On the sheer cliffs and geos of Sule Skerry there are hundreds of guillemots. The rocks are white with their guano as the birds perch on precarious ledges overlooking sheer drops into the churning water below. Sitting near a colony is an assault on the senses. Everywhere you look there are hundreds of these dark … More Guillies and Razors
Across the top and down the steep slopes of the southwestern geo on Sule Skerry is a bustling gannet colony. The harsh grating calls of the adult birds is a continuous noise. Years ago, when monitoring of seabirds started on the island in the 1970s there were no gannets nesting. When they first started breeding … More Gannets of Sule Skerry
Sule Skerry is a remote island 40 miles west of Orkney. Uninhabited by humans but home to a multitude of seabirds. The island is known in the folklore of both Orkney and Shetland, captured in the tale of the Great Selkie of Sule Skerry, which tells the story of a woman whose child was taken … More The Island
The house sits on a slight rise, surrounded on two sides by fields of long grass backed by tall Breckland pines. On its other side is a cool, dark woodland with trees that creak in the wind and which merge into the shrubs and flowering trees of a garden. Behind the house is an enclosed … More The Owl Family
Sitting on the cool stone of New Quay harbour and although a strong breeze tugs at coats and hats, the greyish green ocean in front on me is relatively calm with just the occasional little crest of white tipping a wave. The wind is coming off the land, sheltering the coastal waters from its ire … More Dolphins at New Quay
A keen, rather cool sea breeze blustered in through the open wooden windows of the hide, rippling the water and bending the tops of reeds and grasses of the lagoons. It was another of those days where the weather cannot decide what it wants to do. Out of the breeze it was warm, especially when … More Happy ‘Bird’ Day
A sunny and warm day. Fluffy clouds skidding across the sky. A walk around the pools of Cranwich just because we can. No need for an early arrival or for putting up and monitoring mist nets (not that doing that is not fun). Just a meander along the path listening to the birds in the … More Just a meander
From bird and insect watching to simply admiring wild flowers here is the story of my 30 Days Wild. 30 Days Wild is a campaign run by the Wildlife Trusts to encourage people to connect with nature and do something wild each day during the month of June. Now I like to think I am … More 30 Days Wild
Welcome to the Wild Barley Blog Barley – the early days! A wildlife blog named after my puppy Barley! I will be updating the blog with details of my wildlife adventures from bird ringing to whale watching. The first couple of posts will talk about some of my recent travels as they are well worth … More Intro to the Wild Barley Blog
Wild Barley 