There, I’ve said it in print. It’s a legacy, I think, of a rural childhood, though it’s also fed by that (very male) desire to catalogue, collect and identify, added to which birds are just, well, amazing. And beautiful. And so varied. And of course they can fly, which is cool, and eat worms, which isn’t cool but is still sort of impressive. Many of the books I’ve owned the longest are about birds, which means they date back to at least the mid-1970s. My favourites are Bird Spotting, written by John Holland and illustrated by Rein Stuurman (my hardback 1973 edition cost a mighty £1.25, so it must have been a birthday present), and The Observer’s Book Of Birds’ Eggs (75p the cost of the 1974 thirteenth reprint). Since then I’ve acquired others such as the Collins Bird Guide and the indispensable Collins Garden Birds.
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IMAGE: The Golden Eagle is not under active conservation management in Great Britain and could be candidates for higher prioritisation. view more
Credit: Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)
Scientists have shown where bird species would exist in the absence of human activity under research that could provide a new approach to setting conservation priorities.
A study by Durham University, UK, in collaboration with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), investigated how human activities such as agriculture, deforestation, and the drainage of wetlands have shaped where bird species are found in Great Britain today.
Researchers used data on the geographical distributions of bird species alongside simulation models to predict where bird species would exist today if the effects of human activities on the landscape were removed.
Bird watching has soared in popularity during the pandemic
Spring 2020, and change is coming. As winter gives way and the sun re-emerges, there’s a heightened sense of wonder in the air. Trees blossom brighter than ever, and birds are noisier.
The pandemic has had a dramatic impact on our relationship with nature. Of course, those blossoms were their usual colour; birds have always chirped. But as millions were forced to stay home they started noticing their surroundings. A walk in the park replaced the rush to the station; a meal in the garden supplanted a visit to the pub.