Visit to Noak Bridge Nature Reserve – 31st January 2021

Date: 31st January 2021

Time: from 9:15 a.m.

Weather: dry, sunny, light wind, 1°C to 3°C

After some very dismal weather lately, it was a beautiful winter’s morning for my visit, albeit very cold with some lingering ground frost and iced up puddles.

On my last visit on 15th January 2021, the high water levels in all the ponds and the flooding in the wooded areas away from the main tracks was very evident. There has been even more rain since and I have never seen the ponds so full and most of them are close to over-topping. 

What a change from the totally dried up “ponds” of last summer ....

Some small parts of the tracks were also flooded but easily negotiable with suitable footwear.

During my visit, I added one further species to my site list for the year: a singing Dunnock which I failed to see.

Otherwise it was a relatively quiet visit although Robins and Great Tits were singing all around the reserve plus there were plenty of calling Blue Tits, a small foraging group of Long-tailed Tits and an occasional singing Wren.

Finally, I saw 2 Grey Squirrels during my visit: 1 in the wooded area just beyond the Spanish Steps and 1 in the wooded area along the track from the storage shed and Puckles Pond.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Blue Tit
Great Tit

Long-tailed Tit

Robin

Wren

Dunnock

Blackbird

Song Thrush

Woodpigeon

Jay

Magpie

Carrion Crow

Herring Gull

Grey Squirrel

Here are some photos from my visit:

Site totals to date (2021 totals in brackets):

Birds = 40  (18)
Mammals = 2  (1)
Butterflies = 18  (0)
Dragonflies and damselflies = 9  (0)
Reptiles = 1  (0)
Amphibians = 0  (0)

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What do Red Foxes eat?

Almost anything 😀

Plus dog biscuits, dog food, peanuts and chicken carcass provided occasionally by yours truly 😀

This is one of many reasons why Red Foxes are one of the most widespread and adaptable mammals on the planet.

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"The need for escape is more urgent and the call of wild places more insistent than ever"

"In the crazy world of today, when the human race seems so little able to control its destiny, when crises and depressions follow each other in mad succession, the need for escape is more urgent and the call of wild places more insistent than ever."

These words were written by Sir Peter Scott (14th September 1909 to 29th August 1989) in his book "Wild Chorus" which was written in 1938.

Sir Peter Scott was a well-known and highly respected British ornithologist, conservationist, painter, naval officer, broadcaster and Olympic sportsman.

He established the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire in 1946 and helped found the World Wide Fund for Nature in 1961, the Panda logo of which he designed. I am a long-standing supporter and member of both.

The words in Sir Peter Scott's book, whilst written in 1938, resonate more than ever years later, not least during the immense tragedy of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since the publication of Sir Peter Scott's book, a considerable amount of research has been undertaken on the physical and mental health benefits of spending time in both "blue spaces" and "green spaces". In fact there is growing evidence that spending time in and around "blue spaces" (by the sea and around lakes, ponds, rivers, canals, marshlands and other wetland areas) has even higher benefits than "green spaces". 

More information on wetlands and well-being can be found here.

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More on the Badger cull

I have previously written about the appalling Badger cull here and here.

On Wednesday of this week, the Government announced that no new mass culls of Badgers will be allowed in England after 2022.

The drive to eradicate bovine TB (bTB) will instead focus on vaccinating Badgers and cattle and tightening restrictions on the movement of cattle. The Environment Secretary, George Eustice, stated progress was being made on a cattle vaccine and it could be available from 2025. He also said that limited Badger culling may be allowed after that in “exceptional circumstances to address any local disease flare-ups”. The Government has invited responses to its consultation on a future strategy on controlling bTB in England.

However, we have been here before with a so-called Government commitment to cease the culling of Badgers.

The independent Godfray review in February 2018 found that the frequent trading of cattle and poor biosecurity on farms was severely hampering efforts to tackle bTB and said it was wrong to blame Badgers as the main cause of the outbreaks. It said it was “highly desirable” to move from culling to vaccination of Badgers.

In March 2020, arising from the Godfray Review, the Government announced that it would commit to non-lethal control of Badgers, phase out culling of Badgers and move towards bTB vaccination in both Badgers and cattle.

Nonetheless, in September 2020, the Government confirmed a huge expansion of the Badger cull to 11 new areas. It went back on its stated commitments and allowed for the issue of licences for the shooting of Badgers in 54 areas in over 28,000 square kilometres of England stretching from Cornwall to Cumbria.

With the latest Government announcement and consultation, the Badger Trust has urged extreme caution over the “mixed messages” in the statement. It is not confident that the Government’s statement signals the end of the Badger cull as reported and neither does it mark the end of blame being placed primarily with Badgers for the ongoing bTB crisis in cattle.

