RSPB Bempton Cliffs

RSPB Bempton Cliffs are located north of Bridlington and are part of the Flamborough Head chalky cliffs. The reserve is the best place in England to see a sea bird colony, which in the summer (May-July) has a quarter of a million breeding birds. Among these are Razorbills, Guillemots, Gannets, Kittiwakes, Fulmars and Puffins all nesting precariously on seemingly vertical faces.

As you approach one of the safe viewing points you are suddenly overawed by the hubbub and, if the wind is not offshore, the smell of the colony. None of this matters though, when compared with the spectacle of hundreds of thousands of birds with an overwhelming sense of purpose.

Other species, including Tree Sparrow, Swallow, Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Whitethroat, Sedge Warbler and Linnet, breed along the cliff tops and the scrubland behind them. Seasonal migrants are often present too.

Below is a list of species I have observed on recent visits.