Nick Littlewood
LightNews LightNews
banner
blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood
@blackdogbirder.bsky.social
430 followers 390 following 250 posts

Bugs, bogs and birds.

Wildlife Conservation Management lecturer at SRUC, Aberdeen.

Senior Editor: Insect Conservation and Diversity.

Videos
Environmental science 63%
Geography 16%
Posts Replies Media Videos

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · 13d
An especially eye-catching 𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 Herring Gull - dark upperparts and restricted black in primaries - at Portsoy this afternoon.

#PatchBirding #BirdingScotland
Adult argentatus-type Herring Gull, side-on, sat on the sea. Adult argentatus-type Herring Gull, hanging in flight, leg dangling, over the sea. Adult argentatus-type Herring Gull flying away to right, showing upperside (head hidden behind wing) Adult argentatus-type Herring Gull flying right over the sea, showing underside of near wing.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 11
BirdNET has been a huge leap forward in #bioacoustics. Analysis from the WABAD collaboration, shows high precision (proportion of predictions that are correct) though modest recall (proportion of calls detected). Predictive power is highest in Europe, N. America and Oceania.

doi.org/10.1016/j.ec...
An Audiomoth acoustic recorder in green plastic outer casing strapped to the lichen-coated tree trunk in bright sunny conditions. Further trees in background.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 10
The relatively less server weather compared to elsewhere continues to produce some bonus waders here at Portsoy. Three each of Woodcock and Snipe today and two small flocks (22 + 42) of Golden Plover (which was new for patch last week).

@patchbirding.bsky.social #PWC2026
A Woodcock in flight, heading right and slightly away, with wings lowered showing upperside of right wing. Out-of-focus background of grassy field with patchy snow and a couple of fence posts. Two Golden Plover, in grassy field, both facing left though one at a slight angle towards camera. Some small snow patches in field. A grainy pic of a Snipe in a rough grassy field with small snow patches. Bird is angled away though looing to left. Lower part of body and the legs are concealed among the grass.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 8
Busy in the garden. Brambling was useful @patchbirding.bsky.social Portsoy-year-list species (only see them here when snow pushes the odd one into garden). Yellowhammer was new for garden (though is common close by).

#PWC2026 #birdingScotland
A brambling on snow-covered ground with out-of-focis female Chaffinch behind. A Tree Sparrow on snow-covered ground with out-of-focus female Chaffinch behind. Two Siskins, one on each side of a hanging feeder stocked with sunflower seeds. Female on left, male on right. Snow is falling. A Yellowhammer stood upright facing towards camera, on snow-covered ground.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 7
A couple more for the @patchbirding.bsky.social year list this lunchtime at Portsoy. Treecreeper was just my second here on patch.

#BirdingScotland
A Treecreeper on a green-lichen-covered tree trunk. A male Bullfinch, on the brown seadheads of a dock plant.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 6
A Mediterranean Gull made up for the dark and sleety conditions on today's lunchtime walk at Portsoy.

@patchbirding.bsky.social #BirdingScotland
A very distant and grainy photo of an adult Medierranean Gull on the sea, with a Black-headed Gull to the side.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 2
Yep - lots of snow inland but still clear here on the coast (just windy and sleety so far).

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 2
Patch ✔️

Over two years since moving to Portsoy without a Golden Plover and then a thousand come along at once. Murmurating at dusk.

@patchbirding.bsky.social
A distant Golden Plover flock in flight against the sky with two telegraph poles and a line of Gorse bushes in foreground. A distant Golden Plover flock in flight againt the sky.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Jan 1
New Years Day on patch at Portsoy. Wind, rain, hail, sleet and snow thwarted any expectations of getting the year list off to a flying start. Just 30 species, including Purple Sandpiper - low single figures winter here, but not always easy to find.

@patchbirding.bsky.social
Two Purple Sandpipers and two Turnstones on seaweed-covered rocks.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 31
Many thanks. This one was a chance encounter but I must try sweep netting some likely spots for them.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 31
Finishing the year with a new ladybird for Red Moss of Netherley: 𝘊𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘢 𝘳𝘶𝘧𝘢 - Red Marsh Ladybird. Seems to be widespread but few Aberdeenshire records. This one was tucked away between the clasp and body of an Audiomoth case.