The Badger Trust also noted that on the same day as the Government’s statement, figures on Badgers killed in the 2020 cull were released which added a further 38,642 Badgers to the already horrific total of 102,349 killed since the start of the current cull in 2013. A further 60,000 plus Badgers are expected to be culled in the next 2 years.

This questions the Government’s motivations in releasing very conflicting messages on the same day, with the perceived, yet very questionable, “good news” ahead of the “very bad news”.

Badgers are continuing to pay the ultimate price for a flawed policy based on highly controversial science and when other non-lethal solutions to bTB are available.

The announcement of the 2020 cull figures came shortly after the widely publicised announcement of a new consultation into the Government’s policy to eradicate bTB, the supposed reason for the Badger cull. This was picked up as a “good news” story and reported as a possible “end in sight” message for the cull. The cull figures were then released to little fanfare.

Dawn Varley, acting CEO at the Badger Trust, commented: “The reality of the Badger cull is in that stark number – 38,642 badgers killed – an increase of over 10% on 2019’s figures, and 140,991 deaths overall since this policy was adopted in 2013. And the total will continue to rise, likely going beyond 200,000 by the end of 2022, with a further 2 years already locked into current expansion plans and 4 year licences still to run. The culling policy is inhumane and unnecessary at best, and at worst it’s a smokescreen and ineffective strategy to appease farmers”.

She continued: “We fundamentally challenge the need to kill Badgers, when the science consistently fails to pinpoint them as the major cause of transmission of this terrible disease in cattle. Instead of the new consultation, the Government would do well to put time and effort into bringing a cattle vaccine to market, hopefully once and for all dealing with this terrible problem for animals and farmers alike.”

Stop the cull!

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Government postpones the Environment Bill (again)

If not now, then when? …. If not us, then who?

Yet again our Government is providing clear evidence of its lack of commitment to tackling the climate emergency and the wide range of environmental issues at home such as the improvement of air and water quality, the reduction in waste at home and for export (including plastic), producer responsibilities, the reduction in global deforestation, the protection of wildlife and much more.

This week the Government decided to postpone the Environment Bill after the debate in the House of Commons on Tuesday. Amendments to the planned legislation were debated by MPs on Tuesday but it will not return to the Commons until the next Parliamentary session later in the spring at the earliest.

The proposed legislation should be the biggest shake-up of environmental legislation in decades as the Government seeks to redraw the regulatory framework after the UK’s departure from the EU.

Campaigners are angry at yet a further delay to the Environment Bill that was first launched way back in July 2018, supposedly in readiness for Brexit.

The Government claim that they want to leave nature in a better state than they found it. They state their intention is to set targets but these will not become legally binding until 2027. This is far too late and provides ample opportunity to downgrade the aims, objectives and standards set by the EU and to which the UK was required to support and comply with prior to Brexit.

Green groups have warned that the delay to the Environment Bill could damage the UK’s credibility at key international environmental summits this year, including the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in China in May 2021 and the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021.

Beccy Speight, Chief Executive of the RSPB, said: "The slow, stop-start nature of the Environment Bill's passage does not help us take the rapid action needed to tackle the nature and climate emergency. Our only hope is that this delay is used to improve the Bill. Environmental groups including the RSPB have made a series of measured and sensible improvements, such as legally binding targets to turn the tide on the loss of nature, and these should now be seriously considered. These changes would help us get our own house in order at a time when the Prime Minister wants to show international leadership in the run-up to the key global biodiversity and climate summits later this year."

Craig Bennett, Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trusts, said: "The news of yet more delay is deeply troubling. The Prime Minister said the Bill was 'the huge star of our legislative programme… a lodestar by which we will guide our country towards a cleaner, and greener future'. The fact that the Government plans to end the Parliamentary session over a year on without having delivered the 'star' of the programme will raise questions over its commitment to leaving the environment in a better state for the next generation. Recently, the Prime Minister explicitly committed to taking urgent action to put nature on a path to recovery by 2030 as part of the UN Decade of Action. But over a year into the decade, very little progress has been made."

Rebecca Newsom, Head of Politics at Greenpeace UK, said: “Time and time again the Government tells us that ‘urgent action’ is needed to restore nature, that it will ‘build back greener’ and that we can’t afford to ‘dither and delay’. What then is it playing at by delaying the most important piece of environmental legislation for decades?”

Kierra Box, campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said: “The Government has taken every opportunity to weaken everything about this Bill: from giving Ministers the power to guide our supposedly independent environmental watchdog to defending sweeping loopholes that allow huge swaths of Government to discount the environment when making decisions.”

Ruth Chambers of Greener UK said: “The UK government has consistently claimed environmental leadership but after four years of delays we are still without crucial laws to restore nature and tackle climate change. Ministers must now use this extra time to improve their plans around upholding green laws.”

