The Dee Estuary, on the North Wales / North-West England border, is one of the United Kingdom's premier birding locations for wetland and shorebirds. This Website describes the best Dee Estuary birdwatching areas with detailed maps and latest bird news for dedicated twitchers and casual birdwatchers alike.
Please send any
sightings to: 
Newsletters going back to March 1998 can be read, they are indexed both month by month and by subject matter.
Latest Sightings.... (more)
Apr 24
6 Wheatear, 17 White Wagtail, 2 Yellow Wagtail, 27 Dunlin and 80 Redshank in coastal paddocks, also 4 Lesser Whitethroat - Leasowe Lighthouse.
143 Wimbrel and 168 Curlew at high tide, also 1 Whinchat and 28 Wheatear around moored boats area at 08:15 - Heswall Shore.
30+ Whimbrel at 9.30am - Thurstaston Shore.
1 Whinchat, 6 Wheatear, 3 Sedge Warbler and 2 Reed Warbler between Denhall Lane and Burton Point.
16 Whimbrel roosting - Shotwick Lake.
Apr 23
450 Sandwich Tern, 50 Little Tern 50, 50 Ringed Plover, 2 Greenland Wheatear and 4 White wagtail - Point of Ayr.
12 Whimbel on main scrape, Red Kite over and fem Scaup - Burton Mere Wetlands.
1 Little Ringed Plover flew west - Hoylake.
2 Yellow Wagtail, 5 Wheatear and 4 White Wagtail - Leasowe Lighthouse.
80+ Whimbrel - Heswall Shore.
Whimbrels at Thurstaston, April 24th © Richard Smith
Grasshopper Warbler, Burton Marsh, April 23rd © Frank Burns
Green Sandpiper in horse paddock, Leasowe Lighthouse, April 21st © Sean O'Hara
Pink-footed Geese leaving the estuary past Hilbre, April 20th © Alan Hitchmough
Cuckoos in Hoylake Langfields, April 20th © Richard Whitby
Grasshopper Warbler at Meols, April 20th © David Bradshaw
Sandwich Tern, Hilbre, April 20th © Alan Hitchmough
Dunlins, many in breeding plumage, at West Kirby, April 20th © Richard Smith
Common Cranes over Moreton, April 19th © Graham Connolly
Grasshopper Warbler at Burton Point. April 18th © Mark Woodhead
Black-tailed Godwits at Caldy Wildfowl Collection, April 18th © Richard Smith
Male and female Redstarts at the back of the beach at Heswall, April 17th © Steve Hinde
Whimbrel at Heswall, April 16th © Steve Hinde
Ring Ouzel on Hoylake Langfields, April 14th © Tony Ramsden
Spotted Redshanks with Redshanks and Black-tailed Godwits, Burton Mere Wetlands, April 14th
© Mark Woodhead
Whinchat on Hoylake Langfields, April 13th © Richard Whitby
Common Redstart at Leasowe, April 11th © Ian McKenna
Cattle Egrets on Burton Marsh, April 11th © Mark Woodhead
Water Rail at Parkgate, April 9th © John Crook
Ring Ouzel at Riverbank Road, Heswall, April 7th © Steve Hinde
Ring Ouzel on Hoylake Langfields, April 7th © Richard Whitby
Sandwich Tern, Hilbre, April 6th © Alan Hitchmough
Ring Ouzel on Hilbre, April 6th © Alan Hitchmough
White Wagtail at Leasowe, April 5th © Steve Round
Ring Ouzel at Leasowe Lighthouse, April 3rd © Elliot Montieth
White Wagtail on Hilbre, March 29th © Alan Hitchmough
Wheatear on Hilbre, March 28th © Matt Thomas
Iceland Gull in the roost on Hoylake Shore, March 26th © Allan Conlin
Waxwing at Neston, March 24th © Steve Williams
Wheatear by Middle Eye, March 21st © Alan Hitchmough
Stonechat at Leasowe Lighthouse, March 20th © Graham Connolly
Avocets on Parkgate Marsh, March 19th © John Crook
Waxwings at Neston, March 17th © Nigel 'Wirral Guy'
Wheatear on the cliffs at Thurstaston, March 17th © Steve Hinde
Greenshank in the channel by the groyne, Meols, March 16th © Sean O'Hara
Short-eared Owl over Burton Marsh, March 13th © Nigel Maitland
Grey Partridge in field by the Old Baths, Parkgate, March 13th © John Hewitt
Water Rail at Parkgate, March 12th © Dave Edwards
Dunlins at Meols on the flooding tide, March 12th © Graham Connolly
Green-winged Teal on tide off Riverbank Road, Heswall, March 12th © Alan Hitchmough
Green-winged Teal on Heswall Shore, March 9th © Steve Hinde
Short-eared Owl at Denhall Quay, March 3rd © Stuart Phillips
Short-eared Owl near Hilbre, March 3rd © Alan Hitchmough
This is a wholly independent web site and unless where specifically stated has been written and maintained by myself, Richard Smith. I do receive articles for the newsletter from time to time for which I am very grateful, and also various people kindly donate photographs and sketches. l rely to a large extent on people keeping me informed about the birds they have seen - this, more than anything, is what keeps the website going. Note that everything on this website is subject to © copyright although some material may be available for non-commercial use - but please ask first! Lastly, 'Dee Estuary Birding' is just the name of this web site - it is not the name of an organisation or society.
Copyright © 2020 Richard Smith | Header Photograph of Black-tailed Godwits © Steve Round.