My Birding Life

Ajay Tegala started volunteering on a nature reserve at 15 years old and never really left. Now the ranger at Wicken Fen, one of the National Trust's most historic reserves, Ajay has spent his career on the front line of British conservation, from seabird colonies on Blakeney Point to reed bed management on the fens. He's also a familiar face from Countryfile and Springwatch, and the author of two books, The Unique Life of a Ranger and, most recently, Wetland Diaries. In this episode, Chris sits down with Ajay for a wide-ranging chat about childhood ducks and grey herons, the long, unglamorous road into ranger work, and what it actually takes to keep a wetland reserve wet. They cover the return of breeding cranes after 500 years, the tidal surge that upended his first winter on the Norfolk coast, and the challenge of turning a life's work into a book without losing what makes it personal. Episode Takeaways: Volunteer, volunteer, volunteer — The unglamorous but essential path into ranger work: a year of unpaid volunteering on the Norfolk coast, working bar jobs to get by, before a seasonal role finally opened up Life on Blakeney Point — Six months living on a remote shingle spit working with seals and seabirds, a kingfisher moment that confirmed he'd found the right path, and a tidal surge that smashed up the reserve just as things were going well Managing a wetland for wildlife — The grazing livestock, winter scrub clearance, and the moment each November when a tap is turned and the water and the wigeon, arrive almost overnight The return of the cranes — Cranes began nesting at Wicken for the first time in over 500 years, five years in the making before the first chick finally fledged Episode Timestamps: 04:50 - Ajay’s Early Birding 09:47 - Breaking Into Ranger Work 10:50 - Blakeney Point Breakthrough 14:31 - Kingfisher Sign and Storm 15:29 - Returning to Wicken Fen 17:36 - Changes at the Reserve 19:18 - Why Wicken Works 20:39 - Accessible Fen Experiences 21:12 - Ranger Life Explained 22:01 - Habitat Management Basics 23:16 - Birds Reedbeds and Cranes 26:47 - Water Challenges and Solutions 28:32 - Writing Wetland Diaries Important Links & Resources: Follow My Birding Life on Instagram Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube

Chris is joined by Hannah Buschert of Hannah & Erik Go Birding, one of the biggest names in the birding podcast world! Hannah's story starts almost by accident — a required biology of birds course in college, taught with the help of David Attenborough's Life of Birds, was all it took to hook her for good. From there she worked as a park ranger at Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, picked up a serious taste for far-flung birding destinations, and eventually settled on the Oregon coast. Hannah and Chris dig into how Hannah & Erik Go Birding got started back in 2018 on long drives through Florida, why she went on to launch Women Birders Happy Hour and Bird Nerd Book Club, and what it's really like building an audience and a business around a shared love of birds. Episode Takeaways: The Podcast Was Born on Long Florida Drives: Hannah and her husband Eric started Hannah & Eric Go Birding in 2018 because the birding podcasts they listened to on road trips were too technical and didn't capture the fun of actually going out and birding. Three Podcasts, Three Purposes: Beyond the flagship show, Hannah runs Women Birders Happy Hour and Bird Nerd Book Club. Travel and Logistics Matter as Much as the Birds: Hannah has a master's degree in tourism management, and the show deliberately covers the practical side of birding trips — guides, hotels, restaurants, and yes, bathrooms, not just the birds themselves. Online Criticism Comes With the Territory: Hannah's learned to shrug off the odd bit of negativity by remembering how much effort goes into putting anything out publicly. Episode Timestamps: 03:46 - Go Birding Origins 07:49 - Birding Beginnings 11:06 - Early Struggles Community 14:12 - Building Podcast Network 18:17 - Puffin Walks Costa Rica 20:45 - Budgeting Big Trips 22:53 - Monetising Go Birding 24:42 - Birding Books Picks 29:16 - Audience Fame Feedback 38:04 - Bird That Got Away 39:35 - Dream Destinations 41:31 - Forever Birding Place Important Links & Resources: Follow My Birding Life on Instagram Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube Follow Hannah on Instagram Go Birding Podcast

This week Chris sits down with Nigel and Kayleigh Cheetham, the couple behind Backyard Aviary Adventures. What started as a lockdown project, building an aviary and filming the golden pheasants, doves, and finches they raised in it, has since morphed into car camping, then a van conversion, and now full-blown twitching trips all over the UK chasing rare, scarce, and unusual visitors to our shores! The conversation covers how each of them found birding, the highs and hazards of the twitching community, and where they stand on their second consecutive UK big year. Episode Takeaways: How They Each Found Birding: Nigel rediscovered it in his late 20s after losing his dad to cancer and inheriting his camera; Kayleigh caught the bug on their honeymoon in Gambia, spotting a woodland kingfisher before he did. The Van Was Bought With Grief: After losing his sister to cancer at 44, Nigel and Kayleigh used money she left them to buy the van that now takes them all over the UK on rare bird chases. Why Twitching Feels Like a Countrywide Game of Where's Wally: For Nigel and Kayleigh, the pull of twitching isn't just the bird itself, it's the addictive thrill of the hunt, and the privilege of seeing something that isn't supposed to be there at all. 276 Species in a Single UK Year: Their 2025 big year total landed them at number eight nationally and this year, every rare bird they tick off doubles as a donation to Birds on the Brink Conservation Charity. Episode Timestamps: 06:38 - Lockdown Aviary Origins 11:23 - How Birding Began 15:53 - Life Filming Together 17:56 - Channel Shift Twitching 29:27 - Big Twitch Experiences 30:58 - Big Year Reality Check 32:15 - Couple Rivalry and Solo Ticks 39:49 - Strategy for the Rest of Year 41:33 - YouTube Changes the Chase 43:13 - eBird Rankings vs Enjoyment 49:55 - Gambia Happy Place and Kingfishers Important Links & Resources: Follow My Birding Life on Instagram Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube Follow Nigel and Kayleigh on Instagram Subscribe to Backyard Aviary Adventures on YouTube

This week Chris sits down with Sara Humphrey, aka Sussex Sara, a wildlife photographer, low-carbon birder, and one of the most distinctive voices in UK birdwatching right now. Sara doesn't drive. Every birding trip she takes, from the Cairngorms to the Lake District, is done by train, bus, or on foot, which means her whole approach to finding wildlife has had to become far more strategic than most birders ever need it to be. Sara and Chris talk through what low-carbon birding actually looks like day to day, her mission to see and photograph some of Britain's hardest and most threatened species: turtle doves, ring ouzels, nightingales and why she doesn't carry binoculars at all. It's a conversation about patience, close observation, and choosing depth over ticking boxes. Episode Takeaways: Life Without a Car: The Low-Carbon Birding Rule: Sara's approach to reducing her footprint without making the hobby unmanageable. Trains, buses, and long walks by default, with the occasional taxi when safety calls for it. What Turtle Doves Actually Need to Recover: Shallow water, the right seed in field margins, and thick hedgerow nesting habitat plus why logging sightings via BirdTrack for Operation Turtle Dove matters. Why Sara Never Carries Binoculars: As a photographer first, she found swapping between binoculars and camera cost her the shot every time, so she trained herself to read movement, body language, and calls instead. Letting the Animal Lead the Shot: Sara doesn't plan a composition and wait for wildlife to walk into it, she watches behaviour first and lets the animal dictate the photo. Episode Timestamps: 03:45 - Low Carbon Birding 07:53 - Planning Car Free Trips 12:54 - Why Turtle Doves Declined 18:05 - Ring Ouzels And Hides 20:23 - No Binocular Birding 23:45 - Learning Calls And Nightingales 26:58 - Territory And Displays 30:35 - Behaviour Led Photography 34:35 - Wild Boar Close Call 36:05 - Terns And Flybys Important Links & Resources: Follow My Birding Life on Instagram Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube Follow Sara on Instagram

Recorded live on the Whinchat stage at Global Bird Fair, this is the second episode we're publishing from that day, bringing Chris together with wildlife photographer Andy Green, a Kent-based creative known for his ultra-detailed close-up bird photography, co-host of The WildX Podcast alongside Adam Jukes and Mike Phelps, and founder of The Wild Den, an online community built around nature, creativity, and mental wellbeing. After turning 40, Andy set out to make wildlife his full-time work, and he's never looked back. In this conversation, Chris and Andy dig into the New Forest moment that started it all, the "still point" theory behind Andy's most memorable wildlife encounters, the ongoing blur between birding and bird photography, and why Andy built The Wild Den to bring community and joy back into sharing creative work online. They round things off with a rapid-fire audience segment covering spark birds, dream destinations, and crucially, the best birding snacks. Episode Takeaways: The New Forest Robin That Started It All: Andy's very first proper wildlife shoot in 2000, where a robin, a brambling, and a jay all landed within reach and hooked him for good. The "Still Point": The idea of a moment where everything goes quiet except you and the animal in front of you, illustrated by Andy's first encounter with an otter on Mull. Why The Wild Den Exists: Andy's answer to social media negativity and algorithm fatigue: a community space for chat, challenges, and in-person meetups, built to make birding and photography fun again. Content Creation Without the Pressure: Andy's advice for anyone hesitant to start posting: do it because you enjoy it, ignore the comparison trap, and expect it to take years, not overnight. Episode Timestamps: 03:03 - Origin Story 03:55 - Making Ordinary Pop 06:25 - Hide Versus Wild 09:33 - Nature as Reset 10:48 - Still Point Moments 12:35 - Birding Meets Cameras 15:00 - Why The Wild Den 18:27 - Group Walk Dynamics 19:41 - Building a Safe Community 24:26 - Memories Over Metrics 28:29 - Dream Trips and Lifers Important Links & Resources: Follow My Birding Life on Instagram Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube Follow Andy on Instagram The Wild Den