It was good to see this account of brood meddling in this legal blog – a bit of a surprise really! There are some mistakes in it, but of a biological nature. Very good to see this being talked about by lawyers, in a slightly jokey way, but bringing the issues to the fore. But…
Tag: hen harrier
Sunday book review – More Birds than Bullets by Geoffrey McMullan
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This book is a very good read. It’s packed with stories of birds and other wildlife seen whilst being a serving soldier. McMullan travelled widely as a soldier including serving in the first Gulf War which is a particular type of ‘travelling’. We are regaled with birding observations from the Middle East, Falklands, Germany and…
Guest blog – Blocking motorways by Ian Carter
Ian Carter worked as an ornithologist for 25 years before retiring early to spend more time writing about wildlife. He wrote The Red Kite’s Year with artist Dan Powell and a sister volume The Hen Harrier’s Year will be out next spring. His recent book Human, Nature is about our relationship with the natural world…
Letter to my MP
Dear Mr Pursglove May I sincerely congratulate you on your appointment as a Parliamentary under Secretary of State to be shared between the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice. I guess you will spend quite a bit of time walking between the very ugly building in Petty France (it’s hideous from the outside isn’t…
Sunday book review – The Amazing Story of Montagu’s Harrier by Elvira Werkman
This is a fine book which I have enjoyed reading on my travels over the last few weeks. I knew I’d find it interesting because it deals with a couple of subjects which are really interesting scientifically and in terms of nature conservation; how wildlife fits in with modern agriculture and which part of a…
Inglorious – no sparkle here
Driven grouse shooting still exists but it is beleaguered. It’s good to think of how far we have come in just a few years. It is a worthless hobby and its proponents have no answers to the charges against it except to ignore them. If driven grouse shooting hadn’t been invented c170 years ago then…
Brood meddling update
1. Legal challenge: there is a saying that ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ and I’m beginning to feel that quite strongly. The RSPB and I, separately, were granted the right to appeal the original judgment over the lawfulness of brood-meddling of Hen Harrier nests in autumn 2019 – yes, 2019. Our appeal was scheduled for…
Fair Game Fair
Yesterday I went to the Game Fair to chat to Andrew Gilruth of the GWCT in front of a fairly full audience in the Carter Jonas marquee. I’ve been going to the Game Fair for years, my first was over 30 years ago and I’ve never turned down an invitation to attend. A couple of…
This week
No book review this week as I have been writing a book more than reading a book, although I am confident of publishing at least one book review next Sunday. In other news: I saw my first Gatekeeper of the year but butterfly numbers are very low this year I saw my second Hen Harrier…
Sunday book review – Moorland Matters by Ian Coghill
I enjoyed reading this book very much. It immediately gets into my list of books of the year although I’d be surprised if it gets to the top of that shortlist, but you never know. I enjoyed it for three main reasons. First, it is a good read, clearly expressed and argued with some passion…