Don't mention the word 'cull' but RSPB is recruiting now for a 'venison project officer' at site in Lakeland

 

You can run but you can't hide!  'Venison provides exciting opportunity to involve new audiences,' says wildlife charity

WANTED by the RSPB! A 'venison project manager' to be based in one of the most beautiful parts of Britain - Lowther in Cumbria.

It is a three-year contract with a salary of up to £34,377 per annum.

Says the charity: "Deer are part of Cumbria’s natural ecosystem, but their numbers are high and in the absence of natural predators are preventing natural woodland expansion.

"We are therefore looking for a pioneering individual to support professional, compassionate and co-ordinated deer management. 

"The successful  candidate will need a toolbox of skills to work with partners to support deer management.

"The role will oversee processing of carcasses to provide venison products for sale locally, including business planning, routes to market and promotion of venison products.

"Venison should be a local and environmentally sustainable source of high quality protein. 

"At a time when people are becoming more conscious of their consumer habits, venison provides an exciting opportunity to involve new audiences in our habitat restoration vision." 

The RSPB says the successful candidate will be "a disciplined and self-motivated person willing to work in remote locations and in poor weather".

The individual will also "need to be physically fit and able to cover long distances on foot over difficult terrain".

The job advertisement does not use the term 'cull'. Nor is it known if  the chosen candidate will be required to pull the trigger. 

Interviews for the post will start on June 3.

For further information, contact:  Bill.kenmir@rspb.org.uk 

The Wryneck says: Why the need for the RSPB to be so mealy-mouthed? Why cannot it be straightforward and upfront? If it intends to cull deer in order to safeguard and enhance habitat for flycatchers, redstarts and wood warbler, that is a perfectly defensible policy. So why seek to disguise the activity as an initiative to promote venison as if it is some 'exciting' new culinary opportunity. The RSPB would surely retain greater respect if, instead of pussyfooting around issues, it looked them square in the eye.

The scary shoreline moment when ace wildlife photographer Steve Race thought he might be a gonna

                                             

Getting up close to the birds - photographer and raconteur Steve Race

A FRONTLINE British wildlife photographer has revealed a scary moment while snapping shoreline waders.

Because he favours sharing the same eyeline as his subjects, the  strategy of Steve Race is to lie motionless on the sand and wait for the incoming tide to drive the birds up to him.

Over the years, it has enabled him to secure fantastic close-up shots of the likes of oystercatcher, redshank, knot, sanderling and more.

But on one occasion, the strategy could have cost him his life.

With the incoming tide just yards away, he found himself temporarily paralysed in both legs by paresthesia, familiarly known as 'pins and needles'.

"It was not a pleasant experience," he told the April meeting of Grimsby and Cleethorpes RSPB group. "I couldn't move.

"With the tide coming in fast, I thought for a moment I was going to drown!"

Happily, Steve was able to use his elbows to crawl - carrying all his optical gear - to higher ground where feeling quickly returned to his legs.

Steve is a professional photographer and co-director with Richard Baines of  the firm, Yorkshire Coast Nature which runs birding holidays coasts,  mostly in his native county (he lives in Scarborough) but also elsewhere in Britain, with occasional forays overseas.

His presentation on the birds of Bempton and North Yorkshire was greatly enjoyed by the 50 or so attendees - not just because of the quality (and occasional quirkiness) of the photographs but also because his commentary was fast-paced and spiced with humour.

It was great to hear not just that, at least in the southern section of the North Sea, precious seabirds seem to have withstood the menace of avian flu, but also that minke whales and bottle nosed dolphins are now regularly being sighted from land.

There was some sentimentality - not just shots of seal pups and puffins but also amusing  video footage of two dipper chicks waiting (impatiently) to be fed by a parent. 

However, there were also reminders that nature is often not feathery and fluffy, but, in Tennyson's words, "red in tooth and claw".

Peregrines with bloodied prey featured in Steve's  presentation as did one gruesome shot of rival gannets pecking into each others' eyes.

"I’ve seen gannets' eyes burst and pop out," he declared. "On one occasion, two grappling gannets plunged from cliff to sea where one then drowned the other."

Steve also threw a mystery into his box of tricks. 

Purple sandpipers used annually to roost in significant numbers on  Scarborough’s east pier, but this past winter not one returned Why might that be?

For six years Steve was an education officer with the RSPB at Bempton.

Asked if there was a rat population at the cliffs, he confirmed this to be the case and that, in the past, their presence at the visitor centre has been a concern.

At night, the cliffs are also patrolled by stoats and weasels putting  incubating adults, eggs and chicks on the higher ledges at risk from predation.

