Birdwatch - September 2021

■ Twenty years of Barra In recent decades the Outer Hebridean island of Barra has become established as a vagrant hot-spot, after an intrepid group of birders identified the then underwatched isle as potential vagrant trap. The ‘Barra Boys’ take a look back at some of the avian highlights.
■ Sounds good While noc-mig – recording nocturnal bird migration – has taken off in Britain in recent times, routine daytime sound recording isn’t as widely practised. But it’s well worth giving it a go, says Ed Stubbs.
■ Down on the farm Vine House Farm is a conservation success story: an environmentally friendly farm that is home to an array of wildlife, including a number of Red-listed farmland birds, yet also a successful business that produces and sells high-quality bird food at the same time. Josh Jones talks to farmer Nicholas Watts to find out how it all works.
■ Good catches Empidonax flycatchers are a group of small, wing-barred Nearctic flycatchers cloaked in hues of greys and greens, and browns and buffs. Finding any one of Acadian, Yellow-bellied, Alder, Least and Willow Flycatchers and Eastern Wood Pewee in the UK would be a lifetime’s achievement, but identifying it might prove tricky. Julian Hough provides all the information you need, should you be lucky enough to discover one this autumn. 

Plus: more thought-provoking comment from columnists Dominic Mitchell, Mark Avery and Lucy McRobert, our latest photo challenge, the team at BirdGuides provides round-ups of June’s birding highlights from Britain, Ireland and the wider Western Palearctic, news, views and reviews, tips and advice on improving your birding and your questions answered by our expert panel.