It’s not every day that you see a globally threatened bird species in Northants.
And it’s not every day that you see a sea-duck in Northants.
So you can appreciate that it isn’t even every other day that you see both rolled into one – a Long-tailed Duck in east Northants. However, there have been three birds present in the Nene Valley for a couple of weeks, and because they haven’t come to Stanwick Lakes I went to see them a few miles down the road at Summer Leys.
This circumpolar species is known as the ‘old squaw’ in the Americas (at least, sometimes it is).
It takes a little getting used to the idea that the Long-tailed Duck is so threatened, but its Baltic population has declined very quickly in recent years.
Which other species might soon be recognised as more endangered than they currently are?
Maybe Ash trees? Natural England? Green Tories? Swifts?
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I was birding just before Christmas with two friends from Virginia, USA. I mentioned how much I loved the name Oldsquaw when they pointed out that referring to Long-tailed Ducks as so is not done anymore. The Americans too now use Long-tailed Duck.
Apparently the old name was considered insulting to female Native Americans.
Speechless!
Old squaw is a name I’ve never liked, insulting or not. Its a shame that new world Europeans weren’t as sensitive to other issues surrounding Native Americans especially in the US (and still in the jungles of South America).
I’ve seen several LTDs in the last twelve months, two spent late winter and early spring with the Goldeneye on a local reservoir, a splendid adult drake was on a local gravel pit on christmas day last year and Is aw quite a few on Fair Isle in October. They are always great birds to see and certainly better than the name Old Squaw implies.
Yes Swifts. No where to nest especially with the government’s new green housing scheme blocking all the holes where they used to nest. That’s why we joined up with Ibstock Bricks who make permanent ‘Swift bricks’ to go in new buildings in our latest children’s book ‘Screamer the Swift’. We also approached all planning departments and the community and local government department via MPs to make it compulsory to have these bricks in new buildings. Response – very poor as no one cares any more and would rather use insecticides to control pest insects in towns and cities and of course in agriculture. Happy New Year!!!