It's all about Stone-curlews! Species monitoring officer sought by RSPB for five-month summer contract

                                                               

A bird worth fighting for! RSPB determined to increase Stone-curlew numbers in Wessex. Photo, via Wikimedia Commons, taken in Italy by Francesco Venonesi 

 

THE RSPB is seeking to recruit a Stone-curlew field officer in South-west England on a short-term contract.

The post will be based at the Winterbourne Downs nature reserve in Wiltshire and offers the salary equivalent of between £23,401 and £25,122 for the five-month post.

States  the job description: "We are looking for a dedicated and enthusiastic individual with skills in wildlife surveying to join our team conserving Stone-curlews across the Wessex area. 

"The ideal candidate will be self-led and have experience with complex and detail-orientated work."

Stone-curlews have undergone significant decline across the UK over the last century, leaving only two strongholds, the Brecks in East Anglia and Wessex. 

However, 30 years of conservation efforts have seen the population recover. 

The RSPB works closely with landowners and farmers, including the Ministry of Defence to provide suitable habitat for breeding pairs. 

The population in Wessex is now approaching 150 pairs, but, according to the RSPB, continued recovery of this species relies on monitoring and protection.

The job description continues: "The role has a strong fieldwork focus during the peak breeding season (April to September).

"Excellent field skills are required for this tricky and inconspicuous bird, including experience with optics and the ability to spot minute details from a distance. 

"The work includes locating pairs, monitoring breeding attempts, finding nests, liaising with farmers, contractors, and landowners and carrying out intervention measures on vulnerable sites. 

"The work also has a strong data gathering and recording component with the need to record measurements quickly and accurately. 

"The field officer will also be required to maintain electronic records. 

"Although the postholder will often be conducting field work alone using their own initiative, they will also be taking a lead role working alongside survey volunteers. 

Lone working often in remote locations is commonplace in this role, and some evening and weekend work will be required. 

"The field officer will need to be comfortable driving a 4x4 vehicle off road and spending multiple hours per day in a vehicle. 

"The Stone-curlew pairs are spread across a wide geographical area, and a significant proportion of the monitoring is done from inside a vehicle using a window mounted spotting scope.

"It is essential that the postholder is adept at managing time to balance a busy fieldwork schedule, responding to farmers, colleagues and partners in a timely manner and ensuring delivery of project management tasks such as data entry to deadlines. 

"For both the fieldwork and desk-based elements of this role, an ability to communicate confidently with farmers and landowners is essential. 

"It is also essential that the post holder can navigate complex spreadsheets.

"Experience of leading volunteers is also a requirement."

As with all its vacancies, the RSPB  notes: "People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector.

"If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application.," 

The closing date for applications is February 25, with interviews on March 3 and a contract start-date of April 1.

 Further information is available from: megan.gee@rspb.org.uk

                                       

Winterbourne Downs - photo: RSPB

What am I bid for clockwork humming bird? Amusing German-made toy expected to fetch up to £50 at auction

 

There has been some modest pre-sale interest in this tin plate clockwork humming bird, made in West Germany, which is due to go under the hammer at John Taylors Auctions in Louth, Lincolnshire, on the afternoon of  Tuesday February 4. By 5pm on Sunday, bids had reached £25. The estimate is that it will sell for between £40 and £50.                        

Firm prices for secondhand Leica/Zeiss Swarovski binoculars and spotting scopes at Yorkshire auction

Star seller - the Swarovski BTX

A SOLID market exists for pre-owned binoculars and scopes if they are made by top-name companies.

This was the evidence of an auction held earlier this week by Tennants of Leyburn in North Yorkshire.

For example, a Swarovski spotting scope with 95mm objective lens sold for £2,200 - well above the pre-sale estimate of £1,100 to £1,500.

Earlier, the hammer came down on a Swarovski ATS 80 HD scope with 65mm objective lens in soft casing at £850 which was also above the guide price of £500 - £800.

Less impressive was the price achieved for a pair of  10x42 Zeiss Conquest HD binoculars (in original box plus soft case, strap and instructions) - £400 which was at the lower end of the pre-auction estimate of  £400 - £600.

However, a pair of  10x42 Leica Ultravid  binoculars (with soft case, strap and instructions in original box) sold for £700 against an estimate of £600 - £800.

The successful bidders will also have been required to pay a 24 per cent buyer's premium.