From time to time, foxes have also been problematical, especially when, as has happened, they bite the heads off sleeping gannets.

Quizzed on whether the ever-increasing number of windfarms in the North Sea posed a threat to seabird colonies, he conceded there were likely to be casualties among gannets, especially if they  were sucked into the vortices of rotating turbine blades

What were the star birds of Steve's presentation? 

Dotterel, golden plover and great northern diver (overwintering in Scarborough harbour) all have their claim.

But Steve definitely had a soft spot for the black-browed albatross that proved such a magnet at Bempton in summer 2021 and 2022.

After giving Yorkshire a miss last summer Will 'Albert' return in 2024? Time will soon tell.

* More about Yorkshire Coast Nature at:

Yorkshire Coast Nature - Nature Tours, Workshops & Gallery

                                                                     

Life among the gannets - Steve offering photography tips to Ellie Harrison during shooting of  a sequence for BBC TV's Countryfile show 

                                                              

               

Is this stuffed fox cute, amusing and charming? Or is it unforgivably distasteful exploitation of wildlife?

 

Is this amusing or upsetting - or both? Somehow it is impossible not to feel unsettled by this anthropomorphic stuffed fox carrying a fox-hunting bugle. It is up for sale at an auction to be conducted by auction house Tennants at their saleroom in Leyburn, North Yorkshire on Wednesday April 17. The guide price is £600-£800. Also in the sale are a range of stuffed birds, some Victorian and some contemporary. They include an unusual robin with white markings in its plumage. The pre-sale estimate is that the hammer price will come down at between £180 and £280. 

House sparrow again top of the leaderboard in RSPB's annual January garden birdwatch

 

Male and female house sparrow (photo: RSPB)

JUST as last year, the House Sparrow is the bird most seen in British gardens - or it was in January this year.

That was when the RSPB carried out its popular annual bird county across the nation.

The Top Ten (with the number of individuals counted) are listed below: 

1 House Sparrow (1,442,300)

2 Blue Tit  (1,094,401)

3 Starling (879,006)

4 Woodpigeon (835,408)

5 Blackbird (708,004)

6 Robin (539,820)

7 Great Tit (523,638)

8 Goldfinch (478,740)

9 Magpie (446,678)

10 Long-tailed Tit  (383,166)

Also recorded, though less frequently, were the following 70 species:  

11 Chaffinch

12 Collared dove 

13 Jackdaw 

14 Feral pigeon 

15 Dunnock

16 Carrion crow 

17 Coal tit

18 Greenfinch 

19 Wren 

20 Great spotted woodpecker 

21 Nuthatch

22 Song thrush 

23 Common gull 

24 Ring-necked parakeet

25 Rook 

26 Pheasant 

27 Blackcap 

28 Tree sparrow 

29 Bullfinch 

30 Siskin 

31 Jay 

32 Pied wagtail 

33 Herring gull 

34 Redwing 

35 Red kite

36 Sparrowhawk 

37 Black-headed gull

38 Fieldfare 

39 Hooded crow 

40 Buzzard 

41 Mallard 

42 Goldcrest 

43 Moorhen 

44 Stock dove

45 Treecreeper 

46 Grey wagtail 

47 Green woodpecker 

48 Marsh tit

49 Mistle thrush 

50 Kestrel 

51 Grey heron 

52 Redpoll 

53 Raven 

54 Yellowhammer 

55 Lesser spotted woodpecker 

56 Brambling 

57 Reed bunting 

58 Chiffchaff

59 Barn owl 

60 Mute swan 

61 Willow tit

62 Red-legged partridge 

63 Tawny owl 

64 Linnet

65 Great black-backed gull 

66 Lesser black-backed gull 

67 Hawfinch 

68 Little owl 

69 Skylark 

70 Black redstart 

71 Waxwing

72 Meadow pipit 

73 Grey partridge

74 Lapwing 

75 Great crested grebe 

76 Corn bunting 

77 Tufted duck 

78 Gadwall 

79 Teal 

80 Wigeon 

The charity says a total of 9.7 million birds were counted during Big Garden Birdwatch 2024

More than 600,000 people submitted entries.

RSPB set to splash out £40,000 per annum on employing 'senior equality and diversity officer'?

                                                             

THE RSPB is the latest organisation intent on beefing up its approach to equality, anti-racism and diversity issues.

It is offering a salary of up to the equivalent of £39,267 per annum  for a part-time 'Senior Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Specialist'.

The charity says the role will be  "to support staff and volunteers by providing advice and guidance, and to develop new ways of working to support senior leadership to embed Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) practices."

What has  this got to do with protecting birds? 

Responds a spokesperson: "To tackle the nature and climate emergency, we need to enable more people - and people of greater diversity - to act for nature. 

"At present,  conservation is one of the least diverse sectors in the UK, but we are committed  not only to improving our workplace and its culture, but also driving forward EDI including work specifically on anti-racism.

"It is our responsibility towards a sustainable future for people and nature together.

"People of colour and disabled people are currently under-represented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. 

"We are particularly interested in receiving applications from individuals who identify as a person of colour and/or disabled.

"We are willing to discuss any additional support such individuals may need to complete their applications."

The initial contract is three days a week for one year, and the successful candidate can be home-based or work at one of the RSPB's regional offices  in Birmingham, London, Brighton, Newcastle, Lancaster, Exeter, Norwich or Sandy

This role requires occasional travel, but it is not essential to be able to drive.

The closing date for applications is April 14, and more details are available by contacting edi@rspb.org.uk 

Friend or foe? Birder-author Joe Shute reckons high time has come to rethink our relationship with the rat

 

Let's learn to respect rats - so says Joe Shute in his new book 

THE subject of the latest book by Sheffield-based birder-author Joe Shute is . . . the rat.

To be published on Friday of this week, Stowaway provides a cultural and social history of Rattus norvegicus, examining how one creature achieved total world domination and has inspired such love and loathing.

Rats are creatures which inspire fear and fascination in equal measure. Their lives are more closely entwined with humans than any other animal, but, according to Joe, they remain the most misunderstood of all species.

Rat fan - author Joe Shute

Says he: "No animal has been so determinedly targeted by humans, and still managed to survive and thrive in our midst. 

"No animal is so often derided as being vicious and cunning, but possesses such a rich and complex inner life."

In his extensive research, the author travelled the world from sub-Saharan Africa to the Rocky Mountains, visiting some of the most rodent-infested cities on earth both to unpick the myths about rats and to investigate the unexplored secrets of their own extraordinary lives.

In his fast-paced and entertaining narrative, Joe - a long-serving feature writer with The Daily Telegraph -  examines the way in which rats have shaped human history and meets cutting-edge researchers who have begun  harnessing the power of rat intelligence to achieve incredible results. 

He explores the hidden world they inhabit beneath our feet as well as their role in natural ecosystems. And through ownership of two pet rats (to which, posthumously, the book is dedicated), he discovers the close emotional bonds they form with humans when given the chance.

Ultimately, this is a book which questions what the lives of rats reveal to us about our own, and whether there might be a better way to live alongside our ancient "enemies" in the modern age.

Stowaway is published tomorrow (April 11) at £18.99 in hardback by Bloomsbury Publishing.

Wildlife safaris - with loan of Swarovski binoculars - proving to be major attraction at Balmoral Estate

Good chance of seeing range of special Scottish species in the hills of the famous Royal estate  

                                                      

BALMORAL Castle is definitely on to a winner with its two-hour nature safaris in the bird-rich grounds of the late Queen's favourite residence.

The twice-a-day treks aboard a Land Rover  are sold out for the rest of this month and well into spring.

Described as the Balmoral Expedition Tour, a ticket costs £350 ticket which covers  a maximum of six people.

Those on board are offered the loan of  binoculars manufactured by  Swarovski - one of the top brands in optics.

Says the Balmoral Castle website: "Through the manicured parkland and gardens in front of the castle, you travel through the estate to the old Caledonian pine forest, one of Scotland's most important habitats.

"After spending some time exploring this pristine area, we head out of the woods onto the open hillside.

"The views soon start to open up as we travel through the heather high up the flanks of Lochnagar, one of Scotland’s most famous mountains.

"Discover the intriguing life stories of the resident wildlife and learn about the conservation management that is currently underway to help protect some of the United Kingdom's rarest species.

"Although there are no guarantees, creatures regularly encountered include birds of prey, red squirrels, red deer, red grouse, black grouse, snow bunting and salmon.

"Swarovski binoculars are provided on the expedition tours. The outstanding quality of the binoculars allows you to get closer to the wildlife and landscapes of Balmoral.

"The tour then heads back to civilisation via the monuments and historical buildings of  Balmoral."

The ticket also allows admission to the grounds, gardens and the ballroom exhibition when they are open to the public. There is also a cafe and a gift shop at the castle.

Because of  the rarity of the species, the tour stays away from areas where capercaillies might nest, but there is always a chance that  a wandering bird might come into view.

On the occasions that she saw the bird, the Queen never failed to be entranced, and, like Prince Philip, she enthusiastically endorsed conservation initiatives on the estate. 

More information at: Balmoral Castle

Eagle's eye view of the famous castle and gardens

* Photos: Balmoral Castle website Balmoral Castle