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Hen Harrier to be Released into English Wilds

Editor — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 09:37:21 +0000

The hen harrier is one of the most endangered birds of prey in Britain. Their numbers have fallen incredibly in England in the past, with just ten breeding pairs having been counted last year. While this bird species was once very widespread across Britain, it now seems its domain is limited mainly to Scotland where there are about 630 breeding pairs.

The main reason behind the dramatic decline of hen harriers in England is systematic persecution – namely, the shooting of these birds in their natural habitats in the Pennines and the Peak District. This is an area where these birds come to prey on grouse chicks and it is here that they are most ruthlessly persecuted. However, it seems that government officials are not content to sit back and watch extinction in action. Natural England, a government conversation agency, has been hard at work at drafting up plans to save the hen harrier in England. They would like to reintroduce the bird into the ranges that it formerly inhabited, such as lowland farms, heathland and upland areas including the Exmoor, Dartmoor and New Forest areas. All this will hopefully take place during the course of the next two years. Until now their plans have been put forth somewhat clandestinely, with the proposals gaining approval from bird conservation organizations, environment ministers and moorland and country sports organizations. The detailed proposals will be officially released to the public in early April.

Why all the secrecy? It seems it is feared that there will be some opposition from certain conservationists and landowners. Caution certainly is the order of the day, since these birds can pose a threat to resident land owners in the proposed areas for release. Farmers in the area are already struggling with a surge in the number of sparrowhawks, red kits and buzzards and the addition of another feathered predator will no doubt only add to their worries. Some landowners use their estates primarily for pheasant and partridge shooting and are concerned that the birds could get in the way. Basically there are fears that the widespread and non-specific reintroduction of these birds of prey could cause havoc to a number of already established farm and gaming practices. What’s more, Scottish sheep farmers are already complaining about decreases in stock numbers due to the much higher numbers of hen harriers in those parts of the United Kingdom. While the reintroduction of the hen harriers to the English wilds is widely supported due to the fact that they are endangered, it seems it is hoped that conservation officials will choose wisely as to how many of these birds will be released and where they will be allowed to make their new home.

Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus)

Editor — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 10:50:35 +0000

The Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is a medium-sized bird that averages between 32 to 37 centimeters in length. The males have solid gray coloring over their heads, neck and wings. Their bellies are white with gray to black stripes, dark gray tail feathers and black eyes. Bills are pointed and black of color. The female Cuckoo resembles the males, but with morphed brown coloring. The Common Cuckoo is a migratory bird and is seen across Europe, including Britain, as well as Japan and China, and migrates to Africa during the winter months. It adapts easily to live in cultivated areas, on the edges of dense forests, open country, marshes and coastal areas.

The Cuckoo has a wingspan of approximately 71 to 76 centimeters and has an extremely distinctive low flight. They fly with rapid ing beats and are very swift in flight. Their flight pattern bears a resemblance to that of raptors, with the exception that the Cuckoo has much weaker strokes and does not glide after a series of beats.

The preferred food of the Common Cuckoo includes a diet of hairy caterpillars, larvae and insects. Not being too fussy, they will also eat beetles, crickets and dragonflies, and have in some instances also been seen eating eggs and songbird nestlings. The female Cuckoo is not the best parent, to say the least. They are not interested in parenthood at all. She can lay in the region of eight to twenty five eggs, and the eggs can vary in color. Sometimes the eggs are brown with markings of lilac, gray, black and red-brown. At times eggs can be green, blue or red, with markings. This enables the Cuckoo to secretly lay an egg in another nest. Not all of the Cuckoo species find host parents for their eggs. The Common Cuckoo will find a species with similar eggs to her own and when the host parents are not in sight, she will lay her eggs amongst the eggs already in the nest. The host parents, not realizing anything is amiss, will complete the 11 to 13 day incubation period and rear the chicks until they are ready to fledge the nest. The female Cuckoo will never return or revisit her chick. Most of the time, the Common Cuckoo chick will be bigger in size than host parents, putting strain on the parents to feed the intruder.

Although the Common Cuckoo is a very wide-spread species and difficult to monitor, it is believed to be plentiful and is not threatened by extinction.

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)

Editor — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 10:50:35 +0000

The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) is known the world over for its gregarious, lively behavior. A master of adaptation and great opportunist, this remarkable little bird has gone on to colonize countries the world over. Despite its longstanding relationship with urban man, House Sparrows have sadly been declining in numbers even being added to the Red List in the UK.

