Flamborough Headland, situated on the North Sea coast of East Yorkshire, is renowned for having the largest mainland seabird colony in Britain and a reputation for the best seawatching on the British east coast. Not least, the area is a fantastic place to witness bird migration and see small birds such as thrushes, chats and warblers making landfall after crossing the North Sea. It also has an impeccable pedigree in attracting scarcities from continental Europe and many rarities from farther east.
Latest Sightings
- 30th October 2026
Foggy/misty throughout, with very light winds and a high of 12 degrees C. Four Red-crested Pochards (two drakes, two females) flew south during a morning seawatch; only the second record for the headland, following a female that flew south on 3rd December 1994. The morning seawatch also logged a single… - 29th October 2026
Sunny, with light winds and a best of 16 degrees C. Seawatch highlights included a single Whooper Swan, one Red-breasted Merganser, an Arctic Tern, one Common Tern, 30 Little Gulls, a Mediterranean Gull, one Arctic Skua and a Manx Shearwater. Three Tundra Bean Geese and 45 Pink-feet commuted between Beacon… - 28th October 2026Overcast with occasional brighter intervals, a moderate south-west wind and high of 14 degrees C. Unfortunately there was no sign of the Rufous-tailed Robin at South Landing. However, the Hoopoe reappeared at Oceanview and the Pallas’s Warbler was still at RSPB Bempton Cliffs. Seawatch highlights included 16 Little Gulls, a…
- 27th October 2026Blustery south/south-west winds gradually abated; sunny intervals throughout and a high of 15 degrees C. The Rufous-tailed Robin showed well next to the path surrounding its favoured gully from first light, but after an hour it retreated back to the gully where it showed only twice more – late morning…
Daily Birding Highlights
Recent Birding Highlights
Click on the button below for full details of all birding highlights for the last 30 days. The posts are ordered with the latest first.
Birding Highlights Archive
Select the required month and highlights for every day will be presented for the chosen period. This archive goes back to 2014 and posts ordered with the earliest first.
The Ringing Diary
- September 2026Another quality month for ringing across the headland with a total of 33 sessions being held, 665 birds were caught with 540 of these newly ringed and 95 re-traps/controls. The roost at Thornwick delivered a surprise Snipe on the 3rd, and more waders were caught at a session on South…
- August 2026August proved to be an excellent month for the team, in 43 sessions across the headland an amazing 1312 birds of 44 species were caught, with 1116 of these newly ringed and 196 retraps. The team at RSPB Bempton cliffs had a wonderful annual Bioblitz weekend with two ringing demonstrations…
- July 2026A steady month for the ringing team, as breeding finishes and moulting starts. The majority of our 33 sessions were in garden sites or the roost at Thornwick, over the month we caught 753 birds with 698 of these being new and 55 re-traps. A total of 33 different species…
- January – June 2026A brief round up of the efforts of the FBO ringing team over the first half of the year, generally our quietest period, we are often hampered by wind and/or rain. Our ringing tends to begin in earnest around mid April when migrant birds begin to arrive, then in May…
Click on the button below for full details of all posts about ringing. The posts are ordered with the latest first.