The news (RSPB blog, RPUK blog) of yet another disappeared Hen Harrier from the cohort of 2017 youngsters is not a great surprise. There aren’t that many left! But the location is interesting – Wemmergill Moor. Wemmergill Moor is a big-name grouse moor. Until 2006, this moor, of 17,000 acres had been in the same…
Author: Mark
Born Bristol, UK
Educated: Cleeve House School Bristol, Bristol Grammar School and Downing College Cambridge
Ph.D. University of Aberdeen, Winter activity of pipistrelle bats.
NERC post-doctoral Research Fellow, Edward Grey Institute, Oxford University
Former Conservation Director of the RSPB, 1989-2011
Wuthering moors (63) – waiting for an answer
I sent this FOI/EIR request to Natural England a week ago: Please send me the Habitats Regulations Assessments for the Catchment Restoration Plan for Walshaw Moor Estate and all associated documents, email correspondence etc. Note that I am requesting the Habitat Regulations Assessments – plural, as I believe that more than one version exists and…
February Red Kites
I’m keeping a note of whether I see Red Kites on each day through the year – in January I saw Red Kites on 22 days out of 31. February has had a higher strike rate – 24 out of 28 days.
Local Issue – chicken farm update
You might remember a few blogs about the proposal to build an intensive broiler unit locally to me (Local issue – further comments, 1 December 2017; Local issue – seems I was right (2), 2 November 2017; Local issue – seems I was right (1), 1 November 2017; Local – bird records, 26 October 2017;…
Guest blog – Real country people by Norman McCanch
Norman McCanch was born in South Wales and trained as a taxidermist, then worked as a Lighthouse Keeper with Trinity House, before studying Graphics and Illustration in Kent. He subsequently worked in a boat yard, in the Agricultural supply industry, as a part-time gamekeeper and as warden of two different Bird Observatories. He worked on…