The BBC Radio 4 series

A Guide to Coastal Wildlife

Brett Westwood and Phil Gates present a guide to some of our commonest and most curious coastal wildlife. 
This includes the creatures you’re most likely to find in rock pools, on sandy beaches and coastal sea cliffs, along the strandline, and on mudflats and salt marshes. Duration: 1 hour 15 mins approx

Brett Westwood is a radio presenter and author, specialising in natural history. He regularly presents episodes of BBC Radio 4's series The Living World and Nature, as well as his own short series, several of which are available from the BBC website. He is a co-presenter with Phillipa Forrester of World on the Move, a BBC Radio 4 series that started in 2008 on migration in the animal kingdom. He is active in the West Midland Bird Club, Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, and for the Worcestershire Biological Records Centre, which all cover the area around his home town of Stourbridge. 
 
On 2 June 2015, Westwood presented the first in a 25-week series, Natural Histories, made in partnership with London's Natural History Museum. The 30-minute programmes set out to tell 'the stories of 25 species that have managed to get under the skin of human society and change the way we see the world.' [source: Wikipedia] Stephen Moss is a British natural historian, birder, author and television producer. He is best known for producing wildlife series, many of them presented by Bill Oddie. In 2009, he was one of the first recipients of the British Trust for Ornithology's Dilys Breese Medal, at a ceremony at the House of Lords. [source: Wikipedia]

An entertaining guide to some of our commonest and most curious coastal wildlife. 
 
Brett Westwood is joined by naturalist Phil Gates in this informative and entertaining guide to a variety of common coastal wildlife. Recorded in early summer along the coast of Northumberland, each programme focuses on a different habitat – rock pools, sandy beaches, sea cliffs, strandlines and mudflats adjoining saltmarshes. 
 
The series offers helpful advice on the appearance, behaviourand sounds of some of the typical species you’re likely to find around Britain's coast. Brett and Phil peel back the seaweed, clamber across rocks and sift through mud to examine the plants and animals that make this environment their home, and discuss how they’ve adapted to survive and thrive in some of the most hostile coastal habitats. 
 
A Guide to Coastal Wildlife will give listeners the confidence to identify everything from sea squirts to sandhoppers and from marram grass to mud shrimps. It will appeal to the complete novice and to more experienced naturalists who want to learn more about our fascinating and diverse coastal wildlife. Duration: 1 hour 15 mins approx

And Their Songs

A Guide To British Garden Birds

Join presenters Brett Westwood and Stephen Moss in this fascinating guide to the songs of our most popular garden birds, as heard on BBC Radio 4.

birdsong of breathtaking clarity and vividness

Essential listening for budding ornithologists

Most of us can tell the difference between a Blue Tit and a Blackbird or a Robin and a Wren, but what happens if you close your eyes – can you still tell which bird is which simply by listening to their song? If the answer is no, then this practical audio guide to the songs of British garden birds is the easy way to get to know the songs of some of our most popular and best-loved songbirds. Recorded on location in the Somerset Levels, in the garden of birdwatcher, writer and broadcaster Stephen Moss, this helpful and practical guide will quickly enable you to sort out your Blue Tits from your Great Tits and your Hedge Sparrows from your Tree Sparrows. Joining Stephen and presenter Brett Westwood, wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson is armed with an array of microphones that allow us to eavesdrop on the songs, calls and alarm cries of the birds we see around us. Packed with useful information and helpful tips, this guide is for anyone who wants to understand more about the beautiful birds which share our parks and gardens every day. 
 
1 CD. 1 hr 15 mins.

Brett Westwood

Stephen Moss

And their calls and songs

All six of BBC Radio 4's entertaining and practical guides to the birds of Great Britain, their habitats and their sounds 
 
'An absolute joy from start to finish' Jane Anderson, Radio Times 
 
Presenter Brett Westwood joins forces with BAFTA award-winning producer and naturalist Stephen Moss for six delightful and informative series, introducing us to some of Britain's most popular and best-loved birds. 
 
Together with wildlife sound recordist Chris Moss, they tour the UK, tracking down the rich variety of species that make their home there - from garden and woodland birds to ones that live on water, by the coast, on farms and in the mountains and moors. Recorded on location in Somerset, the Forest of Dean, Devonshire, the Marlborough Downs and Shropshire's Long Mynd, each programme focuses on a different habitat and type of bird, giving us a comprehensive overview of British avian life. 
 
There's a wealth of advice on how to recognise birds from their appearance, and identify them from their songs and calls - enabling you to easily sort out your Blue Tits from your Great Tits, and your House Sparrows from your Tree Sparrows. Brett and Stephen also share fascinating facts about bird behaviour, revealing that playful jackdaws enjoy doing acrobatics in air currents, and ravens love to 'ski' in the snow. 
 
Full of useful information and helpful tips, this box set will appeal to novice and experienced birdwatchers alike, as well as gardeners, walkers, ramblers and anyone who is keen to know more about the beautiful birds of the British Isles. 
 
Copyright © 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. ? 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd 
Presented by Brett Westwood and Stephen Moss 
Sound recordist: Chris Watson 
Produced by Julian Hector 
Series producer: Sarah Blunt 
 
A Guide to Garden Birds 
Episode 1 Thrushes 22 May 2007 
Episode 2 Titmice 29 May 2007 
Episode 3 Finches 5 June 2007 
Episode 4 Woodland Visitors 12 June 2007 
Episode 5 House Guests 19 June 2007 
 
A Guide to Woodland Birds 
Episode 1 Classic Woodland Birds 25 May 2008 
Episode 2 Common Warblers 1 June 2008 
Episode 3 The Oakwood Trio 8 June 2008 
Episode 4 Conifer Specialists 15 June 2008 
Episode 5 The Big Stuff 22 June 2008 
 
A Guide to Water Birds 
Episode 1 Wet Meadow Waders 31 May 2009 
Episode 2 Ducks 7 June 2009 
Episode 3 Warblers 14 June 2009 
Episode 4 Rails 21 June 2009 
Episode 5 River Birds 28 June 2009 
 
A Guide to Coastal Birds 
Episode 1 Estuaries 8 August 2010 
Episode 2 Sandy Shores 15 August 2010 
Episode 3 Rocky Shores 22 August 2010 
Episode 4 Sea Cliffs 29 August 2010 
Episode 5 Offshore Islands 5 September 2010 
 
A Guide to Farmland Birds 
Episode 1 Arable Fields 15 August 2011 
Episode 2 Winter Pastures 16 August 2011 
Episode 3 Hedgerows 17 August 2011 
Episode 4 Copses 18 August 2011 
Episode 5 Farmyards 19 August 2011 
 
A Guide to Mountain and Moorland Birds 
Episode 1 Heather Moors 7 January 2013 
Episode 2 Cliffs and Crags 8 January 2013 
Episode 3 Upland Grasslands 9 January 2013 
Episode 4 Bogs and Mires 10 January 2013 
Episode 5 High Mountain Tops 11 January 2013

Stephen Moss

Books by Stephen Moss

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