* Photographs: Tennants of Leyburn

                                     

Swarovski - ATS 80 with extras

                                                                          

A popular brand with birders - Leica binoculars

                                                                          

Longstanding favourite - Zeiss binoculars

Impressive study of Ferruginous Hawk set to go under the hammer at Lincolnshire auction

                                                        

The Ferruginous Hawk as depicted by Albert Gilbert. It is a large and fairly widespread raptor which favours grassland and semi-arid grassland in the inner states of North America. It is sometimes used in falconry.

A FRAMED study of a Ferruginous Hawk feeding two of its chicks is included in a sale to be held in Lincolnshire next week.

It should attract lively bidding both in its own right and because it has been painted by one of the United States' leading wildlife artists, Albert Earl Gilbert.

On the downside, he did not paint the birds in the field - that is, at the nest site in Colorado - but based his undated work on a photograph by A.M. Bailey.

How Lot 413 came to be in the hands of Louth auction house John Taylors is something of a mystery.

The sale is being held next Tuesday February 4, starting at 10am.

As of close of play today, January 29, there has been just one online bid - a modest £2.

Also going under the hammer are other items of ornithological interest including a stuffed barn owl, a (somewhat battered) pair of  10x50 binoculars and a brass telescope. 

More details from the auction house at: 

John Taylors Auction Rooms | Sale of Furniture, Ceramics, Pictures, Jewellery, Watches, Coins etc.

'Save Our Slavonian Grebes' project officer (and assistant) sought by RSPB in Scotland

 

Slavonian grebes in winter plumage - these birds were photographed on the lake in Cleethorpes country park in North East  Lincolnshire

THE RSPB is on the look-out for a project officer to oversee the interests of one of Scotland's rarest birds - the Slavonian Grebe.

The post carries a salary of  £32,022 - £34,377 per annum and runs until the end of March next year.

Says the job description: "Significant population declines in recent years mean that the Slavonian Grebe is now one of our rarest breeding birds in Scotland. 

"This dynamic role offers an opportunity to advance Slavonian Grebe conservation, focusing on its core breeding range around Inverness. 

"The post will lead on developing a delivery phase project to implement solutions at breeding lochs while building partnerships with key stakeholders." 

It continues: "The development project will involve the creation of a cross-organisation Slavonian Grebe steering group and developing working relationships with landowners, angling associations and recreational groups.  

"The role will manage a project assistant and volunteers and be responsible for hiring and supervising contractors. 

"The actions for the team will include establishing data on habitat condition, predation pressure, fish presence and recreational disturbance on breeding lochs through a combination of direct fieldwork and information gathering.

"In addition, conservation interventions such as the use of sedge bed buffers will be tested.

"Information gathered will be used to develop a delivery phase plan, including fully costed management measures for lochs to be agreed with landowners and any required consents secured."

Also being sought is a project assistant on a salary of  £24,890 - £26,720.

The closing date for applications is February 17.

More details about both vacancies from: alison.phillip@rspb.org.uk

  

Preliminary report implicates Baikal Teal in South Korea crash tragedy after feathers found in both engines

                                     

Baikal Teal - common on South Korea's wetlands in winter (photo: Sarefo/ Wikimedia Commons)

 

THE Baikal Teal has been linked to the Jeju Airlines crash that last month tragically claimed 179 lives at Muan Airport in South Korea.

A preliminary report has revealed that blood and feathers of the duck were found in both engines of the Boeing 737-800.

However, though there was a bird strike, it is unlikely that this was a predominant cause of the tragedy - least of all the extent of loss of life when the plane subsequently collided at high speed with a wall at one end of the runway.

The species, which is thought to have increased from tens of thousands to more than a million birds over the past four decades, is named after the Baikal lake - the largest in Siberia and one of the largest in the world.

In winter, the bird is very common in South Korea, not least at Suncheon Bay which is near Muan Airport. 

There are 14 regional airports in South Korea. Between them, they recorded 559 bird-strike incidents between 2019 and August last year. Most occurred during take-off or landing. 

Out of these, only 20 were classified as causing damage.

The Baikal Teal is a small duck. Evidence suggests that it is generally only larger birds such as swans, geese and cranes which  are problematic, notably if they strike multiple systems or get sucked into engines, damaging blades.

As at other airports worldwide, Muan International will have bird-deterrent devices installed, but their effectiveness can never be guaranteed.

