Timely Advice

Migrants are trickling north in ones and two without any signs of a major arrival to enliven a morning’s birding. Ringing is on hold while cold north westerlies predominate and this week I’ve been busy with half-term duties. 

I’m hoping to go birding Friday and/or Saturday, but in the meantime this week came timely reminders on the reporting of rare breeding birds from Mark Holling of the UK’s Rare Breeding Birds Panel and Mark Thomas of RSPB Investigations,  here.

They suggest a long list of species where news blackouts should apply in circumstances suggestive of breeding or potential breeding unless public viewing has been arranged:

Capercaillie 

Black-throated Diver 

Little Bittern 

Cattle Egret 

Great White Egret 

Purple Heron 

Eurasian Spoonbill 

Red-necked Grebe 

Slavonian Grebe 

Black-necked Grebe 

Honey Buzzard 

White-tailed Eagle 

Peregrine Falcon 

Montagu's Harrier 

Osprey 

Baillon's Crake 

Common Crane 

Black-winged Stilt 

Ruff 

Temminck's Stint 

Purple Sandpiper 

Green Sandpiper 

Wood Sandpiper 

Red-necked Phalarope 

Snowy Owl 

Long-eared Owl 

European Bee-eater 

Wryneck 

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker 

Golden Oriole 

Red-backed Shrike 

Penduline Tit 

Savi's Warbler

Marsh Warbler

Bluethroat 

Peregrine Falcon

Long-eared Owl

Lesser-spotted Woodpecker - Crossley ID Guide Britain & Ireland 

"By nature of their rarity, rare breeding birds are vulnerable to disturbance, but to do so deliberately is against the law. Although some species, particularly raptors, are still persecuted by game managers in some areas, there has been an increasing incidence of disturbance by birdwatchers and especially by bird photographers. Although such disturbance may be accidental, inconsiderate or careless behaviour can lead to birds deserting their nests or losing their eggs or young to predators.” 

The list includes species that are now beginning to make their mark in the UK as new colonisers but also one or two like Lesser-spotted Woodpecker, Long-eared Owl, Peregrine and even the once common Ruff, all subject to relentless chasing around pressure in this area should they appear either in or out of the breeding season. 

If only all bird watchers, including local ones, had taken note of the sensible advice and guidance above, we may have avoided the recent deliberate shooting dead of a Peregrine Falcon at St Anne’s-on-Sea, 15 miles from here and where the birds were subjected to almost daily visits and reportage on Internet social media.

Linking today to Eileen's Saturday Blog.