A renowned silhouette, the House Sparrow measures in at 4.25 inches in length. Its thick conical bill is ideally suited to the sparrow’s seed diet. Males differ greatly from females and can be identified by their gray crown, black mask, breast and throat, rusty upperparts and nape, with black streaks on the back, gray rump and white on the wing. During the summer the male House Sparrow’s bill is black, but changes to a yellowish color in winter. Female and immature House Sparrows have a gray-brown crown, gray-white underparts, tawny and black streaks along the back, black wings with a white patch and a yellow bill. House Sparrows are typically seen in large flocks oftentimes with other bird species. The bird calls of these lovely little sparrows can be heard year round and are made up of chirrups and cheep sounds.

House Sparrows are actually native to Britain, through northern Scandinavia and Siberia, across northern Africa, India, Burma and into Arabia. This species was introduced into the Americas, southern Africa, New Zealand and Australia, where they have gone on to breed and live successfully. Wherever people are, there you will find House Sparrows. Whether it is in agricultural lands or mankind’s urban sprawl, House Sparrows can be seen taking advantage of any opportunity for a tasty meal.

House Sparrows breed well, raising 2 to 3 broods annually. Each clutch consists of 3 to 7 eggs laid in nests safely built in trees, under eaves or in creepers. Incubation of the eggs lasts 10 to 13 days and the young House Sparrows fledge in 14 to 17 days. During winter, House Sparrows are known to roost in groups.

So what is causing the decline in House Sparrow numbers? Some believe it could be the frequent use of garden pesticides, killing insects which serve as food for newly hatched sparrows. Others say it could be caused by less chickens in back yards and on farms, thereby reducing food availability. On the other hand it could just be a lack of consideration and care on the part of mankind. Why not do your bit in caring for these marvelous little creatures by keeping your bird feeder and water dish full.

Common Bird Numbers Declining

Editor — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:37:15 +0000

Previously birds such as the cuckoo, turtle dove and nightingale were thought to be amongst the world’s most common bird species. However it seems that even these birds are now at risk, with each of these species suffering massive slumps in their overall population numbers during the past half century.

The worst part about the new findings is that this is a global trend. Birds that were once common all over the world are now suffering sharp declines. While the cuckoo and nightingales were once very common in Britain, they are no longer quite so common. In other parts of Europe the turtle dove and corn bunting have declined dramatically. In Asia, the once common white-rumped vulture is becoming scarce, while in the Middle East, the Eurasian eagle owl is disappearing. And North America certainly doesn’t escape the trend, with birds such as the northern bobwhite showing dramatic decreases in population.

These shocking revelations and others were recently published at a BirdLife International world conference in Buenos Aires in a report entitled: “State of the World’s Birds.” According to Dr Mike Rands, the chief executive of BirdLife, “many of these birds have been a familiar part of our everyday lives, and people who would have not necessarily have noticed other environmental indicators have seen their numbers slipping away and are wondering why.” Dr Rands also said that “birds provide an accurate and easy-to-read environmental barometer,” which allows “us to see clearly the pressures our current way of life is putting on the world’s biodiversity.” With a significant portion of the more ‘common’ bird populations across the world suffering dramatic population decreases – sometimes more than 40 percent – we are suddenly finding ourselves presented with the raw reality that our natural world truly is falling to pieces around us. While the effects of phenomenon’s such as global warming have already been pointed out in other ways, it seems that now even bird lovers are faced with the challenge of going green to save species that were once considered to be under no immediate threat.

As a bird lover, will you rise to the challenge or give in to defeat and watch your beloved garden-variety favourites slowly disappearing from the skies? Any efforts you make now may still make a big difference on the number of birds populating our skies in a few year’s time.

Britain’s Bitterns Respond Positively to Conservation Efforts

Editor — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 13:52:10 +0000

Considered to be on the brink of extinction in Britain just over a decade ago, the bittern has made a remarkable come-back, with the species enjoying its best recorded nesting season in the past 130 years. The loud “booming” mating call of the bittern assisted conservationists in tracking the birds, resulting in a count of 75 males, an astonishing 47 percent increase on last year’s numbers and nearly seven times as many as the 11 which were counted in 1997.