The aircraft that crash-landed was a Boeing 737-800, one of the world's most flown planes and one said to have a generally good safety record.

Its engineers are closely involved with the continuing investigation as are the manufacturer of the two engines, CFM International, a joint venture between GE Aerospace and French company Safron, plus airline company Jeju Air, Muan airport staff and other authorities and scientists.

Will Trump presidency spell end for Alaska's 'near-threatened' population of Spectacled Eider?

                                        

Mystical birds - a pair of Spectacled Eiders. Photo: Laura Whitehouse via Wikimedia Commons

AN uncertain future beckons for Alaska's population of Spectacled Eider duck.

The American state possesses extensive  reserves of coal, oil, natural gas, zinc, and lumber, but extraction has been put on hold to safeguard the frigid habitat of  birds and other wildlife not known to exist on  many others parts of the planet. 

But it is feared President Trump's readiness to see commercial exploitation of minerals wherever they exist could lead to the demise of Spectacled Eider - particularly near the 22-mile wide Teshekpuk Lake where they breed.

The species has made recent headlines after a vagrant drake - whether from Alaska or from Siberia - appeared off the island of Texel on the Dutch Coast, south of its European range to an unprecedented degree.

The curious-looking has been a magnet for birders from Britain as well as their counterparts from all over continental Europe because opportunities to see the bird in winter, outside the Bering Sea, are so few and far between.

Because its habitat is so inaccessible, information about the species is relatively scant, but an article entitled 'Migration of The Spectacled Eider' appeared in the May 1923 edition of  The Canadian Field Naturalist.

Wrote Joseph F. Bernard: "In the fall of 1921, I was shipwrecked on the coast of Siberia at Cape Lutke in Bering Strait and was compelled to go into winter quarters at this place.

"We remained there until July, 1922.

"There was some open water in Bering Strait all winter except for the month of February, 1922. 

"At any time in the open water, we could always see various species of ducks.

"I noted Spectacled Eider in the fall through November and December.

"However, during the months of January, February and March - though the natives of North Head reported that they had seen duck in the open gaps  in the ice -  I did not see these myself and therefore cannot tell what species they were." 

The writer continued: "It seems the the spring migration of the Spectacled Eider begins  about the middle of April. 

"From my journals, I note that I saw the first  on  April 17, 1922. 

"On April 20, I went out on the ice to a large area of open water. This happened to be a fine calm day, unusual for this locality. 

"Over an expanse of  about 15 miles square, it was completely covered with Eider Duck. 

"King Eider were the most common by far.

"Next in point of numbers were the Pacific Eider, but there was also a great number of Spectacled Eider.

"At the same time I noted a few Steller’s Eider. 

"I hid between two ridges of ice and fired a rifle shot across the  water. 

"The duck rose in a mass and began to circle around.

"I estimated the flock to be half a mile in width and several miles long. The flock was so thick that it obscured the sun. 

"They did not see me as I was well hidden and they passed over my head not more than 15 feet above me. 

"I had a splendid chance to identify the duck and was amazed that there could still be in existence so many Spectacled Eider."

The global status of Spectacled Eider is "near threatened", and its prospects are also being undermined by global warming. 

                                      

How the Dutch media has been reporting the exotic bird that has turned up in their waters

Global Birdfair 2025 project will highlight line-fishing threat to shearwaters, petrels and the Antipodean Albatross

                         

GLOBAL Birdfair supremo Tim Appleton MBE has this week announced the event's conservation project for 2025 - Safeguarding Ocean Species.

Says he: "The focus will be on tackling threats facing our magnificent seabirds in the southern Pacific."

The bait and dead fish surrounding fishing vessels represent a rich feeding ground, often attracting hundreds of seabirds.

Sadly, for many seabirds, including Antipodean and other albatross species, plus shearwaters and petrels, this meal is often their last. 

Incidental capture (also known as bycatch) in fishing gear is the most pervasive threat to these birds. 

Particularly deadly are thousands of hooks attached to long lines which can extend up to 100 km into the ocean.

The bait on these hooks  appears to represent an easy meal for albatross because it mimics fish swimming close to the water’s surface. 

However, when the birds snatch on to what seems like unassuming prey, they often get snagged and dragged underwater as the hooks sink.

These seabirds do not need to die. 

Solutions such as bird scaring lines (otherwise known as Tori lines) use colourful streamers to scare away seabirds. 

