‘Our studies of the movements of satellite tagged birds are continuing, as they are yielding much useful information on the movements, habitat use, and ecology of Hen Harriers. But they are also raising questions about their ultimate fate. We have, for instance, been looking into the disappearance of six Hen Harriers at an autumn roost…
Tag: Natural England
In the words of the song…
…I can see clearly now the rain has gone! I can see all obstacles in my way… We wish Owen Paterson clear vision for the months ahead. 1. Climate change is real 2. Fixing bovine tb cannot be done by a cull of badgers alone 3. Culling badgers is quite likely to increase the…
What do these two species have in common – perhaps?
Sunday was a lovely day – it didn’t rain and it didn’t blow a gale and the sun shone. Hooray! I was in Norfolk and saw the odd bird or two and it felt like we were coming towards the end of winter because I also saw… Carpets of snowdrops. I like snowdrops – don’t…
Oscar Dewhurst – Waxwing
Oscar writes: Last winter there was an invasion of Waxwings all over the UK. I had never seen them before, so when some were reported not far from me I was straight over to see them. When I arrived I was greeted by the sight of up to 80 birds perched on top of…
Sanctuary – legal challenge
The diggers are in and have started stripping away topsoil at the Sanctuary Local Nature Reserve, whose destruction Derby City Council have approved. But the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust has launched a legal challenge against this destruction. The Trust has told the Council that their planning decision is illegal and will be challenged under Judicial Review….
An imperfect storm?
It’s been a ghastly day weather-wise but I have been thinking about the storm that is coming together around raptor persecution. I thought hard about it – it put a smile on my face. No, raptor persecution isn’t as important as climate change, or flooding, or even, to my mind, farmland bird declines – but…
Who you are? First results of readers’ survey
Here are the first results from the survey of readers (carried out between Saturday and Thursday). I closed the survey at 854 responses as that was twice the number of respondents when the same questions were asked in December 2012 (and was arrived at in a shorter period of time). Last month (January 2014) this…
Letter to my MP
This is my latest letter to my MP – in line with my suggestion to readers of my Birdwatch column – ‘the political birder’. Why don’t you drop your MP an email along similar lines? Dear Andy First may I thank you for coming round and doing the Big Garden Birdwatch with me. You seemed…
Petitions, petitions, petitions.
Tomorrow, wildlife cameraman and natural history presenter Gordon Buchanan will appear at the Holyrood Petitions Committee to ask the Scottish Parliament to support a RSPB campaign formally to adopt the Golden Eagle as Scotland’s national bird. The campaign calls for the adoption of the Golden Eagle as a new national symbol, alongside the lion rampant,…
Guest Blog – 1000 miles in memory of Martha by Tristan Reid
If you are a regular reader of Mark Avery’s blog (and you really should be) then you will almost certainly be aware of the very frightening decline of the Turtle Dove. This is an iconic species that has been declining in the UK since the 1970’s. The problem is speeding up and between 1997 and…