@ukladybirds.bsky.social
An adult 𝘊𝘰𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘭𝘢 𝘳𝘶𝘧𝘢 (Red Marsh Ladybird) on a dead plant stem.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 18
Quick recce in an Aberdeen cemetery in prep for fieldwork with students in the new year.
This is best place I know for 2-spot Ladybirds, with hundreds massing in one small section. A Harlequin was still a novel sight for me here (and here's hoping they remain novel).

@ukladybirds.bsky.social
A group of 20 or so 2-spot Ladybirds together on a gravestone. A head-on pic of a Harlequin Ladybird on a gravestone. This one has red background with black spots.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 18
How do we tackle the substantial and growing threat to sensitive habitats from Sitka Spruce? Useful commentary on key issues...
mikeshewring.bsky.social Mike Shewring @mikeshewring.bsky.social · Dec 18
Who should pay when commercial forestry creates conservation problems? New analysis shows 200,000-971,000 ha of UK peatland at risk from conifer invasion. Based on our @iucn-uk-peat.bsky.social poster. #peatlands

Link - tinyurl.com/yc3b2s9h

Feedback/ comments welcome—not my usual writing style!
The Silent Invasion
How Non-Native Conifers Are Threatening Britain’s Peatlands
open.substack.com

Reposted by Nick A. Littlewood

mikeshewring.bsky.social
Mike Shewring @mikeshewring.bsky.social · Dec 18
Who should pay when commercial forestry creates conservation problems? New analysis shows 200,000-971,000 ha of UK peatland at risk from conifer invasion. Based on our @iucn-uk-peat.bsky.social poster. #peatlands

Link - tinyurl.com/yc3b2s9h

Feedback/ comments welcome—not my usual writing style!
The Silent Invasion
How Non-Native Conifers Are Threatening Britain’s Peatlands
open.substack.com

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 15
Chance meeting with @kattyponder.bsky.social reminded me to check two culverts in Aberdeen that usually have low single figures of #HibernatingHeralds. First was a blank (though a Peacock was present). Second culvert more than compensated, with a record 12 Heralds.

#TeamMoth
An adult Herald moth, in torchlight, clinging to a concrete ceiling. An adult Herald moth, in torchlight, with large spider adjacent, both settled on concrete wall with lines of brown staining. Adult Peacock butterfly in torchlight, hibernating (so just underside of wings visible) settled hanging from concrete ceiling.

Reposted by Nick A. Littlewood, Pieter Vantieghem

rocb-ento.bsky.social
Reuben O'Connell-Booth @rocb-ento.bsky.social · Dec 13
Interested in moth trapping?

Wondering which trap to use? Or if different bulbs collect different species?

Using 100k samples from @gardenmothscheme.bsky.social our new paper looks at these questions and more! With with Bill Kunin and @katatrepsis.bsky.social

#mothsmatter #teammoth
Effect of bulb type on moth trap catch and composition in UK gardens
We analyse 10 years of records Garden Moth Scheme (GMS) to estimate the effect of bulb and trap type on the number of moths caught by moth traps. We find that brighter, higher wattage bulbs collect ...
resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 12
Huge congratulations to @bats-n-bugs.bsky.social: PhD viva passed with ZERO corrections - an amazing (and well deserved) achievement. 🍾🎉

Thesis covered bats and insects on farmland. Read a moth chapter here - doi.org/10.1016/j.ag.... More to follow.

@srucnews.bsky.social @kirstyjpark.bsky.social
Six people stood inside for group photo. The successful student with suction sampler in dwarf shrub vegetation. Person cutting a caterpillar cake The successful student, standing in the dark in a field with a sweep net

Reposted by Robin J. Pakeman

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 8
One week remaining. Applications need to include two references, so don't leave it too late to apply for this @srucnews.bsky.social CASE partnership with @ptes-org.bsky.social.

Details: www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
blackdogbirder.bsky.social Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 1
Two weeks left to apply for #PhD on declines in rural #Hedgehogs.
🦔
This is a @srucnews.bsky.social EastBio CASE project in partnership with (and co-supervised by) @ptes-org.bsky.social.
🦔
Details: www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
🦔
Applications close 15 December
🦔
📷 Silviu Petrovan
A Hedgehog on a stoney/mossy ground against a stone wall.