Through the work of the Albatross Task Force in South Africa, bycatch mitigation methods have been used to great affect in reducing the mortality of albatrosses by an astonishing 99 per cent.

The  2025 Global Birdfair project will champion best practice and contribute to more resilient, healthy ocean ecosystems to ensure that  seabirds can soar free.

                               

RSPB remains committed to pulling out of Rye Meads nature reserve and Fairhaven Lake visitor centre

Sedge warbler in song

It looks unlikely that the RSPB will be having a change of heart on proposed cost-saving cutbacks across its network of 200-plus reserves and visitor centres. It has issued these updates on its locations at Rye Meads in  Hertfordshire and Fairhaven Lake in Lancashire.

Rye Meads Nature Reserve

Following the review of our nature reserves operations, we will be exploring options for the future of RSPB Rye Meads during 2025, including potential change of management. 

We are also ceasing the existing programme of school visits and education sessions guided by RSPB learning officers (also known as the Schools on Reserves programme) with immediate effect in line with our national strategy for education.

We know and recognise that Rye Meads has a special place in the hearts of many and this is not a decision we have taken lightly. 

We are proud that the work delivered here by RSPB staff and volunteers has benefited wildlife and provided opportunities for visitors to enjoy, connect with and learn about local wildlife and the natural world. 

This will be the long-term legacy of the RSPB’s work at this site. 

Moving forward, we need to make changes to focus our resources where they can have the most impact for nature and wildlife. 

In the coming months we will be looking closely at the long-term future of the site, carefully considering its qualities, challenges and opportunities before reaching any decisions. 

In the meantime, the site will be open to visitors as usual, except for some bank holidays (please check our website and social media channels for opening days and times).

Fairhaven Lake Visitor Centre

Following the review of our nature reserves operations, the difficult decision has been taken to cease RSPB operations at Fairhaven Lake.

We are also ceasing the existing programme of school visits and education sessions  guided by RSPB learning officers (also known as the Schools on Reserves programme) with immediate effect, in line with our national strategy for education.

We know that the RSPB Fairhaven Lake visitor centre has a special place in the hearts of many and this is not a decision we have taken lightly. 

We are proud that the work delivered here by RSPB staff and volunteers has benefited wildlife and provided opportunities for visitors to enjoy, connect with and learn about local wildlife and the natural world. 

This will be the long-term legacy of the RSPB’s work at this site.

Moving forward, we need to make changes to focus our finite resources where they can have the most impact for nature and wildlife.

Fairhaven Lake is owned and managed by Fylde Borough Council.

We have run the RSPB centre in partnership with the council since 1997. 

Fairhaven Lake and all of its other amenities will be unchanged and remain open for the public to continue to enjoy.

We will, however, be ending the RSPB operation of the visitor centre and shop. 

As a charity, it is essential we generate income to fund our work, especially at a time when nature and climate are in crisis.

"We can no longer afford to operate the shop at a loss. 

"The provisional plan is to close at some point in 2025." 

In the meantime, the shop and visitor centre will remain open to visitors as usual, except some bank holidays (please check our website and social media channels for opening days and times).

Booted Eagle - hazel-eyed visitor to Cornwall is a raptor that likes to capture the headlines

                                                

Booted Eagle - illustration from Birds of Europe (1837) by John Gould

THE continuing presence in Cornwall of a long-staying Booted Eagle has delighted birders because it only the third British and the first for almost quarter of  a century. 

It is unlikely that many living birders (unless those of very long tooth) will remember two other headline-grabbing raptors of the same species.

These were nicknamed 'Pedro' and 'Portugese Jack' and they both featured in the newspapers after escaping from London Zoo - the first in December, 1935, and the second in November, 1936

Of the latter, one reporter wrote: "He was last seen near the BBC HQ - perhaps he wants to on the air as well as in it!"

In Vol I of Birds of Europe (1837), John Gould wrote: "The Booted Eagle may be regarded as the smallest of the true eagles, and one of the most beautiful of its tribe.

"A casual glance would, however, almost lead to confound it with the Buzzards, and especially with that group which is feathered to the toes: it is smaller in size than any European species of Buzzard, nevertheless.

"When we examine its beak, strong tarsus and powerful claws, together with the long lanceolate feathers on the top of the head and neck, the great breadth and power of the shoulders, and the shortness of the tail, we at once recognise the characteristic features of the genuine eagles. 

