THE REAL JAMES BOND - NOT 007 - WAS A BIRDER WHO DISCOVERED BAHAMA NUTHATCH

 

THE imminent release of the latest 007 movie, No Time to Die, should provide a timely boost for  American birder and journalist Jim Wright.

His book The Real James Bond explores the life of the ornithologist and adventurer, James Bond, who wrote Birds of The West Indies which remained in print for some six decades.

In 1952, novelist Ian Fleming, who lived in Jamaica,  saw a copy of the book and decided to 'lift' the name of its author for his famous secret agent.

According to Wright, the real James Bond discovered the Bahama Nuthatch, now thought to be extinct, discovered the world's last document Eskimo Curlew and was pioneer of bird conservation in the West Indies long before the world woke up to the perils of habitat destruction.

The Real James Bond: A True Story of Identity Theft, Avian Intrigue and Ian Fleming is available from online retailers such as Amazon and ebay.

Jim Wright

Meanwhile, Wright - himself an expert on the birds of New Jersey - will be talking about Bond in a live Zoom meeting on October 3 (details under the Calendar section) at wplprogramming@woodbridgelibrary.org

ROYAL YACHT PROVIDED SUPERB FLOATING BIRD OBSERVATORY FOR PRINCE PHILIP

PRINCE Philip famously became a keen birdwatcher while he was on a voyage on the Royal Yacht Britannia in Antarctica in 1956.

To him the yacht was, among other things, a kind of floating bird observatory where he was able to observe - and sometimes photograph -  a multitude of  pelagic species of different shapes and sizes.

The vessel is now moored at Leith, outside Edinburgh, where it is open to the public.

Tours provide a fascinating insight into the Duke's own special birding 'habitat'. 

One of the decks from which the Duke watched albatrosses and more 

The Queen favoured chintz for the Royal sitting room 

Home to ornithological reference books?

The Duke's bedroom

A pair of Russian 20x50 binoculars - were these used by the Duke to watch terns and shearwaters?

Available, price £2, as a Kindle ebook

https://amzn.to/3EqL3j2

SCARLET ROSEFINCH AND CASPIAN GULL AMONG STARS OF SUPERB SPURN MIGRATION FESTIVAL

For the most part, the sun smiled over the two days of the festival 

 

WITH uncertainty over the future of  Birdfair following its cancellation both this year and last, could a series of smaller regional events provide an alternative?

Their range and ambition may not be as far reaching as the mega-popular Rutland Water jamboree, but they are often less crowded, less frenzied, less urgent, less commercial  and generally more easy-going and friendlier.

So it was at the annual Spurn Migration Festival held over the weekend at this famous Yorkshire coastal bird observatory.

As ever, it blended a nice mix of speaker-presentations, an exhibition marquee, superb catering and plentiful opportunities for birding, either accompanied or as part of guided tours.

Among the star species seen over the three days  were both Caspian and Sabine's gull, long-tailed skua, black tern, little stint, curlew sandpiper and scarlet rosefinch.

Roll on September 2022!

What the heck is it? Birders emptied the marquee and scanned the sky after a raptor alert 

Confirmation came quickly - it was an osprey (in capital letters!)

                                                             

It was a busy weekend at the Flamborough Bird Observatory stand where its chairman, Craig Thomas, and wife Karen were fielding questions - not least about the black-browed albatross which has spent much of summer patrolling the cliffs of the Yorkshire Coast 

Thanks to this super team, the standard of catering could not have been better - nor more  reasonably priced 

Birding can be a bit daunting for beginners, but Linda Jenkinson can put you right with her enterprise, Start Birding. She is pictured (right) on her stand with pal Verity Watts 

The Lincolnshire Bird Club was making its debut at this year's event - here chairman Phil Espin (left) and county  bird recorder Phil Hyde, co-authors of the excellent Birds of Lincolnshire,  are seen with some of the club's recent publications 

The BTO stand proved popular with visitors 

Sadly, no rubythroats were to be seen over the weekend, but a scarlet rosefinch put in an appearance 

Many visitors chose to camp over the course of the weekend

It's not clear if anyone chose to take up the offer

      

Kilnsea wetlands is always a magnet for gulls and waders - and this weekend was no exception

A warm Yorkshire welcome to all . . . ?

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE SOUNDS ALARM BELLS OVER BIRD-STRIKE RISK AT COTSWOLDS WETLAND SITE

                                                    

Little ringed plover - one of the scarce breeding species of special scientific interest

NATURAL England and the MoD are locking horns over bird-strike risk at a wetland beauty spot rich in waterfowl and other wildlife.

Cotswold Water Park covers 40 square miles consisting of 180 flooded and working gravel pits plus reedbeds, marshes and other habitat on the borders of Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Oxfordshire.

It is home to uncommon breeding birds such as nightingales, kingfishers, grasshopper warblers, little ringed plovers, bitterns and great white egrets.

Other specialist species include  brown hairstreak and grizzled skipper butterflies plus aquatic plants such as starry stonewort.

Natural England's determination to rubber-stamp the status of the complex  as a Site of Special Scientific Interest has set alarm bells ringing with the MoD which has warned of bird collision for British and US military aircraft which use the  runways at nearby Brize Norton and Fairford.

The lakes are home to more than 20,000 ducks and gulls in winter, and the MoD claims "the regulatory burden" from SSSI status  will "adversely and disproportionately affect its ability to manage its land and control bird-strike risk".

However, Natural England maintains "necessary safeguarding" such as bird-scaring will continue to be lawful.

Meanwhile, there have also been more than 40 objections from other parties including quarry operators, water skiers, sailing enthusiasts, landowners and constituency MP Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, one of whose relaxation pursuits is shooting gamebirds and stalking deer.

The issue is due to be thrashed out at a meeting of the Natural England board, chaired by Tony Juniper, next Wednesday afternoon (Sepember 15) at a meeting to be held at Abingdon which is near the lakes.