So come on Government .... stop the "greenwash", prevarication and delays and take some positive and constructive action to improve and protect the environment, nature and wildlife!

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Records from my flat – Blackbird, Red Fox and Green Woodpecker

Late yesterday afternoon as it was beginning to go dark, I was catching up with the previous night’s BBC2 Winterwatch and listening to Chris Packham talking about Starling mimicry, specifically mimicry of a singing Blackbird. As the piece finished and the programme moved on to something else, I could still hear a singing Blackbird! Somewhat confused, I opened my window and there was indeed a singing male Blackbird. He continued to sing for about 15 minutes until it was completely dark.

I previously heard a male Blackbird singing on 29th November 2020 and on 30th November 2020. This was very unusual since Blackbirds don’t normally resume singing until the end of January or early February or even as late as early March. Yesterday's record is more typical.

Much later in the evening, I just happened to look out of the window at round 10:20 p.m. and saw a Red Fox walking slowly around immediately outside the flats. It looked particularly wet which was not surprising given the heavy rain. Unlike my recent records, there was no vocalisation and no sign of any other Red Foxes.

This morning I have had my window open given that it is much warmer than recently and this has enabled me to hear a calling Green Woodpecker on and off for over 2 hours.

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Red Fox in Pound Lane

Late this afternoon, I returned a rental car to Enterprise on the A127 and then began the long walk back home.

As I walked along Pound Lane, a Red Fox ran across the road in front of me and in to my St. Nicholas Church patch site (Pound Lane forms the western boundary).

For several minutes as I continued walking, I could hear excitable "gekkering" so evidently the Red Fox that I saw encountered another.

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Visit to St. Nicholas Church and surrounding areas – 24th January 2021

Date: 24th January 2021

Time: from 8 a.m.

Weather: dry, cloudy, light wind, -2°C to -1°C

As I left home, I heard a calling Great Spotted Woodpecker but failed to see it.

It was very cold this morning which at least served to freeze the usually very wet and muddy track from Larkins Tyres.

This morning’s visit was a strange one. It was generally very quiet with a relatively short species list and very few birds singing or calling. However, there were some noticeable highlights.

With regard to birds, the highlight was 7 fly-over calling Greylag Geese, this species being a further addition to my year site list. It is also a species that I have rarely seen in the past.

As on recent visits, the scrubland and hedges viewed from the Larkins Tyres access track produced c.10 Redwings.

After seeing my first Red Foxes of the year on my last visit, I again saw the animal with the injured right rear leg. After following the track from Larkins Tyres to the wooded clearing, I then took the short track to the edge of the woodland to the fence overlooking the field and scrub at the northern edge of the site. Very quickly, I spotted a Red Fox emerge from the right hand side and slowly walk over to a central hedge. Having reached the central hedge, it settled down, curled up and evidently went to sleep. It was still there when I checked again towards the end of my visit.

As I was walking slowly back up the grassy track from St. Nicholas Lane towards St. Nicholas Church, a Reeves’ Muntjac bolted out of cover right in front of me and quickly disappeared in to the hedge and scrub opposite. This extremely quick sighting was my first of the year. I am not sure who was the most surprised and shocked!

Shortly afterwards, I saw my only Grey Squirrel of my visit. It was a very distinctive animal since over half its tail was missing! Clearly it had had a close encounter with a predator but escaped.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Blue Tit
Great Tit

Long-tailed Tit
Robin 

Redwing
Blackbird
House Sparrow

Starling

Jay
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Woodpigeon

Greylag Goose
Herring Gull

Red Fox

Reeves’ Muntjac
Grey Squirrel

Site totals to date (2021 totals in brackets):

Birds = 51  (23)
Mammals = 6  (3)
Butterflies = 21  (0)
Dragonflies and damselflies = 7  (0)
Reptiles = 1  (0)
Amphibians = 0  (0)

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Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature

Sunrise over SS15

I was presented with this stunning vision from my flat when I got up this morning .... the sun rising on a very cold and frosty SS15.

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Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature

"Diary of a Young Naturalist" by Dara McAnulty

I recently finished reading "Diary of a Young Naturalist" by Dara McAnulty.

Normally I just review a book but in this case it is necessary to initially understand and appreciate the background to this amazing young man who is such an inspiring writer and campaigner.

Dara McAnulty was born in 2004 and he lives with his close-knit family comprising his father, Paul, his mother Róisín, his younger siblings, Lorcan and Bláthnaid plus Rosie, the rescue greyhound, in Castlewellan, a small town in County Down in the south-east of Northern Ireland. 

 

Dara was diagnosed as autistic when he was 5 years old. In fact, Róisín, Lorcan and Bláthnaid are also autistic and only Paul, a conservation scientist, is not.