This is, of course, excellent news for conservationists and bird lovers who are making efforts to counteract the negative impact of climate changes, habitat loss and other factors threatening bird-life on our planet. The figures that were released by the RSPB and Natural England are evidence of the success of conservation work that has focused on restoring the bittern’s freshwater reedbed habitat. Much of the bittern’s traditional nesting spots have been concentrated in the coastal areas of East Anglia, however these are being threatened by the slow, but steady, rise in sea levels prompting conservationists to establish inland wetland sites as an alternative habitat for these shy wading birds. The bitterns have responded to the efforts being made on their behalf by widening out their range to incorporate ten English counties, including a newly-created site in Somerset, compared to last year’s eight nesting locations and only four in 1997.

Bitterns feed on insects, fish, reptiles and amphibians that are found in the marshy areas they favor as breeding grounds. It is believed that the habitat conservation efforts, coupled with the wet weather which created excellent feeding conditions, have resulted in the females being in good breeding condition.

In the late 19th century bitterns had disappeared from the U.K. as a result of the wetlands being drained, but they re-colonized in 1911 and were found breeding in the Norfolk Broads. Currently, Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridge-shire are home to around three-quarters of the bittern population in the U.K. RSPB conservation director, Dr. Mark Avery acknowledges that the bittern has had a rather “ill-fated history” in the U.K. with the 19th century extinction, as well as the near extinction in the late 1990s. The efforts being made by the RSPB and associated conservationists in a bid to ensure that this bird never faces extinction again, has benefited a wide range of other wildlife too.

Crossbills Acting Cross-Eyed

Editor — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 11:54:05 +0000

It seems that a group of rare two-barred crossbills ‘looked’ at their internal compasses a little cross-eyed since they took a wrong turn and ended up in a remote, windswept outcrop of Scottish islands. No doubt the birds came in search of food but it is unlikely that they’re going to find their favorite snack – larch and spruce cones – this far north.

The rare and colorful two-barred crossbill hails from Russia and usually scours parts of Europe in search of coniferous forests. Their normal haunts stretch from Sea of Okhotsk to the Finnish border – a distance of some 3 500 miles. While they have been spotted in Scotland before, they don’t generally make a habit of venturing all the way to Britain in their travels. This year it seems that not only have they decided to cross the sea, but they’ve done so in large family groups. So far 22 of the birds have been counted in Shetland – the greatest number to hit the island since 1990. The females and juveniles of the species are green and yellow, while the males are dark red. Both are easy to spot in the somewhat barren Shetland Isles and they are attracting a lot of attention. But Shetland isn’t the only place they’ve been spotted. More birds have been spotted in Orkney, Harris in the Western Islands, and on St Kilda – a staggering 50 miles further north than any of the other locations. Some have also been spotted much further south in Kent. In total at least 48 birds have been recorded in the country during a period of just three weeks.

Commenting on the number of juveniles in the groups, Shetland bird recorder Paul Harvey suggested that the birds’ presence is most likely the result of a successful breeding season followed by a shortage of food in their more usual forage areas at the top of Russia. Essentially they were not meant to end up as far away from their homes as Britain, but it seems they’ll get by. Harvey noted that since they’ve arrived in Scotland they’ve been feeding mainly on thistle heads, seeds and sea pinks. He surmised that they will eventually move on in their quest for food. Until that happens, the birds will continue to be hunted by amateur and professional cameramen alike as they attempt to catch the colorful phenomenon on film. It seems they have even caught the attention of a few tourists – many of which can no doubt sympathize with the inconvenience of taking a wrong turn during ones travels.

Razorbill Breaks Records

Editor — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:57:08 +0000

It’s been an incredible 41 years since the razorbill chick was born and ringed and now it seems that a British razorbill is completely dominating previous bird age records. The razorbill, known as razorbill M23170, has been crowned the oldest bird of its kind in Britain. It wasn’t a tough decision to make since the average lifespan of a razorbill is just 13 years.

When M23170 was still growing his adult feathers, the Beatles had just released their legendary Sgt Pepper album, hippies were braiding their hair and spouting their “make love not war” slogan and Vietnam was being ravaged by war. It was a time when legends were being made and this little bird must have wanted in on the action. Now, at the grand old age of 41 years, M23170 is the oldest known bird of his kind. In order to survive this long he has had to not only defeat his genetically pre-programmed lifespan but he has also had to avoid dangers such as oil spills and fishing nets. And yet somehow he has managed to conquer all these obstacles and he is still living in the same place where he was born and tagged back in 1967 – Bardsey Island off the coast of north Wales. The bird was spotted on the island during a survey conducted by the British Trust for Ornithology. If it was possible to follow the life story of this incredible creature it would no doubt be an eventful one.

