Signs of the times

Yesterday I was at the RSPB nature reserve at Frampton Marsh on a cloudy, slightly drizzly and breezy day. But it was great, and we saw lots of birds. In fact, we saw 68 species and through the wonders of Birdtrack I know that on the same date last year, on another visit to Frampton…

Tim Melling – Duke of Burgundy

Tim writes: Apart from being the sole European representative of a tropical family of butterflies, Duke of Burgundy has another unusual attribute.  Males and females have a different number of legs.  Everyone knows that all insects have six legs, but sometimes they are reduced to become vestigial appendages, hardly visible at all.  This is exactly…

Tim Melling – Lammergeier

Tim writes: Also known as the Bearded Vulture, the Lammergeier is the only animal on the planet known to feed almost exclusively on bones.  It has an extremely acidic stomach (with a pH of around 1) that can dissolve bones and the high fat content marrow inside.  Even the young nestlings are fed on small…

Shot Buzzard in Yorkshire Dales National Park – hardly news!

Police are appealing for information as another dead raptor is found in the Yorkshire Dales National Park – this time a Buzzard just about a mile from the much-visited Malham Cove Peregrine site.  The bird’s body was found (no details of when are given – 16 May) by a local farmer and a post-mortem X-ray…