Partial eclipse of Spurn lighthouse as shorebirds take to sky in spectacular high-tide flypast

Such was the abundance of flying shorebirds at high tide this morning that Spurn lighthouse was almost lost to view from Cleethorpes Leisure Centre on the other side of the Humber.

                                            

Bygone birding: 'Not right kind of insect' but stricken nighthawk recovers to fly off 'strongly'

                                                                              

In the wake of publicity about a nighthawk that turned up earlier this week in Oxfordshire, this item might be of interest. It appeared in April, 1951, in  Volume 65 of The Canadian Field Naturalist, publication of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club.

Nighthawk Stamina

On the afternoon of Tuesday, July 31, a wounded nighthawk was brought into my office in Ottawa, Ontario.

It had apparently been shot in the wing, above the shoulder, and, in addition, one eye was closed. 

The bird had been found earlier that day on the grass outside National Defence Headquarters. 

The finder had washed the wound which had bled quite a lot. 

When it was brought to me, the bleeding had stopped, and, as the wing was not broken, it was decided to leave the bird on the grass in the central courtyard of the building where it would be out of the way of cats and see how it got on.

The next day it was still there, and the injured eye was beginning to open.

It seemed probable that the bird would recover if it did not die of starvation first, so I took it home and put it in a large wooden box, hoping to be able to induce it to eat. 

Acting on advice from the Canadian Wildlife Service, I tried to catch moths for it. 

The weather was cool, however, and only one moth was caught, together with a few flies of different kinds.

The nighthawk not only refused to eat them, it completely ignored them. 

It is possible that they were not the right kind of insect, but I had the impression that the bird did not recognize them as food at all.

In spite of its refusal to eat, the nighthawk got steadily better. By Wednesday evening, the injured eye was wide open, and, some time on Thursday, the bird sat up on its feet instead of resting flat on its breast. 

The wounded wing was held at an unnatural angle out from the body, but it was able to flap it quite vigorously when frightened by my approach.

On Thursday evening I put it on the window-sill to see if it would fly, but it did not move.

On Friday evening, I noticed that, for the first time, the bird was walking around the box with no incentive of fear, so I put it on the windowsill again. 

It made no effort to move until I went to pick it up again whence it took off and flew away. 

I lost sight of it fairly soon, but as long as I could see it it appeared to be flying strongly. 

It had then been at least 80 hours without food.

Moira Dunbar

                                      

Meanwhile in England, 71 years later . . . how the national media, in this case The Daily Telegraph, reported the occurrence. Prior to this event, there had only been 26 confirmed UK records of the species, 14 of them on Scilly and most of the others at coastal sites.

* Top picture: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via Wikimedia Commons 

Former RSPB chief reveals why visiting the rapidly-melting Arctic ice edge would now break his heart

 

Mike Clarke - "I would never be at peace with myself"

FORMER RSPB chief executive Mike Clarke has forsaken a long- held ambition - to visit the Lancaster Sound ice edge in the Arctic.

Ever since watching a BBC TV documentary, Kingdom of The Ice Bear, as a teenager, Mike had always dreamed of watching belugas, narwhals and little auks.

But, in the wake of the growing climate crisis, he has put any plans on hold - probably indefinitely.

He says: "It is the place in the world where I most wanted to go.

"It still is. But I have known that I cannot go. It would break my heart.

"It would be too raw - the signs of global heating are magnified wherever you go in the Arctic.

"I would never be at peace with myself."

Mike's forthright revelation come in his foreword to Javier Caletrio's thought-provoking book, Low-carbon Birding which casts the spotlight on a inconvenient truth - that birding is a very polluting activity if it involves long-distance travel by car or plane.

But, for those willing to shrink their horizons, there is an alternative - local or 'patch' birding.

The book also includes chapters from some 30 other birders - from teenage newbies to professional ornithologists - who all testify to the rewards of seeking out birds closer to home.

This is a really good book with numerous insights from the various contributors.

It also addresses head-on a subject - eco-tourism - about which many conservation organisations, as well as individual birders, are sometimes in denial.

Low-Carbon Birding is published at £16.99 by Pelagic Publishing.

More details from www.pelagicpublishing.com  

The Wryneck says: As Michael Jackson sang, "if you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change." The former RSPB chief is thus to be commended for his admirable, almost saintly, stance. But there is another angle. In his book, Caletrio acknowledges that eco-tourism generates not just many jobs but also precious conservation initiatives, especially in poorer countries. What is more, for time immemorial it has always been part of the human spirit to want to explore faraway places and to see new sights - birds or whatever. There are some who would be dismayed, crushed even, if these instincts were to be denied. At the end of the day, personal response to climate change is one that can only be made by individual birders themselves.

                                                          

Ready to unleash attack dogs - Botham, Clarkson & Co demand scrapping of laws that protect countryside

Sharp teeth and ready to attack - German Shepherd

The following open letter - signed by sporting and showbiz celebrities - has this week been sent to 10 Downing Street.  

Dear Current Prime Minister, 

For years the bureaucratic bulldozer has been trampling over the countryside infuriating millions of us. It has cost jobs and created misery. Downing Street has to put it into reverse gear if it wants the support of rural voters. Those signing this letter would be satisfied if the rules affecting the countryside are halved before the next election.  

We are happy with Government giving us big targets - ones that ensure that the streams in our valleys are crystal clear and our uplands carpeted with heather. If you want more food in the shops, we will do it. More hedges - consider it done. More buzzards? Great - we will lean on anyone in our community who takes them out.   

But we are sick of the mountains of regulations which seek to micromanage every acre. We have had enough of know-nothing officials imposing rules out of a misplaced belief in their own competence.

They breed paperwork for a living while the rest of us have real work to do: cultivating soil, looking after sick animals and bringing in the harvest.   

You realise that the political landscape is shifting. Rural votes will be vital in the next election - and so Downing Street has to deliver. The era of central planning of the countryside by homo arrogantissimus in Whitehall is over. We will no longer passively watch officials seeking to appease the insatiable demands of a few self-righteous campaigners. There are more of us and we are more determined.   

This letter is being copied to our constituency MPs who will want to demonstrate that Government is changing direction. If anyone tries to ignore us, we will pursue them like hungry German Shepherds let off-leash during lambing season.

Yours sincerely,

Jeremy Clarkson
Ian Botham
Jamie Blackett
Gareth Wyn Jones
Allan Lamb
David Gower
Feargal Sharkey
Alex Story
Nick Ferrari

The Wryneck says: What a deeply unpleasant letter! Regulations have a purpose - often to protect the environment from individuals who would be prepared to degrade it in pursuit of their own selfish interests.  The signatories to this missive are seeking to use their celebrity 'importance' to menace the Government into doing their bidding. In both tone and content, their message smacks of bullying, blackmail and cruelty. Significantly, no woman has signed it.

Half-marathon route takes runners alongside RSPB reserve favoured by redshanks, curlews and egrets

 

What's going on here? This redshank seemed taken aback this morning as the route of a half-marathon took runners alongside the RSPB reserve at Tetney Marshes, near Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire. The birds were undisturbed.

                                          

Four of the birder-photographers who died in New Zealand coastal charter boat tragedy were women

                                                                       

Diana Stewart

THE five birder-photographers who who died when a vessel - chartered for a birdwatching trip - overturned in Goose Bay, Kaikōura, off the coast of New Zealand, have been named.

They were:

* Catherine Margaret Haddock (65)

* Susan Jane Cade (63)

* Diana Ruby Stewart (68) 

* Peter Charles Hockley (76)

* Maureen Patricia Pierre (75)

The group were members of the Nature Photography Society of New Zealand and had travelled to Kaikōura for a three-hour field trip to photograph the coastal environment and wildlife including birds and seals and whales.

Five other society members, plus the skipper, survived.

Inquiries into how the accident occurred - and with such tragic consequences - are ongoing.

The favoured theory is that a whale flipped over the vessel, and the five who died drowned after having been trapped in the cabin.

It is understood the boat was licensed to carry up to 10 passengers and a crewman.

Photos: facebook

                                        

Cathye Haddock

 

Britain 'the only country in Europe from which Wrynecks have become extirpated as breeding birds'.

                                                      

Gerard Gorman's fascinating study of a remarkable species

WHO would ever think of scanning seaweed in the hope of glimpsing a . . . Wryneck?

According to a  book dedicated to the species, migrating Wrynecks "often forage among rocks and seaweed on beaches, presumably searching for fly larvae, sandhoppers and the like".

However, their preferred diet consists of ants which they like to seek out on mosaic habitats that comprise traditional farmed pastures, meadows, patches of rock or barren ground and trees.

They also favour former military bases which have reverted to grasslands and abandoned industrial and mining site with pioneering vegetation.

In his entertaining and authoritative book, The Wryneck, Gerard Gorman laments the disappearance in Great Britain of a bird which was once a widespread and relatively common breeding summer resident.

The last nesting records for our islands were of a pair in Buckinghamshire in 1985 and one in Ross-shire in 2002.

Writes the author: "Regrettably, Britain has the ignominy of being the only country in Europe from which Wrynecks have become extirpated as breeding birds."

What went wrong? The author, an expert on the world's woodpecker family, of which the Wryneck is one, acknowleges that degradation of habitat may be a factor, but it is probably not the only one.

The decline of the Wryneck set in as far back as the late 1800s, long before the introduction of agro-chemicals and the intensification of how orchards, a favourite habitat, were managed.

What is more, there has been no comparable demise in the Green Woodpecker, a species which has similar habitat and feeding requirements.

On the plus side, Wrynecks (up to about 300 a year) still occur on migration in Britain, prompting hopes, admittedly slim, that the bird may yet return as a breeder.

To UK birders, the author's exploration of the collapse of the Wryneck is perhaps the most intriguing part of his narrative, but the remaining 200 or so pages are also full of fascinating information based both on his own research and his study of authoritative articles by other ornithologists.

The species' behaviour, its diet, its worldwide distribution, its favoured habitats and its place in folklore and mythology are all covered in absorbing detail.

Published at £24.99 by Pelagic Publishing (https://pelagicpublishing.com), The Wryneck is available wherever good books are sold

Inquiry launched after five birders lose their lives on photography trip off New Zealand coast

                                               

Tragic scene - the overturned vessel

INQUIRIES are this week continuing after  a weekend tragedy which claimed the lives of five birdwatchers - at least two of them being women - off the coast of New Zealand.

They were among a party of 10 members of Nature Photography Society of New Zealand who had paid 80 dollars (about £42.50) each for a three-hour charter boat trip to view a myriad of  seabirds including albatrosses, shearwaters, petrels, terns and Australasian gannets.

But, for reasons as yet unconfirmed, their 8.5-metre boat capsized.

The recovered vessel showed no sign of significant damage, and one theory is that it was flipped over by a migrating sperm or humpback whale.

Another is that it had overturned suddenly after all the passengers rushed to one side to view an unusual bird or other creature.

Half of those on board managed to clamber on to the upturned hull of the vessel where they waited for help.

Those involved with the rescue mission included other boat  tour operators, local fishermen and two Westpac helicopters.

The inquiry will seek to establish what the sea conditions had been like, what caused the accident and whether all safety precautions had been observed.

Survivors - including Mike Ealam of Fish Kaikoura Charters - will be interviewed.

It is not known if trip leader Jane Coulter was one of those who lost her life, but one of the women who died, Susan Cade, was a mental nurse.

Questions will  be asked about whether it is is appropriate for trips of this sort to take place in areas of sensitive wildlife.

The six survivors were assessed by medical personnel, and one was t treated in Christchurch Hospital before being discharged.

The tragedy occurred in Goose Bay, off  the small town of Kaikoura, once a whaling station, which  sits on the north east coast of the South Island.

RSPB mourns death of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth - a champion of birds (including Balmoral's capercaillies)

                                                    

The RSPB pays tribute to its patron, Her Majesty The Queen, who has passed away at the age of 96.

Beccy Speight, its Chief Executive, said: "We are deeply saddened to hear of the death of The Queen and offer our heartfelt condolences to the Royal Family.

"Her Majesty showed unwavering support as the patron of the RSPB for which we are hugely grateful. 

"Her role as our patron reflected her dedication to championing charitable causes and the unstinting devotion to public duty she showed throughout her long reign."

A particular highlight of The Queen’s patronage was the reception she hosted at St James’s Palace to celebrate the RSPB’s centenary in 1989. The event was attended by almost 300 RSPB staff, volunteers and supporters.

In recognition of the RSPB’s work, Her Majesty also sent a message which was published in the RSPB’s Birds magazine:

"I send my warm thanks to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, for the kind message of loyal greetings, sent on the occasion of the Centenary of the Society.

"As your patron, I am delighted to send congratulations on this notable anniversary.

"My best wishes go to you for continued success in your invaluable work for the conservation of wild birds, and their environment, in the United Kingdom and abroad."

RSPB staff were also delighted to meet Her Majesty, in 1999 at the unveiling of a statue of comedian Eric Morecambe who was a keen ornithologist.

The Queen was well known for her love of the countryside, and Stuart Housden, former Director of RSPB Scotland, recalls her passion for the wildlife and landscapes of Scotland.

"Her Majesty took a keen interest in how wildlife was faring on the Balmoral Estate in Aberdeenshire and was so delighted to discover a nest of capercaillie chicks while out horse riding one day that she asked for me to be informed. 

"She also sought advice on how management of the estate could be improved for wildlife, and I was invited by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales to see for myself some of the work that had been undertaken."

The Queen was acutely aware of the need to restore natural habitats, for the benefit of wildlife, people and the planet, and through numerous tree planting projects, including The Queen’s Green Canopy initiative to mark her Platinum Jubilee, she was instrumental in encouraging conservation efforts across the world.

In a speech to launch the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow in 2021, she reflected on the scale of the nature and climate emergency and voiced her hope that by "working side by side, we have the ability to solve the most insurmountable problems and triumph over the greatest of adversities".

She also spoke of her pride that the baton of environmental protection had been passed on to her son, HRH The Prince of Wales, and grandson, HRH The Duke of Cambridge, and we have no doubt that they will continue her legacy, just as we will continue our work to create a world richer in nature.

We offer our sincere thanks for her unstinting support for our cause.

Russian president keen to encourage captive breeding of gyr falcons - some to be sold at auction to Arab sheikhs

Meeting of minds? Putin with a gyr falcon

RUSSIAN president Vladimir Putin has this week taken time off overseeing the war in  Ukraine to to visit the Kamchatka Falconry Centre.

Earlier this summer, the centre achieved its first success with captive breeding of gyr falcons.

Falconry experts from Arab countries as well as Russia have been involved with the project.

Says director of the falconry centre Shukhrat Razakov:  "This is a real breakthrough in the ornithological world."

The project is said to have been devised "in accordance with a presidential decree to develop, approve and implement a  plan for the establishment of falcon reintroduction and conservation centres in the Russian Federation". 

The population of gyr falcons in Kamchatka and elsewhere has been  declining due to large-scale poaching. 

Particularly in the late 1980s, a huge number were smuggled out of Russia.

The 300-hectre Kamchatka  centre is located in the Milkovsky district. 

It houses a nursery for 200 pairs of falcons, aviaries for 1,000 young falcons, a tower for flying and a multifunctional ornithological centre.