The incredible bird joins a list of ‘extreme’ age records of birds who have far outlived their peers. He shares the list with a 31-year-old curlew (average life expectancy is five years) and a 13-year-old barn owl (average life expectancy is three years). The curlew was doing remarkably well and was still breeding when it was last found. The barn owl was unfortunately found under much less favorable circumstances. The discovery of the razorbill brings to light the importance of ringing birds, since this enables ornithologists to monitor the survival and movement of a particular species. If you find a ringed bird – dead or alive – you should make every effort to contact relative authorities so they can put the data on the bird’s ring to good use.

The National Birds of Prey Center in Gloucestershire

Editor — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:11:35 +0000

The National Birds of Prey Center, located near Newent in Gloucestershire, is one of Britain’s premiere attractions and one of the top birds of prey centers in the United Kingdom. It is home to roughly 170 different birds of prey, including 22 species of eagles, falcons and hawks – a real treat for any bird lover or falconer.

This large center was created primarily to assist with the conservation of birds of prey through captive breeding, rehabilitation, rescue and research. To this end the center has a very good captive breeding program, which contributes to the conservation, rescue and rehabilitation of many of the different species that are brought here every year to receive highly specialized care. The captive breeding program mainly involves home bred birds or birds that have been donated from other zoos. The birds are encouraged to breed during each breeding season by the provision of adequate nesting materials. Some birds even have their nests made for them! The captive environment gives researchers plenty of time to study the bird’s natural behavior during the mating process and this research can be of great assistance to both help birds in captivity at other centers and in the wild. But this is just one small function performed by the National Birds of Prey Center.

The center also acts as an invaluable education tool for visitors who learn a lot about the birds from conveniently posted informative material and daily flying demonstrations. The education room and guide book also serve to further the knowledge of the various visitors who come to the center. The center runs a number of courses designed to help serious minded potential bird owners improve there knowledge and skills where possible and to gain some on-hand experience with different birds of prey. A number of schools regularly visit the center for field trips and students from schools and colleges throughout the world are regularly invited to gain invaluable work experience at the center. The center’s collection is used for DNA studies and biology in ways that are as unobtrusive to the birds as possible and the research aspect of the center will likely continue to expand in years to come.

However, perhaps the most heart-warming aspect of the center’s work is its efforts with regard to injured, sick, rescued and confiscated birds that are brought here each year. Where possible, these birds are made well again and released back into the wild. Unfortunately this is not always possible and sometimes the bird will become a permanent, well-cared for resident of the center. The National Birds of Prey Center is open all year around, with the exception of Boxing Day and Christmas Day. So make sure you visit this excellent bird facility.

Pigeon Mail Service

Editor — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 10:38:37 +0000

Before the invention of telegrams, phones and email, homing pigeons were the swiftest way for humans to send messages.

A good homing pigeon quickly finds its way home, even when released hundreds (or thousands) of miles away. Owners attach small canisters to the birds’ legs, with paper messages inside. Once released, these domestic birds make a beeline for the coop they were raised in. They can cover hundreds of miles a day, flying up to 90mph.

Humans have used pigeon-messaging for at least 5000 years. Athletes in Greece’s first Olympic Games sent their families news of the scores via pigeon. More recently, 19th century news reporters used pigeons as a way to quickly relay news to the presses.

Homing pigeons also serve an essential function for armies. Pigeons can be carried to the front lines. Once released, they can fly over enemy troops and relay vital calls for help or supplies. Several national armies still use them today. Pigeon-messages can succeed when radio communications are unsafe or jammed.

Several pigeons played pivotal roles in battles. One famous bird is Word War II’s G.I. Joe, a homing pigeon that saved 1,000 British lives.

In 1943, British troops sent G.I. Joe home to the Allied Forces with news of their location in Italy. This location was about to be bombed, but the Allies cancelled the bombing run when the pigeon delivered its vital message. It received the Dickin Medal for its effort…the highest medal ever received by an animal in the armed forces.