Northern Fulmar
"A strange channel about birdwatching": bird sightings, trips, photos and lots of humour.
What it is
Severny Glupysh ("Northern Fulmar") is a Russian-language Telegram channel that calls itself "a strange channel about birdwatching". It's run by Alexander Borzenko and Maria Bakhareva, and mixes trip reports, bird photography, announcements for guided birdwatching walks in Latvia and elsewhere, jokey quiz questions and personal notes on what it's like to take birding seriously and still have fun.
Why we picked it
The writing about birds is warm and funny rather than dryly ornithological. The standout series follows a trip to Lake Kerkini National Park in Greece: scouting days before the tour, then a full report with pelicans, flamingos, a crafty eagle-owl, jackals and a nose-horned viper, plus a separate gallery of glossy ibises. A post on tracking down a scops owl near the guesthouse reads like a small detective story.
There's plenty for people who can't yet tell a sandpiper from a gull. A top-5 from Berlin's Natural History Museum features the Archaeopteryx, a shelf full of northern fulmars and a display on gull evolution. There's a bird-themed trivia question written after a walk with players from a quiz tournament. And walk announcements for Jurmala, Berlin and Kraków come with dates, meeting points and what you might see.
Where to start
- Read the Lake Kerkini trip report — it has the best photos and the liveliest stories.
- Find the scops owl post to see what birding looks like from the inside.
- Check the Berlin museum top-5 if you like natural history.
- If you're in Latvia, watch for walk announcements and the birders' chat linked in the channel description.
Who it's for
Nature lovers who want to start noticing the birds around them, and birders looking for good company. The channel is in Russian. If you're not fluent, Telegram's built-in translation works well on these chatty posts, and Latin species names like Plegadis falcinellus are often included, so you can look birds up in any field guide or app.
Quick answers
What is the channel about? Birdwatching: sightings, trips, photos, guided walks and a lot of humour.
What language is it in? Russian.
How often does it post? Judging by the preview, several times a week.
Can I read it without a Telegram account? Yes, the web preview at t.me/s/wearebirders opens in a browser.