 

Dara introduces himself in his book by saying: “I’m Dara, a boy, an acorn . . . Our home is crammed with books, skulls, feathers, politics, unbridled debates, tears, laughter and joy …. Not only is our family bound together by blood, we are all autistic, except Dad — he’s the odd one out. Together, we make for an eccentric and chaotic bunch. We are as close as otters and, huddled together, we make our way in the world.”

 

Dara describes himself and his remarkable journey in even more depth in his own blog .... My story so far. Asperger’s and Nature.

Dara wrote from a young age on scraps of paper …. “One of my ways of processing the world is writing things down”. Then social media helped him find a path. Aged 12, he began a blog Naturalist Dara and won runner-up in the BBC Wildlife Magazine Blogger Awards. His blog also won the youth category for the Wildlife Trusts “30 Days Wild 2017” campaign and won conservation group A Focus on Nature “Best blog of 2016” competition.

 

Dara also joined Twitter …. “Twitter opened my world to like-minded people …. It’s given me so many opportunities to connect with people and not feel so isolated.”

 

As Dara continued to write and as he took his first steps in environmental activism, campaigning to end the persecution of birds of prey, his blog gained readers and admirers. In June 2017, he appeared on BBC2 Springwatch and he was befriended by Chris Packham.

Adrian Cooper and Gracie Burnett, the husband and wife team behind tiny independent publisher LittleToller Books, then spotted his writing and began talking to his family about a book.

 

I first became aware of Dara with that BBC2 Springwatch appearance and when he received the BBC Springwatch Unsprung Wildlife Hero Award from Chris Packham.

Last year, I also listened to online streamed interviews with Dara as part of Birdfair, the Cambridge Literary Festival and the Hay Festival.

Most recently, I commented here on some of the UK's young naturalists and campaigners, including Dara, .

In 2019, Dara won the RSPB Medal for his campaigning work against raptor persecution and biodiversity loss (the youngest ever winner) and in 2020 he won the Wainwright Prize for UK nature writing (the youngest author to be shortlisted for the award).

.

Dara’s debut book “Diary of a Young Naturalist” was released in May 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic and health crisis. It details his intense connection to the natural world as an autistic teenager. It chronicles the turning of 14 year old Dara's world, from spring to summer, autumn to winter, on his own patch, at his school, in the wild and in his head. It also documents a significant change and psychological crisis in his life as he and his family move from their home in County Fermanagh to a new life on the other side of Northern Ireland in the shadow of the Mourne Mountains in County Down.

Through a year, Dara spent the seasons closely observing and writing. His writing is vivid, raw, evocative, spiritual and moving and his diary entries about his connection to wildlife and the way he sees the world are articulate, poetic and lyrical. All this despite the fact that a teacher once told Dara that he would never be able to string a paragraph together.

 

It is a book that succeeds in describing the deep and complex pleasure of immersion in nature, written by an author who describes himself as having “the heart of a naturalist, the head of a would-be scientist, and the bones of someone already wearied by the apathy and destruction wielded against the natural world .... The outpourings on these pages express my connection to wildlife, try to explain the way I see the world, and describe how we weather the storms as a family.”.

"Diary of a Young Naturalist" portrays and explores Dara's intense connection to the natural world and his personal perspective as an autistic teenager juggling education, homework, exams and friendships alongside his life as a conservationist and environmental activist.

Dara says: "In writing this book, I have experienced challenges but also felt incredible joy, wonder, curiosity and excitement. In sharing this journey my hope is that people of all generations will not only understand autism a little more but also appreciate a child's eye view on our delicate and changing biosphere."

 

Dara McAnulty is indeed autistic and it would be easy to file his book alongside Chris Packham’s “Fingers in the Sparkle Jar” which gave a vivid insight into his own experience living with Asperger’s syndrome but Dara definitely has his own distinctive style.

 

All of this makes his first book, “Diary of A Young Naturalist”, a nature journal like no other you will read.

 

“Diary of A Young Naturalist” won the annual Wainwright Prize for UK Nature Writing for 2020 …. see here and here and here.

I’m an autistic teenager. I’m not polished. I don’t rehearse (sometimes I wish I did!). I’m raw and real and very very imperfect. But look what can happen, to an ordinary boy who had a story to tell, in all its rage and love. I forgot to say here - but THANK YOU TO MY FAMILY 🙌🙌 pic.twitter.com/IGCS1TCnAl

— Dara McAnulty (@naturalistdara) September 8, 2020

"Diary of a Young Naturalist" is an exceptional book written by an exceptional young man.

Well done Dara on a thoroughly deserved award.

Keep on writing.

Keep on campaigning for wildlife and a better natural world.

You are such an inspiration to young people, the neuro-diverse community and anyone that cares about the environment, nature and wildlife.

💚🦆 🦉🦋🐝🦊🦡🌼 🌳💚

Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature