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| A bird of 'wonderful intrigue' - Alice Macmillan's cover illustration of Frank Rennie's fascinating book |
MIDWAY through his absorbing book on the corncrake, Frank Rennie makes a particularly arresting statement: "Many observers in different countries have commented that the bird was apparently common everywhere until, suddenly, it was not."
The evidence certainly seems to bear this out, with declines recorded not just in Britain but throughout most of the Europe continent.
For instance, in Norway, where once common, there were reckoned to be no more than five singing males during 1995-97, though the number has risen in recent years and is currently probably stable at between 50 and 70 calling males.
The land rail, to use one of its other names, is typically a bird of farmland, and the author confirms that changes in agricultural practice - for instance, mechanical mowing - are likely to have been a significant factor in its struggles.
But decline had already set in before the agricultural revolution gathered momentum, so what was going on?
To his credit, Prof Rennie does not claim to have all the answers. How could he given that this shy species, particularly the female, has revealed so few of its secrets, hence the subtitle - An Ecology of An Enigma?
The word 'enigma' brings to mind Sir Winston Churchill's famous description of Russia - " a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma".
That could also sum up the life and times of a migratory bird whose crew crex call is as much a harbinger of summer to crofting communities in Hebridean islands as the call of the cuckoo or the sight of a swallow are in most of the rest of Britain.
But though many have heard - and even been kept awake at night by the corncrake - few have seen the bird, such is its secretive and timid nature.
What else ails it? In his wide-ranging study, the author has a very interesting chapter entitled 'Predators, Parasites and Problems'.
Although it can be hard to pinpoint the precise location of a calling male, it does advertises its presence to one and all - including any passing cat, whether domestic or feral
Other reported predators in Europe, especially of young or eggs, include buzzard, red kite, barn owl, hooded crow and other corvids plus otter, mink and possibly hedgehog.
Notes the author: "Chicks have been eaten by white storks in Lithuania and also in Latvia where a colleague has informed that they regularly prey on chicks and appear quite capable of killing an adult bird."
In Africa, during our winter months (when, incidentally, it is largely silent) birds may occasionally be taken by leopards.
On its migration, "often flying in mixed flocks with common quail", many are likely to come a cropper while crossing the Mediterranean from Europe.
"They are frequently shot or caught in the nets of trappers who collectively erect nets along the entire Mediterranean coastline of Egypt and, to a lesser extent, in other African countries."
The author, it should be stated, is perfectly positioned to write about the corncrake. As Professor of Sustainable Rural Development at the University of the Highlands and Islands, he lives and works in the species' only remaining British stronghold.
This authoritative and highly readable study also explores the myth and legends around the corncrake, its plumage, favoured habitats, migration routes, diet, breeding and much else.
The book is beautifully produced and printed as well as being comprehensively illustrated with excellent photographs and enchanting cover artwork by Alice Macmillan.
A word, too, for Whittles, the Scottish publishers, who are building a most impressive portfolio of ornithological titles which also includes well-received and sometimes award-winning works on, for instance, the common sandpiper, the white-tailed eagle, the natural history of lighthouses and the ring ouzel.
The Corncrake - An Ecology of An Enigma is published in paperback at £18.99 and can be obtained direct from the publishers at www.whittlespublishing.com
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