The best way to reach me is by email. I read everything that comes in, but I cannot promise an individual reply to every message, I do answer questions that are likely to be useful to other readers by adding them to the relevant species or topic page.
What I am happy to hear about
- A species you cannot identify. Send a photograph, a recording, or a written description with the date, location (county-level is fine), and a sense of size and behaviour. Mystery birds are a useful corrective and I usually find time to reply.
- A correction. If a guide on this site contains a factual error, a stale taxonomic name, or an inference that no longer holds against current literature, please tell me. Corrections are credited at the foot of the relevant page.
- A guide you would like to see. Suggestions for species or topics not yet covered are welcome and frequently shape what I write next.
- A press, interview, or speaking enquiry. Please mention the outlet, deadline, and the angle you are exploring.
What I cannot help with
- Rehoming injured wildlife. Please contact your nearest licensed wildlife rehabilitator. In the UK that is your local RSPCA or RSPB centre; in the US, your state wildlife agency or a permitted federally-licensed rehabber.
- Pest-bird disputes. Removal of nesting Starlings, House Sparrows, or pigeons under licence is a matter for a local pest professional or, in the UK, Natural England general licences. I do not advise on lethal control.
- Identification from a single grainy frame at 200 m. Please include scale, behaviour, and habitat; the better the context, the better the answer.
For all of the above, write to: james.whitfield [at] plumageandperch [dot] com
I aim to read messages within seven days. Responses are typically slower during the spring migration window (April–May in the northern temperate zone), when most of my time is in the field.