25 years is a long time in…well it’s a long time, full stop. Birdwatch magazine is 25 years old and this is its 300th issue. Happy Birthday! In this issue there are articles on the development of optics technology and digital photography (by Mike Alibone and Steve Young) and a piece by me on…
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Bird populations experiencing austerity in UK countryside
Defra has published the annual data on bird population trends. Take a look at the graphs – everything is going to pot! In Defra’s own words, two reasons for taking notice of these trends are as follows: ‘Bird populations have long been considered to provide a good indication of the broad state of wildlife…
Have you ever had this experience?
Are you a birdwatcher? Has this ever happened to you…? You are out birdwatching and you say to your companion something like ‘I’m surprised we haven’t seen an X by now’ and almost immediately an X sings, calls or flies past. It even happens to me when I’m alone – I only have to think…
Three videos
It was just over a year ago that the video (above) was filmed of poletraps being set on a Yorkshire grouse moor. This evidence led to a man receiving a police caution for this offence. One wonders what would have happened if the case had proceeded to an English court. We might still be unaware…
Swift dilemma
Swifts are slightly unwelcome at the Alhambra, it seems. I’d have thought that they had been rubbing along with the fantastic Moorish architecture for a good few centuries but it appears as though tolerance is running out. There are still these lions though… …and loads and loads of House Sparrows. On the Gran Via on…
Education U-turn
The government has just realised that teaching anything, including grandmothers to suck eggs, is counter-productive. All attempts to up-skill the English workforce are doomed as people never are inspired by what they are taught in school. No-one has ever been inspired to read or write by English classes and no scientist has ever got the…
Dolphins and seabirds
It used to be the case that a ferry trip was relaxing because there was not much to do except eat, drink, sleep and read a book. These days, we know that there is wildlife out there to be seen and missed which changes the game completely. The first person I came across as I…
Something in the air at North Glenbuchat?
A tagged Golden Eagle has ‘disappeared’ near Strathdon and its status has attracted comment from Scottish Land and Estate and from the estate itself (the North Glenbuchat Estate). Whilst the estate acknowledges a previous incident six years ago when a poisoned eagle was found on its land the RSPB press release lists four other cases…
Test
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If you see this post then it strongly suggests I have fixed the failure of the automatic scheduling on this blog. And that will make my life a lot easier.
Champions of the Flyway
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Today is the Champions of the Flyway bird race based in Eilat, Israel. Last year I was a member of the Birdwatch-Birdguides Roadrunners team which was a real privilege for me (see blogs Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7). This year the team comprises Mike Alibone, Mark…