RSPB Newsletter Color.Indd
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
RSPB Wokingham and Bracknell Local Group Spring newsletter The RSPB is the country’s largest nature conservation charity, inspiring everyone to give nature a home. February 2018 Chairman’s Message – WHAT PRICE NATURE? The winter edition of BTO News, which birds in a coffee estimated plantation at is a quarterly news update from the $310 per hectare, (£223). Great tits predating British Trust for Ornithology, had an caterpillars in a Dutch orchard were found to article written by Tony Juniper which improve the apple harvest by 50%. The value caught my eye, writes Patrick Crowley. provided by animals such as bees, doing the pollination work that underpins a trillion He wrote that ‘the loss of natural habitats dollars’ worth of agricultural sales has been and species are generally regarded as valued at $190 billion per year, (£137.46 regrettable’, and is the ‘price of progress’ or billion). The GDP value derived from fish a ‘necessary cost of achieving economic stocks and associated industries are about growth’. But this presupposes that we $274 billion per year, (£196.79 billion). cannot (or should not?) put a price on our The wider value of the marine and coastal environment. However, there are an systems from storms, taking carbon dioxide increasing number of specialist studies that from the atmosphere and replenishing its reveal the huge economic value being oxygen levels has been put at $21 trillion, destroyed by policies geared to promoting (£15.08 trillion)! 2017 photographic winner economic activity. Those watching Blue Planet 2 recently on Our UK Wildlife competition winner For example, the cost of losing India’s BBC1, will have been horrified by the was select this year from eight vultures has been estimated at $34 billion amount of plastic that is going into our entrants, and again as previous (£24.42 billion), due to the public health costs oceans, and by the destruction of coral reefs years the standard of images were and controlling rabies infections. The annual due to warming of our seas. of an exceptionally high quality. pest-control value provided insectivorous All of this suggests that conservationists (all The first three places were very close of us?) may have to grasp the nettle of trying indeed, but the eventual winner was Raptor persecution to put a monetary value on our wildlife, as Steve Day with his excellent, sharp Every year, the RSPB publishes part of the struggle to change government image of a great crested grebe. Birdcrime – the only centralised source policy decisions the world over. Interestingly We would like to thank all those who of incident data for wild bird crime in some companies such as Unilever and participated and we look forward to the UK. Despite full legal protection, Nestle are beginning to realise that healthy holding again next year's photographic ecosystems will underpin future profit and birds of prey are still being relentlessly competition at our Christmas Social. are changing strategies as a result. Indeed, persecuted throughout our country. some countries, such as Costa Rica and Image taken at Dinton Pastures in Birdcrime 2016 was published on Guyana have worked out that their natural September using Nikon D7100 and 1st November 2017, revealing an insight into systems are the basis of their wealth and are 300mm lens. the reality of problems in the UK. acting to protect them. Alan Moore The latest figures show 81 confirmed incidents of birds of prey persecution in Birdwatching Courses 2016, including trapping, poisoning and starting in April 2018 shooting. See website for further details The highest incidents rates taking place in or contact Patrick Crowley our uplands, over land managed for driven grouse shooting. We know from population Changes to our speaker programme studies, and from data collected by satellite- 8th March 2018: Kerrie Porteous on tagging birds, that raptors are ‘disappearing’ ‘Birding in Madagascar‘ – Kerrie takes and failing to breed on grouse moors – and us on a photographic foray into the © Marianne Eagles 2018 that illegal persecution is largely behind this. rainforests, deserts and coasts of Birdcrime 2016 also highlights North It’s getting warmer? Madagascar seeking out its unique birds Yorkshire with the highest number of these On the 4th November WeBS count I found and exciting wildlife. kinds of crimes. In the last five years, North this little grebe incubating 4 eggs, both 12th April 2018: Lt Col (ret’d) Roger Yorkshire has seen double the number of parents still in full plumage. The pair were Dickey from the Army Ornithological confirmed incidents than the second- still sitting on the 10th December for the Society describing the work with highest county. low-tide count. Unfortunately later windy Ascension Island’s Sooty Tern colony More details can be viewed here on www. weather in the month caused waves to and the research undertaken in the rspb.org.uk/birdcrime wash-over the nest. South Atlantic. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales No: 207076, Scotland No: SC037654 Mrs R’s A to Z of birding in Britain New membership secretary required As you know from the winter ‘D’ is for dipper newsletter, Lynn Mann will be taking over the treasurers role from Tony in the I had a real tussle with my heartstrings trying to summer. She will be going on a days decide whether ‘D’ would be for dipper or for training at RSPB Headquarters, Sandy, to learn more about the role. Dartford warbler. Both qualify for the accolade of As a result we need a replacement Mrs R’s favourite bird, both in equal measure, so membership secretary – whose main role will be to process new members joining the how to decide? Toss a coin –‘D’ is for dipper. group, renewals, keeping the membership spreadsheet and the email contact list up to date. Most indoor meetings we also need Don’t let that stop you finding out more about the Dartford warbler though. someone to look after the membership If you haven’t seen one at all and you’re able to get out and about, have a desk, which doesn’t necessarily have to be look on any of our nearby heaths. Wildmoor Heath at Crowthorne is probably the same person. If you would like to know the closest, but Yateley Common is also a great place to see them too. more please see Lynn at the indoor Unfortunately you have to go a lot further afield to see Dipper. They favour fast- meetings, without any obligation! flowing rocky bottomed rivers, mainly in upland areas but also some parts of SW England. I used to see them regularly when I lived in my caravan in Scotland. Quote from Michael Gove... The River Ericht tumbles downstream to join the River Tay but as it runs through Blairgowrie there are several places where you can watch dippers bobbing up “Ultimately we must ensure that we think and down on the rocks. You could even see them from Tesco’s car park, which about the long term health of our always answered the domestic question, Tesco’s or Co-op? No contest – this is environment, because unless we take steps urban birding at its best! now to arrest environmental damage we will all be the losers. We only have one earth and At a bob rate of up to 60 dips per minute it isn’t hard to see how the bird got the it is our responsibility to hand it on to the name, but what makes the dipper so very special? Also known affectionately as next generation in a better state”. water ouzel, a dipper is a truly amazing bird. Crowned National Bird of Norway in 2000, it is a marvel of biological design and engineering. Able to walk on the river bed to forage for small fish and Lesson to learn invertebrates, a dipper can stay underwater for around 30 seconds at a time. It doesn’t have webbed feet but it does have some remarkable physiological from Harvey adaptations to help it master its environment. Tropical storm Harvey devastated Houston The dipper counteracts the force of the river currents by stretching out its wings Texas in August, flooding large areas of the to push itself forward and remain submerged. Specialised flaps close the nostrils city and causing millions of dollars damage. and they also have an extra eye membrane to protect their eyes yet still enable The increasing frequency of these storms them to see while underwater. They are able to store oxygen in their muscles so could indicate the rise in the earth’s that it’s available to them when they dive and have to stop breathing, and also temperature climate. when they need greater muscular control to counteract the force of the current. But the real culprit for this destruction has Receptors in their blood vessels detect increased levels of carbon dioxide as the been the increase in human urbanisation, bird stops breathing. This triggers a response from the brain to slow the heart through an excessive building programme. rate and cause different blood vessels to constrict or dilate as necessary: Houston’s population is growing by a record- breaking 1 million every ten years. • Peripheral blood vessels will constrict to reduce heat loss, and the digestive system also temporarily shuts down to conserve energy. Land that would traditionally soak up floodwater is being used for housing and • Blood vessels around the heart and the brain dilate so that they can take the urban development. extra oxygen that has been set aside to co-ordinate feeding, walking and functioning underwater.