"The eastern portions of Europe and the adjacent districts of Asia constitute its native habitat whence it migrates annually as far as Austria, Moravia and the eastern parts of Germany. 

"A fine specimen of the male of this species, which was killed in the Austrian territories, was placed at our disposal by Baron de Feldegg, and of this bird our plate is a careful representation. 

"In an interesting collection lately received by the Zoological Society from Trebizond, we observed a fine example of this species in a younger and consequently in a somewhat different state of plumage from that which we have figured which is fully adult.

"Its food consists of small quadrupeds, birds and insects. 

"M. Temminck informs us that it builds its nest in Hungary, near the Carpathian mountains. Its eggs are not known.

"The adult has the top of the head light yellowish brown, each feather being lanceolate in form and having a dash of dark brown; the middle of the back and upper surface dark greyish brown; at the insertion of the wings is a patch, consisting of eight or ten feathers, of a pure white.

"A broad stripe of light yellowish brown extends from the shoulders across the wing to the secondaries which, with the quills, are deep blackish brown.

"The tail is deep greyish brown, each feather having a lighter tip; under surface white, with the exception of the chest which has the stem of each feather slightly dashed with brown.

"The cere and claws are yellow; the iries are hazel.

"The young differs from the adult in having narrow transverse bars of sandy yellow across the breast and thighs."

First seen in October, the Cornish bird has been regularly sighted in the Marazion area ever since. Some say there are two different examples of the same species.

Whether one or two, the flight to our shores has been from southern or Eastern Europe, with a diet consisting of rabbits,  other small mammals and possibly some birds.

Happily, the bird currently being seen seems to be in good condition and capable of fending for itself in scraps with the area's resident Buzzards. 

His Majesty decides not to get involved in rumpus over staff and volunteers shake-out at RSPB reserves

 

                                                           

Sign of the times - bird hides, such as this one at the RSPB's Insh Marshes reserve in Scotland, have been allowed to deteriorate

The King has decided not to become embroiled in the row over the cutbacks in staffing and facilities at the RSPB's network of reserves.

One of the affected  sites is Hertfordshire-located Rye Meads in  which the society wants to offload - preferably to another conservation organisation.

The proposal prompted Julie Murrell to launch a Save Our RSPB Reserves campaign which ncluded seeking intervention from King Charles who, as well as being a champion of the natural world,  is the RSPB's patron.

But, whatever his thoughts on the matter, His Majesty is not prepared to become involved in operational matters - least of all without full knowledge off all the facts.

                                            

King Charles III - patron of RSPB

His Head of Royal Correspondence has responded to Mrs Murrell thus:

"His Majesty is deeply committed to protecting the natural world, and the strength of your feelings is understood.

"Whilst the King has taken careful note  of your comments, I must explain that His Majesty is unable to help.

"I am sorry to send you a disappointing reply but trust that you will understand.

"The King would have me convey his warm good wishes to you, and to thank you once again for taking the time to write as you did regarding this matter."

With its controversial purge of activities, the society hopes to save £15-million a year.

In the coming months, other reserves will either be offloaded to other organisations, sold off or mothballed.

Cutting back on seed costs -  feeders are being left empty

Scores of reserve staff and volunteers will be made redundant or have their working hours reduced.

Some cafes, such as the one at Rainham in Essex, will be closed while others will be reduced to serving snack-only fare.

Retail outlets for the sale of books, greeting cards and optical equipment are also in the firing line as are  educational programmes for schoolchildren and special activities such as identification workshops and guided tours.

Despite the shake-up, chief executive Beccy Speight insists that the reserves remain the "beating heart" of the RSPB.

Affected staff and volunteers have been banned from discussing the management proposals on social media or elsewhere.     

Spelling it out - the RSPB posts the disappointing  news about its Rainham Marshes reserve on social media

Salary of £50,000 per annum offered as Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust advertises for new head of communications

                                                                      

THE Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust is on  the hunt for a new Head of Public Engagement and Communications.

The successful applicant will answer to Chief Executive Paul Learoyd and be based at the trust's Horncastle HQ.

Salary is circa £50,000 per annum.

The role is described thus: "Responsible for the development, implementation and leadership of  the Trust’s public engagement, marketing and communication activities in furtherance of the Trust’s strategic purpose: to bring wildlife back, to empower people to take action for nature and to create a society where nature matters."  

