Tag Archives: birds

News

Government asked to ensure developers build bird boxes into new homes as swift numbers plummet

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The TELEGRAPH reports the RSPB has urged the government to ensure developers build bird boxes into new homes amid fears swift numbers are plummeting.

The small bird, whose distinctive wings make it look almost like an arrow in flight, nests in nooks and crannies in buildings after flying over 6,000 miles from Africa in the spring. They are one of the fastest birds in the world, able to reach up to 70mph and often not touching the ground for up to three years at a time. Numbers of the animal have dwindled to fewer than 90,000 pairs, down from 150,000 pairs two decades ago.

Swift at box photo by fs-phil under creative commons.

News

Woodpigeons and crows can no longer be freely killed in England

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The Guardian reports “pest” bird species such as crows, woodpigeons and jays can no longer be freely killed in England after the government’s conservation watchdog revoked the licence permitting it. The move by Natural England came after a challenge to the legality of the “general licence” by a new environmental group, Wild Justice, created by conservationists Mark Avery, Ruth Tingay and Chris Packham.

Natural England now plans to introduce a legal system of licences to allow 16 species of birds, including rooks, magpies, Canada geese and non-native parakeets, to be controlled. In the meantime, anyone wanting to control these species must apply for an individual licence, as they are required to if seeking to kill other more protected bird species.

Wildlife campaigners have greeted the decision, which came on Tony Juniper’s first day as the new chair, with delight, but many farmers – and some conservationists – were dismayed.

Photo by Valters Krontal under creative commons.

News

Activists free 9,000 pheasants from farm

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The Times reports animal rights activists freed 9,000 pheasants during a raid on a Suffolk game farm as part of a campaign to “dismantle the shooting industry farm by farm, shoot by shoot”.

Members of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) who attacked Heath Hatcheries in Mildenhall said that their aim was to put shoots out of business.

The Times revealed on Saturday how millions of day-old game bird chicks were being sent from French battery farms on Eurotunnel trains to bolster British shooting estates after ferry companies refused to carry the birds.

Photo of pheasants by Ian under creative commons.

News

Decline in curlew birds as farming ‘destroys habitat’ 

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BBC NEWS reports the number of curlews in Wales has dropped by 80% since 1990 with farming practices partly to blame, a charity has said. RSPB Cymru has called for farmers to be rewarded for creating suitable habitats for the bird when a new payments scheme comes into force after Brexit. 

It is estimated only 400 breeding curlew pairs are left in Wales. The Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) said nature should not be prioritised at the expense of the rural economy. 

RSPB Cymru claims the bird’s decline was due, in part, to farming practices. “[It is linked to] how hay is harvested as silage earlier on in the year, but there’s also been a decline in invertebrates, which is food for the curlew.”

Curlew photo by Sue under creative commons 

News, Planning

Property developers row back on netting used to stop birds nesting 

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The Guardian reports some developers are reviewing their policies after protests from environmentalists. A grassroots uprising is forcing builders and councils to remove netting over trees and hedgerows installed to prevent birds nesting and hindering their developments.

Environmentalists have condemned the practice and say it has exploded in scale this spring. The use of netting to prevent birds nesting in hedgerows and trees allows developers to get around the law that prevents the removal and damage of birds nests, and avoid delays to development caused by the nesting season.

News, Spotting wildlife

Big Garden Birdwatch: Smallest birds ‘hit by Beast from East’

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The BBC report fewer of the UK’s smallest birds have been spotted this year by volunteers in the Big Garden Birdwatch, an annual survey run by the RSPB.

Long-tailed tits were down by 27% and wrens by 17% after being seen in large numbers in 2018. Last year’s very cold spell brought by the Beast from the East is thought to be a factor, as smaller birds would have been hardest hit by the blast.

House sparrows, meanwhile, are making a comeback after years in decline.

Helping wildlife, News

Tell us: have you spotted any netting to stop birds nesting?

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The Guardian reports the RSPB is urging the public to sign a petition to help change the law on the practice of bird netting in the UK.

We would like your help exploring the practice of netting trees so they can be removed for construction.

Across the UK there are reports of builders and developers using nets on trees to stop birds nesting so that they can be removed in order for building work to take place.

News

Why wildlife criminals are targeting UK birds of prey

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iNews reports that a former special forces soldier dubbed the ‘Pablo Escobar of egg theft’ hit the headlines recently after being sentenced to three years in jail for stealing £100,000 of rare bird of prey eggs.

Jeffrey Lendrum was convicted for the third time in a long and global career of egg smuggling after being stopped on his way into Heathrow from South Africa with 17 hawk, eagle and vulture eggs strapped to his chest – as well as two newly-hatched chicks.

Read more at: https://inews.co.uk/news/environment/why-the-uk-is-a-target-for-bird-of-prey-egg-thieves/

Photo Credit: Woking Peregrine Project / Woking Borough Council

News

Song thrush decline caused by dearth of earthworms

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The Independent reports that a dearth of worms is blamed for dramatic decline in the UK song thrush population. Britain’s first farmland worm survey reveals nearly half of English fields lack key types of earthworm and may help explain a 50 per cent fall in song thrush numbers.

The citizen science project, in which farmers dug for worms in their own fields, has prompted 57 per cent of them to pledge to change their soil management practices – a move that may benefit the song thrush, for whom worms are a vital food source.

Photo by Tony Sutton under Creative commons https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode