I was sent these images asking me for an opinion on which species of harrier is involved. The discussion around the bird centres on whether it is a Northern Harrier or Hen Harrier – but you might have other views. It was photographed in a location where neither of those species is a breeding bird…
Tag: hen harrier
RSPB press release – Montagu’s Harriers nest successfully in England after 6-year absence
Britain’s rarest breeding bird raised four youngsters at secret location A pair of Montagu’s Harriers, Britain’s rarest breeding bird, have successfully raised four youngsters at a secret location in England The pair of birds which arrived in May have been closely monitored by the RSPB who, working closely with a farmer, installed a protection fence…
Guest blog – Reintroductions by Alick Simmons
Alick Simmons spent most of his career in public service serving as the UK Food Standards Agency’s Veterinary Director (2004-2007) and the UK Government’s Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer (2007-2015). He is the current chair of the Zoological Society of London’s Ethics Committee on Animal Research and a member of the Wild Animal Welfare Committee. He…
Debate on grouse shooting 4 – the petition system
If anyone ever tells you that it is easy to get 100,000 signatures for a petition then ask them how many times they have done it. Very few people have. I have – five times and I have given considerable help and advice to others too. I’m a fan of the idea that any citizen…
Debate on grouse shooting 3 – the political parties
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Having discussed the most important aspect of the debate on driven grouse shooting, the government response – click here, I will now turn to other aspects of the debate. There are 650 MPs in the Westminster parliament, and 634 come from 13 political parties with an additional 15 independents and the Speaker. Grouse moors occur…
Debate on grouse shooting 2 – the government response
If you are running a campaign then your aim is to achieve change in the world, change on the ground, change in reality. One of the most direct, though not particularly easy, routes to achieving widespread change is through influencing the action of governments as they control laws, regulations, enforcement, taxation and government spending. Petitions…
Cornwall
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Last week I headed to Cornwall. Cornwall is a long way away. It’s a long way away from everywhere (except west Devon) and even those in Cornwall think that west Cornwall is far from east Cornwall. I gave a talk to the the Cornwall Bird Watching and Preservation Society – click here – and I…
What will the Labour government do on Monday?
Today’s RSPB report, Hen Harriers in the firing line, is a timely reminder ahead of Monday’s debate in the Westminster parliament on the future of driven grouse shooting that birds of prey, in this report Hen Harriers, are systematically and illegally killed on grouse moors so that the those enjoying the hobby of shooting Red…
Sunday book review (by Ian Carter) of Donald Watson (ed Roger Crofts)
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Reviewed by Ian Carter Donald Watson is someone with whom I’ve built a connection of sorts, though we never met. I have ended up living in Galloway not many miles from the village where he spent much of his life painting the birds and the landscapes that he loved, and making his ground-breaking studies of…
Sunday book review – Wild Galloway by Ian Carter
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Those who enjoy Ian Carter’s writing, and very many of us do, will enjoy this latest work about his new home in Galloway. Ian encounters new species, new names and introduces us to his new surroundings. The author’s move from Devon was motivated partly by a yearning for wildness and from his fairly remote new…