The 'key tasks' are described as follows: 

* Contribute to the strategic direction of the Trust, working with the Chief Executive, other  senior staff, Board of Trustees and other Wildlife Trusts in the federation to develop, implement and advocate policies, plans and strategies.

* As a member of the senior management team, take an interest in and provide advice on the wider affairs of the Trust, contribute to general policy and deputise for the Chief  Executive as required.

* Lead and manage the department: developing and motivating the education, community, communications and visitor centre staff. 

* Responsible, in liaison with the Chief Executive and Head of Finance, for the preparation and monitoring of the department’s budget and any special project budgets as appropriate.

* Develop, oversee, undertake and manage project work, including project development from initial concept stage and funding applications to management of project staff, financial management and reporting.

* Utilise and develop channels for engagement, income generation (major donors, gifts in wills, donations etc.) and communications such as publications, online resources and on-site interpretation.

* Generate earned income from visitor centre café, education, events and corporate partnerships. 

* Work in partnership with companies, public bodies, groups, schools and communities, influencing organisational and individual policies and practices for the benefit of people and wildlife.

* Provide advice and support to the Trust’s Nature Reserves, Conservation and membership departments where public engagement and communications are a priority.

* Keep abreast of local, regional, national and international issues affecting people and wildlife in Lincolnshire, maintaining liaison with The Wildlife Trusts and other national developments, policies and initiatives.

* Act as an ambassador for the Trust including through the broadcast, print and social media.

*  Encourage and assist the Trust’s Area Groups of members and other volunteers in developing and promoting the Trust’s work.

* Ensure the department operates to the highest possible standards in line with both internal policies and legal obligations, including those around buildings, food hygiene, financial, equality, diversity and inclusion, data protection and safeguarding.

* Oversee and be responsible for the department health and safety work within the Trust’s General Policy on Health & Safety and in accordance with specific policies and codes of  practice for sites, risk assessment, procedures and best practice as amended from time to time.

* Undertake other reasonable duties from time to time in addition to the above normal duties

In  recent times, the postholder has been Matthew Capper who has done an excellent job, much of it behind the scenes.

But, sadly for the Trust and nature conservation, he has decided to look for new challenges elsewhere. 

Potential candidates need to get their skates on - the closing date for applications is noon on Monday January 20, 2025.

More information  from the LWT at  01507 526667.

* Photo: Chiffchaff - happily a common bird in Lincolnshire, especially in summer

Lincolnshire police appeal for information after fatal shooting of Buzzard in east of county

                                                         

Buzzards are protected by law - it is an offence to shoot them

POLICE have launched an appeal for information after a Buzzard was fatally shot in Lincolnshire.

The bird was still alive when picked up  in Grainthorpe, near Louth, on January 4, but it died from its injuries at Cleethorpes Wildlife Rescue  having previously undergone veterinary treatment.

If is an offence to kill or injure any wild bird.  

Birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.  It is also an offence to interfere with nests, or remove any chicks or eggs.

DC Aaron Flint from the rural action team at Lincolnshire police said: "I should like to hear from anyone who has information about the shooting of birds in our county.  

"Please don’t think it’s not worth reporting - it very much is and helps us to build a picture of this sort of crime."

If anyone has information that will help with this investigation or similar offences, please get in touch by emailing aaron.flint@lincs.police.uk.

Alternatively  contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at Crimestoppers-uk.org.

About to breathe its last - the mortally injured buzzard

Brisk bidding pushes up auction price of binoculars and telescope formerly owned by Eric Morecambe

In demand - Eric Morecambe's trusty binoculars and case

THE pair of binoculars used  by the late Eric Morecambe for watching birds sold for £750 at a weekend auction  of the comedian's effects.

Brisk bidding took the price way higher than the pre-sale estimate of between £30 and £50.

By today's standards, the bins are nothing special.

They were manufactured by Deraisme of Paris - a brand unfamiliar to most contemporary birders, at least those in the UK.

They were sold in the same lot as their case and two photographs of him looking through them.

The late comedian's 1970s telescope also exceeded expectations, achieving a price of £300 against a pre-sale estimate of between £50 and £70.

Less spectacularly, the hammer came down at £130 for his collection of birds books. This was is in line with the guide price of  £100 and £150.

Included with them was a four-page handwritten letter written to him by  fellow comedian-birdwatcher, Bill Oddie.

The sale was conducted by Hansons Auctioneers over two days, January 10-11.

