« April 2006 | Main | July 2006 »
June 27, 2006
Delight as Red Kite chicks hatch in north-east England
Published by BBC News - 16th June 2006 - Red Kite chicks have hatched in the north-east of England for the first time in almost 200 years.
The Northern Kites project was started in 2004 to restore a breeding population of the birds to the region.
The project team confirmed there are at least two chicks in a nest in Gateshead's Derwent Valley.
The adult red kites - named Flag and Red Philip - were moved from nests in Stokenchurch in the Chilterns to the Derwent Valley two years ago.
English Nature regional director Martyn Howat said: "Today is a red letter day for the Northern Kites project and an historic event for north-east England.
"It marks the opening of an exciting new chapter in the extraordinary story of these magnificent birds in the region."
Public viewpoint
He added: "We are confident that from this historic first nest a thriving population of kites will soon become established so providing further opportunities for people to enjoy the spectacle of kites flying over the North East."
A public viewpoint has been set up on the Nine Arches Viaduct, near Winlaton Mill.
Red kites were formerly widespread and common in the UK, but human persecution led to their extinction in England and Scotland by the end of the 19th century.
A few survived in Wales, though even they came perilously close to dying out, and at one point it was thought that only a single female of breeding age existed in the whole of the UK.
In 1989 the decision was made to try to re-introduce the birds into England and Scotland and pairs were brought from Spain and Sweden to Oxfordshire, the Chilterns and Inverness.
This was extended when it proved to be successful.
The re-introduction project is now complete, with colonies also existing in the Rockingham Forest area of the Midlands, around Harrogate in North Yorkshire, Central Scotland and Dumfries and Galloway.
Posted by Surfbirds at 03:44 PM | Comments (0)
June 26, 2006
The Eagle Flies Again
Shot out of our skies, the massive sea eagle is making a spectacular comeback - and it could soon be seen in a harbour near you. Peter Marren reports from The Independent web site: Published 22 June 2006
Imagine a great bird the size of a tall bookcase casting shadows as it soars over the marshes. Better still, think of it following your boat, like a gannet, its long, banana-yellow bill casting this way and that as it scans the ocean for fishy titbits. Or perhaps you see it perched on a rock by the harbour with outstretched wings, rather like one of the copper liver birds overlooking Liverpool's waterfront. Could this be the highlight of a wildlife tour of tropical Africa or the Amazon? No, it is a possible glimpse of East Anglia a few years from now. It could even be a scene from the Thames Gateway.
The bird is the sea eagle, the fourth-largest eagle in the world and the biggest bird of prey in northern Europe. Its story has been one of the unlikeliest conservation successes of recent times. Pushed to extinction in Britain by sheep farmers and sporting interests in the early years of the 20th century, the return of the sea eagle became a conservation sensation three generations later.
Young birds taken from their nests in Norway were reared and then released into the wild. There are now some 33 breeding pairs of the great bird, all of them in Scotland. And their number is steadily increasing at 12 per cent a year, a sign that the population is already "self-sustaining". In other words, barring some unforeseen catastrophe, the sea eagle is back and here to stay.
Here to stay but, for most of us, a long distance away. In much of the country, it is quicker and cheaper to fly to Majorca than make the journey to sea eagle country on Scotland's remote north-west coast. But there are plans to reintroduce the eagle to more populous parts of Britain. Last December, English Nature even approved a scheme to release them in East Anglia, where the Suffolk coast has been earmarked as the most eagle-friendly area. There are similar plans to rear and release sea eagles in lowland Scotland and in north Wales. The East Anglian project may begin as early as next year.
Has the conservation world gone eagle-crazy? Can you imagine the world's fourth-largest eagle making a living over the rooftops of Ipswich? Or gliding along the Menai Straits, fixing Brunel's railway bridge with its glassy yellow stare? Well, yes, say the eagle's human promoters; believe it or not, they can.
This is not the shy, aloof golden eagle, forever destined to flee from ever-encroaching human habitation. The sea eagle gets on with people quite well - that is, as long as we are not persecuting them. In other parts of the world, they hang around fishing harbours and nest close to villages.
In behaviour, sea eagles are more like their close relative, the American bald eagle (the world's third-largest eagle). This American icon routinely nests on the outskirts of major cities, like Vancouver, even, on occasion, in big trees in parks and gardens.
Professor Ian Newton, a world authority on birds of prey, points out that sea eagles could once be found all around the British coast. "Many parts of the coast still present suitable habitats for these magnificent birds, and, if undisturbed, they could nest in fairly close proximity to people. We can expect them to build their nests in trees and cliffs and to hunt mainly over the shallower estuaries and inland reservoirs."
Often thought of as the most sterile agricultural plain in Britain, East Anglia in fact holds a plentiful year-round food supply for sea eagles.
The marshes and muddy estuaries of Suffolk and Essex are well-stocked with waterfowl and fish, while rabbits are frequent along the drier parts of the coast.
Moreover, the eagle can take its pick of inland lakes, from the Broads to the big reservoirs of the East Midlands; a hundred-mile round flight is nothing to a sea eagle. In Scotland they regularly visit the headwaters of highland rivers to feast on dead and dying salmon. They also appear from nowhere like vultures after a ghillie has "gralloched" (that is, disembowelled) a deer, before carrying it off the hill.
But how will the good folk of East Anglia take to the idea of an eight-foot, flesh-eating bird swooping over their neighbourhood? If Scotland is any guide, they will love it. The B&B establishments of Mull have never had it so good. Eagle watching has become a thriving business in the isles, generating around £1.5m a year. In England, the reintroduction project is estimated to cost between £120,000 and £150,000 a year. So, in business terms, this project could quickly turn a profit.
Sea eagle enthusiasts also point to the popularity of reintroduced red kites and ospreys. And if you think ospreys are impressive, just wait until you spot a sea eagle out on a fishing trip.
In truth, it's all about spectacle and spin. Sea eagles are among the world's least-threatened large birds of prey. Their numbers have quadrupled in Sweden, and they have recolonised Denmark. They are pleased with Poland and having fun in Finland. Introducing them to Suffolk isn't going to make much difference to sea eagle conservation. It is doing very nicely on its own, thank you very much.
But, as English Nature recognises, there's more to this than meets the eye. Messing around with sea eagles, says English Nature, "represents a major opportunity to lead a high profile 'flagship species' project that will highlight the organisation at the forefront of a major biodiversity delivery initiative." In other words, sea eagles get the column inches denied to smaller fry. They star in Springwatch and attract crowds of admirers. They "deliver benefits to people and nature", say English Nature.
And that is what 21st-century style, ultra-democratic nature conservation has to be about. Government-funded heritage bodies are terrified at being seen to be elitist and remote from popular expectations. There's nothing that links people and nature better than a big fierce bird, especially one that is unlikely to cause much serious concern to farmers and game interests.
And there's nothing like an eagle to sum up what it means to be wild and free. Perhaps people will feel soon be feeling a little wilder and freer themselves as they wander the muddy banks of Essex and a vast bird floats by with a flicker of its barn-door wings. Modern Britain may sometimes feel like a land of suburbs and grain prairies. But if the world's fourth-largest eagle can make itself at home here, then may be our environment can't be all that bad.
Numbers:
The European population is about 6,000 pairs, mostly in Scandinavia and Russia. Norway has the most with about 2,000 pairs. In the remote past, Britain may have had almost as many.
Where to see them now:
Sea-eagle spotting is a major attraction for visitors to the isle of Mull. Mid-morning is a good time to catch a glimpse. A customised hide run by the RSPB (bookings can be made by calling 01688 302 038) and three wildlife tour operators on the island improve your chance of a good view.
Posted by Surfbirds at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
June 02, 2006
Mystery shrouds loss of migrant birds
Mystery is surrounding the huge declines of birds that migrate thousands of miles from Africa to Europe each spring.
Scientists fear that their dwindling numbers may be a warning of widespread environmental damage. Climate change, drought and desertification in Africa, and massive pesticide use on African farmland may all be to blame for the declines of once common UK birds such as the Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata, Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe, Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix and European Turtle-dove Streptopelia turtur, a BirdLife Europe-wide study led by the RSPB (BirdLife in the UK) concludes.
At the same time, birds such as the European Roller Coracias garrulus, Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus and Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni have also vanished from regular breeding sites on the continent. All three are now classified as near- or globally threatened.
Roller from the Surfbirds Galleries © Bill Baston
Dr Fiona Sanderson, a Research Biologist at the RSPB and lead author of the study said, "This is incredibly worrying. We knew that some of these long-distance migrants were declining but we were shocked at the extent of their losses."
The research, to be published in the journal Biological Conservation, shows that 54 per cent of the 121 long-distance migrants studied have declined or become extinct in many parts of Europe since 1970. The study also compared migrants and resident birds with similar characteristics, and in almost every case, the migrant fared worse.
The RSPB’s Dr Paul Donald, a co-author of the study, said: "These migrants are highly evolved and some range over a quarter of the planet’s land surface. For species like this to be affected so severely suggests that something pretty serious is going wrong somewhere, which cannot be good news for us. These birds used to be common in Europe but many now are rare or extinct in some regions."
Researchers will now investigate four theories for the loss of migrant birds:
Climate change: air temperatures are changing and warmer springs are causing insects to breed earlier. Resident birds may be surviving winters better and, alongside insects, are adapting more quickly to climate change. Long-distance migrants flying from Africa cannot detect the temperature increase that heralds an early spring in Europe and may arrive too late to use the best nest sites and catch the insect food glut on which their young depend.
Drought and agriculture in the Sahel: the Sahel borders the southern Sahara, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Horn of Africa in the east. It covers 1.6 billion hectares and includes regions of 12 countries. Long term drought and agricultural intensification, including the widespread use of pesticides and fertilisers, has turned much of the Sahel into desert. The area is the first feeding opportunity for migrants crossing the Sahara.
Desertification: the Sahara is now much bigger than it used to be, also because of drought. Migrating birds must fly over this desert in one flight, to reach their winter homes. The birds may be unable to fly further in one go and if so, many will not cope with the longer journey.
Pest control: huge amounts of pesticides are now used to kill locusts and protect crops in Africa, and may be killing birds as well.
However, there is proof that conservation work for threatened migrants can be effective. The RSPB is working with the Ghana Wildlife Society (BirdLife in Ghana) to help reduce trapping of the Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii. The species's population has now stabilised after a 90 per cent decline in the UK between 1969 and 1992. And White Stork Ciconia ciconia populations have risen across western Europe after successful reintroduction schemes.
BirdLife and its European Partners have launched an environmental education campaign to raise awareness of migrants among children throughout Europe and collect more data about the timing of migration. The initiative, Spring Alive, allows people to record their first sightings of migrants online, and then combine them with thousands of others to produce maps showing the advance of spring.
Posted by Surfbirds at 07:18 AM | Comments (0)