 Thanks to all who visited their Heathland Birds Survey sites to record Woodlark, Dartford Warbler and Nightjar. An impressive 5,600 sites were allocated across the three species, providing us with a valuable update of their current breeding populations and distribution.
Reposted by Luke Phillips
It's telling, isn't it, that Protection Officers are still required for Hen Harriers in northern England.
Good opportunity here for some important raptor conservation fieldwork.
Closing date for applications: 30 Jan 2026.
#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime
raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/01/07/j...
Good opportunity here for some important raptor conservation fieldwork.
Closing date for applications: 30 Jan 2026.
#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime
raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/01/07/j...
Job opportunity: Hen Harrier Protection Officer (RSPB Geltsdale & North Pennines)
Job advert from the RSPB: Hen Harrier Protection OfficerReference: DEC20259029Location: RSPB Geltsdale, CA8 + North PenninesSalary: £24,571.00 – £26,231.00 Pro RataContract:&nb…
raptorpersecutionuk.org
January 7, 2026 at 8:43 AM
It's telling, isn't it, that Protection Officers are still required for Hen Harriers in northern England.
Good opportunity here for some important raptor conservation fieldwork.
Closing date for applications: 30 Jan 2026.
#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime
raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/01/07/j...
Good opportunity here for some important raptor conservation fieldwork.
Closing date for applications: 30 Jan 2026.
#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime
raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/01/07/j...
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Also true for ringed/banded birds at least in the Northern Hemisphere.
Happy birthday to birds!
Happy birthday to birds!
January 1, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Also true for ringed/banded birds at least in the Northern Hemisphere.
Happy birthday to birds!
Happy birthday to birds!
Tried my luck at various goose friendly fields around Bridport today in the hope of something other than the 13 Canada Goose that I saw... nothing ventured, nothing gained! 4 juv Mute Swan were a local bird though.
December 31, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Tried my luck at various goose friendly fields around Bridport today in the hope of something other than the 13 Canada Goose that I saw... nothing ventured, nothing gained! 4 juv Mute Swan were a local bird though.
Reposted by Luke Phillips
The Nanjizal 2025 summary is now online. The year had the second highest annual ringing total since ringing started 30 years ago @kesteraw.bsky.social
nanjizalbirds.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/2...
nanjizalbirds.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/2...
2025 Summary of the Year
Overview This was the 30th year of ringing at Nanjizal, with the first ringing date of the year on 27th February and the final netting day on 22nd November. The year saw the usual up…
nanjizalbirds.wordpress.com
December 30, 2025 at 8:09 PM
The Nanjizal 2025 summary is now online. The year had the second highest annual ringing total since ringing started 30 years ago @kesteraw.bsky.social
nanjizalbirds.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/2...
nanjizalbirds.wordpress.com/2025/12/30/2...
Reposted by Luke Phillips
We're hiring!
Seasonal Research Assistant and Senior Research Assistant positions for 2026 🪶
Deadline: 11th Jan 26
Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...
Seasonal Research Assistant and Senior Research Assistant positions for 2026 🪶
Deadline: 11th Jan 26
Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...
December 11, 2025 at 3:04 PM
We're hiring!
Seasonal Research Assistant and Senior Research Assistant positions for 2026 🪶
Deadline: 11th Jan 26
Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...
Seasonal Research Assistant and Senior Research Assistant positions for 2026 🪶
Deadline: 11th Jan 26
Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car...
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Absolutely shocking.
We're offering an overall award of £10k for information that leads to a conviction in these cases.
We need to make raptor persecution a thing of the past.
We're offering an overall award of £10k for information that leads to a conviction in these cases.
We need to make raptor persecution a thing of the past.
December 17, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Absolutely shocking.
We're offering an overall award of £10k for information that leads to a conviction in these cases.
We need to make raptor persecution a thing of the past.
We're offering an overall award of £10k for information that leads to a conviction in these cases.
We need to make raptor persecution a thing of the past.
It's great when farmers do something for birds and then it works! Saw at least 12 Woodcock tonight and mostly in a stubble field which was left specifically for birds. Probably my favourite bird and a privilege to see up close. All ringed and released under @btobirds.bsky.social license.
December 11, 2025 at 11:46 PM
It's great when farmers do something for birds and then it works! Saw at least 12 Woodcock tonight and mostly in a stubble field which was left specifically for birds. Probably my favourite bird and a privilege to see up close. All ringed and released under @btobirds.bsky.social license.
Reposted by Luke Phillips
A win for Swifts!
Thanks to your support, Scotland might become the first UK country to require Swift nesting bricks in all new buildings.
Today MSPs voted to include this in the Natural Environment Bill – now we must make sure it stays in the Bill through the final stage.
Thanks to your support, Scotland might become the first UK country to require Swift nesting bricks in all new buildings.
Today MSPs voted to include this in the Natural Environment Bill – now we must make sure it stays in the Bill through the final stage.
December 10, 2025 at 4:59 PM
A win for Swifts!
Thanks to your support, Scotland might become the first UK country to require Swift nesting bricks in all new buildings.
Today MSPs voted to include this in the Natural Environment Bill – now we must make sure it stays in the Bill through the final stage.
Thanks to your support, Scotland might become the first UK country to require Swift nesting bricks in all new buildings.
Today MSPs voted to include this in the Natural Environment Bill – now we must make sure it stays in the Bill through the final stage.
Reposted by Luke Phillips
£54 million! 😮 That’s the estimated financial value of our incredible volunteers’ efforts in 2024. They contributed an estimated over 2.6 million hours to BTO work. 📝 A huge thank you to our amazing volunteers! #InternationalVolunteerDay
📷 Ben Igglesden / BTO
📷 Ben Igglesden / BTO
December 5, 2025 at 10:02 AM
£54 million! 😮 That’s the estimated financial value of our incredible volunteers’ efforts in 2024. They contributed an estimated over 2.6 million hours to BTO work. 📝 A huge thank you to our amazing volunteers! #InternationalVolunteerDay
📷 Ben Igglesden / BTO
📷 Ben Igglesden / BTO
Reposted by Luke Phillips
Good news!
Earlier this year I shared reports that the land around the Cerne Abbas Giant was up for sale
I’m delighted that, after lots of conversations, the land has now been bought by the National Trust (who already own the Giant): www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
bsky.app/profile/guys...
Earlier this year I shared reports that the land around the Cerne Abbas Giant was up for sale
I’m delighted that, after lots of conversations, the land has now been bought by the National Trust (who already own the Giant): www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
bsky.app/profile/guys...
December 3, 2025 at 7:58 AM
Good news!
Earlier this year I shared reports that the land around the Cerne Abbas Giant was up for sale
I’m delighted that, after lots of conversations, the land has now been bought by the National Trust (who already own the Giant): www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
bsky.app/profile/guys...
Earlier this year I shared reports that the land around the Cerne Abbas Giant was up for sale
I’m delighted that, after lots of conversations, the land has now been bought by the National Trust (who already own the Giant): www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
bsky.app/profile/guys...