The French-made binoculars

Above and below, the 1970s telescope

Eric Morecambe's ornithological collection included a copy of The Observer's Book of Birds 

Opportunity beckons - to become next warden of bird observatory on Alderney Island

                                           

A view through the palm trees on Alderney in the Channel Islands - photo: Andree Stephan via Wikimedia Commons

THE decision of warden John Horton to move on after six years at Alderney Bird Observatory means an opportunity has arisen for a new warden to take over.

Of the vacancy, observatory chairperson Helen McGregor states: "We have a number of ongoing projects which should appeal to candidates.

"We have Motus and NocMig bird-tracking projects to run,  breeding seabirds (including plentiful Gannets) to ring and migrant birds to record in spring and autumn."

The bird observatory was established in 2016 as  the 20th in the British Isles. 

It is positioned on the East Atlantic flyway for birds migrating to and from Africa and rings are fitted to more than 10,000 birds annually.

The observatory is run under accreditation from the Bird Observatories Council.

As its first warden, Mr John Horton oversaw the development of the observatory from its formation. 

He has been appointed warden of Cape Clear Bird Observatory in southern Ireland, and the ABO board is wishing  him every success in his new post.

Anyone interested in the vacancy is asked to send an email to abo.news@outlook.com requesting further information.

                                    

Just off Alderney is an island which hosts more than 5,000 pairs of Gannets

Outrage over export of endangered eels from British rivers for 'commercial trade' in Russia

Endangered eels from British rivers are being exported to Russia (photo: Sustainable Eel Group)

 

CELEBITY naturalist Chris Packham and the RSPB's operations director James Robinson  are among those who have signed an  open letter condemning exports of eels from Britain to Russia.

The letter states: "Britain has been quietly increasing exports of European eel to Russia over the past few years - from half-a-million juveniles in 2022 to three million in 2024.

"This is despite the fact that the species is endangered, and no river in England and Wales is close to meeting its conservation target. 

"There are now proposals to increase the exports five-fold, to 15 million."

The letter, which has been published in today's edition of The Daily Telegraph, continues:  

"Advocates for this policy maintain there is a surfeit of eels in the Bristol Channel, and that re-routing the stock to Kaliningrad will ensure a greater proportion make it back to the Sargasso Sea to spawn.

"However, the conservation logic is cover for a commercial trade.

"Eels are grown-on in a contained area and eventually harvested for consumption. 

"Yuri Maslov, the director of Kaliningrad’s fisheries agency, is on record as saying that, while the imported fish could theoretically leave Russian waters in several years 'by that time they will have already been caught''.

"Even in times of peace, it would be irresponsible to propose a trade where monitoring procedures are compromised. 

"In the current geopolitical climate, trade with Russia is also surely an issue of national security.

"It would be better for the eel and the elvermen if the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursued a cost-effective programme of  'conservation fishing', catching and re-releasing the juvenile fish into suitable habitat in Britain."

The full list of signatories to the letter is:

Andrew Kerr

Chairman, Sustainable Eel Group

Chris Packham 

Conservationist and presenter of BBC Springwatch

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall 

Chef, author and broadcaster

Tessa Munt MP (Lib Dem)

Mark Lloyd 

Chief executive, Rivers Trust

Vanessa Becker-Hughes

Eel ambassador and founder of the Somerset Eel Recovery Project

Richard Benwell

Chief executive, Wildlife and Countryside Link

Charlie Burrell

Conservationist and founder, Knepp Wildland

Charles Clover

Co-founder and senior advisor, Blue Marine Foundation

Paul Coulson

Chief executive, Institute for Fisheries Management

Willem Dekker

Former chairman, ICES Working Group Eel

Alastair Driver

Honorary professor of environmental management, University of Exeter

John and Elaine Elkington

Founders, Volans

Mark Everard

Associate professor of ecosystem services, University of the West of England

Richard Fleming

Nature writer

Ben Goldsmith

Former DEFRA non-executive director

Zac Goldsmith

Former minister for climate, environment and energy

Derek Gow

Conservationist and wildlife reintroduction specialist

Rupert de Mauley

Former parliamentary under-secretary, DEFRA

Richard Page

Environmental and marine consultant

Paul Powelsland

Barrister at Lawyers for Nature

Carl Sayer

Professor of geography, University College London

Charles Rangeley

Conservationist and chairman, CaBA Chalk Stream Restoration Group

James Robinson

Chief operating officer, RSPB