Phil Mountain
@philmountain.bsky.social
Dad, birder, grumpy old man.
Nice Shag with bling, one of at least six still present at 3pm on Castle Howard Lake, North Yorks
@northyorksbirds.bsky.social
@northyorksbirds.bsky.social
January 29, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Nice Shag with bling, one of at least six still present at 3pm on Castle Howard Lake, North Yorks
@northyorksbirds.bsky.social
@northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Really enjoyable couple of hours at Ellerton Church LDV this morning. Great, prolonged views of Tundra Beans & Russian Whitefronts mixed in with the Pinkies and Greylags. 😁 @northyorksbirds.bsky.social @yorkbirding.bsky.social
January 24, 2026 at 6:57 PM
Really enjoyable couple of hours at Ellerton Church LDV this morning. Great, prolonged views of Tundra Beans & Russian Whitefronts mixed in with the Pinkies and Greylags. 😁 @northyorksbirds.bsky.social @yorkbirding.bsky.social
I’ve mainly been enjoying a wild goose chase around the LDV this week! 😁
January 17, 2026 at 6:52 AM
I’ve mainly been enjoying a wild goose chase around the LDV this week! 😁
Goose-tastic field on approach to East Cottingwith, LDV today, with 10 Beans and 2 Whitefronts within the large Greylag/Pinkfoot skeins!
@yorkbirding.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
@yorkbirding.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
January 10, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Goose-tastic field on approach to East Cottingwith, LDV today, with 10 Beans and 2 Whitefronts within the large Greylag/Pinkfoot skeins!
@yorkbirding.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
@yorkbirding.bsky.social @northyorksbirds.bsky.social
Great days birding in the Lower Derwent Valley, starting with 2 Scaup, followed by the White-tailed Eagle, finishing off with 2 Caspian Gulls in the roost. Hundreds of waterfowl, 6 other raptor species, Blackwits, Snipe, Lapwing and Goldies added to the mix 😁! #yorkshirebirding
January 3, 2026 at 7:35 PM
Great days birding in the Lower Derwent Valley, starting with 2 Scaup, followed by the White-tailed Eagle, finishing off with 2 Caspian Gulls in the roost. Hundreds of waterfowl, 6 other raptor species, Blackwits, Snipe, Lapwing and Goldies added to the mix 😁! #yorkshirebirding
1st thing I pointed my scope at from the hotel balcony this morning in Ponta Delgado, Azores, Great-tailed Grackle, nice start to a work trip!
December 1, 2025 at 10:26 PM
1st thing I pointed my scope at from the hotel balcony this morning in Ponta Delgado, Azores, Great-tailed Grackle, nice start to a work trip!
That’s it now, forced to inhabit corporate Christmas habitat whilst travelling for work, baaaaa humbug!
November 25, 2025 at 5:11 PM
That’s it now, forced to inhabit corporate Christmas habitat whilst travelling for work, baaaaa humbug!
Fantastic weekend walking with non-birding friends from Port Mulgrave, south to Sandsend on Saturday and north to Saltburn today; the coastal habitat looks fantastic! Very breezy, but managed a beast of a male Northern Bullfinch as we set off this morning at Port Mulgrave 👊!
October 26, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Fantastic weekend walking with non-birding friends from Port Mulgrave, south to Sandsend on Saturday and north to Saltburn today; the coastal habitat looks fantastic! Very breezy, but managed a beast of a male Northern Bullfinch as we set off this morning at Port Mulgrave 👊!
Well, at least the dawn sky was pretty……
October 9, 2025 at 9:39 AM
Well, at least the dawn sky was pretty……
They appear to taking birding very seriously in Kazakhstan; bird of the day Turkestan Tit, a great Tit!
September 28, 2025 at 8:18 AM
They appear to taking birding very seriously in Kazakhstan; bird of the day Turkestan Tit, a great Tit!
Blast from the past yesterday, ‘Breakfast Special’ for dinner at the ‘Redbeck’. The start-point of many a twitch for Wintersett birders back in the day!
September 21, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Blast from the past yesterday, ‘Breakfast Special’ for dinner at the ‘Redbeck’. The start-point of many a twitch for Wintersett birders back in the day!
I had the same thoughts when a new retirement home was built in my village; many Wood Pigeons and god knows what else have been killed flying into the glass. Asked the management to put stickers on, but no progress made 🤬!
August 21, 2025 at 10:58 AM
I had the same thoughts when a new retirement home was built in my village; many Wood Pigeons and god knows what else have been killed flying into the glass. Asked the management to put stickers on, but no progress made 🤬!
Another proud Dad moment, Dr Phoebe no less! ❤️
July 20, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Another proud Dad moment, Dr Phoebe no less! ❤️
My brood, punting in Oxon ahead of Phoebe’s graduation!
July 18, 2025 at 3:20 PM
My brood, punting in Oxon ahead of Phoebe’s graduation!
Heat-induced, torpor dominated garden VP = Swift action, post-breeding gull meanderings, a BZ & SH…….
July 11, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Heat-induced, torpor dominated garden VP = Swift action, post-breeding gull meanderings, a BZ & SH…….
Pretty good BBQ prep quencher!
June 29, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Pretty good BBQ prep quencher!
Glad to be out and about after my Prostatectomy; a real tonic watching both Little Egrets and a Great Egret doing their thing.
June 27, 2025 at 10:31 AM
Glad to be out and about after my Prostatectomy; a real tonic watching both Little Egrets and a Great Egret doing their thing.
Post Op garden VP fun; Swift action takes the 1st prize!
June 19, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Post Op garden VP fun; Swift action takes the 1st prize!
That’s mine, cool place isn’t it!
June 4, 2025 at 5:47 PM
That’s mine, cool place isn’t it!
Ooof, Tien Shan highlights from a work trip this week.
May 22, 2025 at 1:41 PM
Ooof, Tien Shan highlights from a work trip this week.
CMF at the Cosmo-station, Almaty yesterday 🤯!
May 18, 2025 at 4:20 AM
CMF at the Cosmo-station, Almaty yesterday 🤯!
Back birding in the KZ Tien Shan today; Himalayan Rubythroats did not disappoint!
May 17, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Back birding in the KZ Tien Shan today; Himalayan Rubythroats did not disappoint!
Finally caught up with Red-headed Bunting in KZ!😁
May 11, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Finally caught up with Red-headed Bunting in KZ!😁
Sunday afternoon VP, watching the Great Tit feeding its brood in my f$€¥#%g Swift box, plus a lovely Holly Blue dancing around the garden. 😁
April 27, 2025 at 1:24 PM
Sunday afternoon VP, watching the Great Tit feeding its brood in my f$€¥#%g Swift box, plus a lovely Holly Blue dancing around the garden. 😁
Well, my Sciatica went nuclear last night, so I will be mainly looking at my ceiling until the pain subsides, bugger!
April 23, 2025 at 6:39 AM
Well, my Sciatica went nuclear last night, so I will be mainly looking at my ceiling until the pain subsides, bugger!