There are also plans to build falcon centres in Yamal, Altai, Kolyma and Sakhalin.

The priority task of the Kamchatka centre is said to be "the creation of an aviary population of birds and their training for participation in falconry competitions".

Falconry is recognized by UNESCO as "a masterpiece of living intangible culture of mankind". 

It is expected that the project will also contribute to the development of multilateral cooperation with the Middle East countries where falconry is of particular importance and prestige.

In the Arab world, the veneration of falcons in the Arab world is associated with freedom, wealth and prosperity.

Gyr falcons are popular at international auctions. 

In the future, it is planned to hold auctions in the future in Russia with the participation of Arab sheikhs.

See also:

(350) Putin names falcon after Russian crack team fighting in Ukraine during visit to bird breeding centre - YouTube

Hammer comes down at £500 on controversial painting - but who was the artist?

Detail from the painting depicting the swan

A 19th Century oil painting starring a poorly-illustrated mute swan has sold for £500 at auction in Louth, Lincolnshire.

The painting is not in good condition and needs cleaning, but the high price reflects the possibility that it may be the work of  highly-collectable York-born artist William Etty who attended a school in Pocklington before becoming an apprentice printer for publishers of a newspaper, The Hull Packet.

If, after further evaluation, this proves to be the case, it could prove to be worth much more.

However, Etty had many imitators in which case the painting may be worth much less. 

An extremely shy man who never married, Etty (1787-1849) was always controversial because he specialised in the nude figure, simultaneously earning him commercial success and a reputation for indecency.

For much of his life, the artist suffered poor health and he succumbed to an asthmatic attack brought on by rheumatic fever when he was just 62.

The provenance of the painting is not known, nor the identity of the successful bidder. 

The sale was conducted on Tuesday by John Taylors of Louth.

Hammer price of £500. The painting in full - but is it a genuine Etty?

Kingfisher decided time had come to be a bit more adventurous in its choice of habitat - and food

Extract from back number of British Birds magazine: Diet variation for Southampton  kingfisher - but did it flavour the blackberries with a pinch of salt?

Danish windfarm giant ready to provide nesting sites for kitttiwakes on 'repurposed' gas field platforms

A new purpose in prospect for this North Sea platform? 

ARTIFICIAL nest sites for kittiwakes could be created on a gas platform in the southern North Sea.

As of June this year, the Wenlock platform - which sits in 90ft of water some 98km north-east of the Bacton gas terminal in North Norfolk - already had an estimated 69 pairs of this declining seabird.

But it could have even more if a joint project involving the site's operators, Alpha Petroleum and Energean UK, along with  offshore windfarm developer Orsted proves viable.

Orsted has run into choppy water with conservation organisations such as the RSPB over its Hornsea Four project which, it is feared, could have an adverse impact on marine species such as kittiwakes which are disturbed (and threatened) by rotating turbines.

It hopes that  'repurposing' gas platforms located away from windfarms could provide nesting opportunities and 'compensate' for any harm caused by turbines.  

Nesting kittiwakes

It would also be cost-effective because it would save the Danish company from having to install other forms of artificial nesting structure.

The Wenlock platform is said to be nearing the end of its economic producing life and is scheduled for the plugging and abandonment of wells from next year. 

Says Jamie Baldwin, Hornsea Four Project Director at Orsted: "We are always keen to explore innovative opportunities to ensure that our projects are developed, constructed and maintained as sensitively and sustainably as possible. 

"We look forward to continuing our work with Alpha and Energean to investigate the potential for repurposing existing offshore structures as part of a tool-box of ecological compensation measures."

Kittiwakes and other birds at the Wenlock platform

Below: The publication is available (price £2) as an e-book via Kindle

A FAULT TO NATURE: BIRDS, MIGRATION AND THE PROBLEM WITH WINDFARMS eBook : Wright, Jim: Amazon.co.uk: Books