Reposted by Nick A. Littlewood

srucnews.bsky.social
SRUC @srucnews.bsky.social · Dec 5
Huge congratulations to our SRUC winners at the Crichton 25th Anniversary Awards! 🎉

Lucy Thornton – SRUC Staff Member of the Year
Plus a big shout-out to our finalists: Gemma Higgins and Ely Blyth.

Your hard work and passion make us proud.
Read more 👉 www.sruc.ac.uk/all-news/cel...

Reposted by Robin J. Pakeman

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Dec 1
Two weeks left to apply for #PhD on declines in rural #Hedgehogs.
🦔
This is a @srucnews.bsky.social EastBio CASE project in partnership with (and co-supervised by) @ptes-org.bsky.social.
🦔
Details: www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
🦔
Applications close 15 December
🦔
📷 Silviu Petrovan
A Hedgehog on a stoney/mossy ground against a stone wall.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 30
Med Gulls never lose their appeal - this 1st-winter in last of the light at Portsoy was highlight of an otherwise quiet weekend, birdwise.

@patchbirding.bsky.social #patchbirding
a 1st-winter Mediterranean Gull flying left against a grey sky.

Reposted by Nick A. Littlewood

rspbscience.bsky.social
RSPB Science @rspbscience.bsky.social · Nov 27
New paper 🪶

Proximity to woodlands may be reducing the effectiveness of conservation interventions for farmland waders

Read on for a summary

Or find the full paper here:
doi.org/10.1111/1365...

@kirstyjpark.bsky.social
@naturescot.bsky.social
@stir.ac.uk

📷Ben Andrew
An ariel view shows the stark boundary between farmland and woodland.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 26
#bioacoustics

Reposted by Nick A. Littlewood

alanknox.bsky.social
Alan Knox @alanknox.bsky.social · Nov 26
To all users of #BirdNET: you can do better by tweaking the default settings!

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
@blackdogbirder.bsky.social #bioacoustics #ornithology
Optimization of passive acoustic bird surveys: a global assessment of BirdNET settings
BirdNET is a popular machine learning tool for automated recognition of bird sounds. However, evidence on how to optimize its settings for accurate bird monitoring remains limited. Here, we evaluate ...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Robin J. Pakeman, Allan D. McDevitt

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 21
New #mammal conservation #PhD: "Understanding and Addressing Rural Hedgehog Population Declines".

@srucnews.bsky.social EastBio CASE project in partnership with (and co-supervised by) @ptes-org.bsky.social.

Details: www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Act fast - applications close 15 December.
🦔🦔🦔

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 20
This is a fantastic site for ladybird variety - we've also had 11-spot on previous visits. Red Squirrels are ever reliable here too.
A Harlequin Ladybird on a gravestone A 2-spot Ladybird on a gravestone A 10-spot Ladybird next to an Orange Ladybird, on a gravestone A Red Squirrel upright on the ground facing towards the camera.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 20
A highlight of the annual teaching calendar is the ladybird survey in Sleephillock Cemetery, Montrose. Orange Ladybirds dominated this week, as usual, but variety came from single figures of 2-spot, 7-spot, 10-spot, Cream-spot and Harlequin.

@ukladybirds.bsky.social
@srucnews.bsky.social
Seven Orange Ladybirds clustered on a gravestone A Cream-spot Ladybird on a gravestone. A 7-spot Ladybird on a gravestone. Students looking for ladybirds on a gravestone.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 19
Both cracking birds (and educational), whatever they are!

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 19
BBRC giveths and BBRC takeths away.

Latest @britishbirdsbbrc.bsky.social report includes acceptance of the 2013 Cruden Bay Subalpine Warbler as a Western.

Meanwhile, alas, the Black-throated Thrush two months earlier in @hughad.bsky.social's garden is now classed as a hybrid.

#BirdingScotland
A male Western Subalpine Warbler on a gorse stem A thrush basically looking like a male Black-throated Thrush, on a lawn.

blackdogbirder.bsky.social
Nick Littlewood @blackdogbirder.bsky.social · Nov 11
Thanks Alan - a fairly key omission from my post!