We’re lucky enough to know a little of the painted lady butterfly's extraordinary migration story - they travel up to 7,500 miles over 3 or more quickly-reproducing generations 🦋✈️ Find out more about this and other summer migrants: bit.ly/3JDY2BT

Who's spotted their first swift of the season? They're starting to trickle in from their long migratory journeys: we've heard reports of a few spotted in Hill Head, Lepe, Lymington and plenty at Fishlake Meadows in Romsey. For more on summer visitors: bit.ly/3JDY2BT

Say hello to Loki and Cody - such a happy pair! 🐾

Their families always keep an eye out for wildlife out on walks and make sure that they give birds and other animals plenty of space 🦆

Find out more about wildlife aware dog walks: bit.ly/3lWFB2v

Ranger Richie spotted several whimbrels at Lymington Keyhaven Nature Reserve, like these pictured. Whimbrels pass through on the way to breeding grounds further north. They're very similar to curlews, though their dark crowns and eye-stripes are a good species indicator.

Little terns have returned to our beaches from a winter in Africa. Since their nests are just scrapes on the beach and their eggs are barely visible on shingle, they're easily crushed underfoot. Find out more about little terns and other summer visitors: bit.ly/3JDY2BT

Don't forget - if you'd like to join our friendly ranger team, there's just one week left to apply - the closing date is Sunday 28 April: bit.ly/3mJjTMt

We love looking out for razor shells washed on the beach after a storm. Looking like an old-fashioned cut-throat razor, they use a powerful muscular 'foot' to dig to a safe depth, squirting water into the sand to remove loose granules from their path.

As April matures, the dawn chorus is growing stronger each day 🎵💙Although garden and woodland birds can steal the spotlight for memorable songs, we think our coastal birds hold their own when it comes to wonderful – and weird - melodies bit.ly/3UjOcee

It won’t be long before we'll be welcoming swifts back to our skies – happy days 😊 If you can't wait, Tim Norriss, one of the founders of Hampshire Swifts, will be giving a talk at the Hampshire Records Office on 30 April about this endangered species: bit.ly/3Q1Yhdq

We love tracking the progress of Joe, Cuach Torc and pals as they continue their extraordinary migratory journeys 🌍✈️ We wish them well and look forward to their safe arrive back in the UK 😀 Thanks for great updates BTO

Are you a natural communicator who cares for wildlife? We're looking for a new member to join our team!
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If you've got a flair for public engagement and a passion for content creation, with a deadline of 28 April, you've still got two weeks to apply: bit.ly/3mJjTMt

With sunnier weather on its way 😎 many will be getting paddleboards and kayaks out for a paddle around our coastline and its inlets 🛶🏄

Take a look at our recent blog post for the latest on our Watersports with Wildlife initiative: bit.ly/3PZP0CO

Red kites and buzzards have seen fantastic population recoveries in the last few decades. Their tails are the best ID indicator: the buzzard has a short broad fanned tail while the red kite has a very distinctive long forked tail bit.ly/43YOSbK

Luna is a twelve-year-old rescue dog who loves to explore the coast on her daily walks 🥰 Her family stick to pathways to make sure that all Luna's walks are wildlife friendly 🐾

Find out about wildlife aware dog walks: bit.ly/3lWFB2v

Unusually high spring tides coupled with strong winds are giving our coastal birds, like this cormorant, a challenging time. Take care if you're out and about on the coast in these extreme conditions - watch out for fast moving tides 🌊

Despite the changeable blustery weather, swallows have been seen around the Solent area in the last week or so – a welcome sign of warmer days to come. Find out how to tell the difference between swallows, swifts and martins: bit.ly/3Jjimpe

Our #BirdoftheMonth for April is the handsome oystercatcher, which, despite its name, tends to eat shellfish like cockles and mussels, as you can see in this photo taken by Ranger Charlotte: bit.ly/3p4ie6g

Our winter season may have officially come to an end but there are still a few brent geese around. Ranger Natalie spotted these on the River Hamble today. Thanks to everyone who gives these lovely birds the space needed to prepare for their perilous journeys to Arctic Siberia.

There's still a handful of our winter visitors around - wigeons like these have been seen around Calshot in the New Forest. These stragglers will soon be setting off for their more northern breeding grounds in Ukraine, Iceland, Russia and Scandinavia🌍bit.ly/3TZPT0p

We're looking for a new member to join our friendly team! Are you a natural communicator who cares for wildlife? We're after someone with a flair for public engagement who's got a passion for content creation. Apply by 28 April. Click on the link: bit.ly/3mJjTMt