Birdwatch Magazine  |  May 2026
Reasons to be churr-ful
Greg Conway from the BTO shares optimistic insights from the 2025 national European Nightjar survey.
The spring that had it all
Robin Chittenden relives perhaps the most legendary spring in British birding – 1990 – when the megas kept on coming.
Field ID notes: European Red-rumped Swallow
Whether you watch a coastal migration hot-spot or an inland waterbody, Richard Bonser provides his tips for picking out this desirable hirundine.
End of the hemipode?
Andalusian Buttonquail clings on in the Western Palearctic, but for how long? Brian McCloskey investigates.
Ears in the Merlin age: is AI eroding our fieldcraft?
Simon Breeze explores ‘auto-ID’ apps and the implications of their widespread use when it comes to learning about and appreciating birds.
Pirates of the Solway
Nick Franklin charts the rise and fall of the Cumbrian skua migration spectacle.
The oscine revolution
Mark Constantine tells a remarkable evolutionary tale in an extract from the new edition of The Sound Approach to Birding.
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Articles in this issue
Below is a selection of articles in Birdwatch Magazine May 2026.