There were two copies of The Oldie in Avery Towers over Christmas and everyone who glanced at either of them noticed that ‘That man Ingrams is moaning about Red Kites again’. Richard Ingrams has form on this subject but this time he seems to be blaming the decline of the Kestrel on Red Kites. Actually…
BLOG POSTS
Disgusting of Tunbridge Wells
Sir I note with concern that there is ample evidence that birds from Romania and Bulgaria are already visiting our fair shores. Bird ringing recoveries demonstrate, beyond any doubt, that poor birds flood in to Britain from eastern Europe in search of an easier life. These ecological migrants, as we should call them, are even…
Nature goes unhonoured
I didn’t notice any names closely associated with nature in the New Year’s Honours list – did you? Although the idea of ‘honours’ is ridiculous I am always pleased when some of the good guys get a gong. I really couldn’t see any this time around – did I miss them? Would you nominate anyone?
What will 2014 bring for you?
HAPPY NEW YEAR! It’s fun to have some idea of what you plan to do in the year ahead. Here are some of my ideas. They’ll change through the year, no doubt, as they did last year. January – encourage as many people as possible to invite their MP to their houses to do the…
Wildlife NGOs in 2013
This year has been difficult for our wildlife NGOs. Money is tight and the government is hostile to nature. The Grasslands Trust disappeared from the Tangled Bank of wildlife NGOs and many others have had to cut their expenditure (and their staff). There have been encouraging signs of NGOs working more closely together – most…
BTO thrushes coloured in my local picture
I went out over the Christmas period to count thrushes for the BTO. The winter thrush survey hasn’t really caught my imagination, and I don’t hold great hopes for it producing fascinating results, but the BTO asked me to do it and so I did it gladly. It wasn’t onerous – a bit of countryside…
I shall be doing RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch with my MP
I’m very glad that my MP, Andy Sawford, has said that he can do the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch with me on the weekend of 25/26 January. Why not invite your MP too? Why shouldn’t 660 MPs be part of the 500,000 people taking part – giving wildlife an hour of their year? Think how…
Sunday Book Review – And After That He Ate Them by Leon Hills
This book is for children but I enjoyed it, and I suspect younger children will too. A frog wanders around and comes across various other creatures, all of whom he engages in conversation before he eats them! The illustrations are big and bold and attractive. In each there are half a dozen hidden mini-beasts for…
Saturday cartoon by Ralph Underhill
Comments Off on Saturday cartoon by Ralph Underhill
Old squaw in east Northants
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…