Local ornithologists are investigating the possibility that Manx shearwaters may be trying to breed near Plémont, after a recent survey suggested once again that some of these birds might have been prospecting the area for nesting opportunities.
Manx shearwaters are shy, burrowing seabirds related to fulmars, petrels and albatrosses that spend most of their life at sea and only land to dig a burrow where they will lay a single white egg. Like that other burrowing seabird the puffin, shearwaters are susceptible to human disturbance and predation by introduced mammals such as rats, cats and dogs. In areas where these predators are found the seabirds favour coastal cliffs that are difficult to access. Even then, they will only visit their nests during the darkest nights, to avoid predation by gulls and other birds.
Their name comes from the Isle of Man, where once a large colony was found on the Calf of Man. The species became extinct there after a shipwreck in the 18th century accidentally introduced rats onto the island. Rat eradication projects have succeeded in restoring the breeding colonies of this seabird not only on Calf of Man but also on Lundy (where the population has grown from 166 pairs in 2001 to over 1,000 in 2008), the Isles of Scilly and Ramsey Island (where its population grew from 850 pairs in 1998 to over 3,800 in 2012).
In the Channel Islands small numbers of Manx shearwaters have, in recent years, nested in Sark and Jethou, although no surveys have been undertaken recently. The closest colonies are in the Isles of Scilly and Brittany. In Jersey, small numbers have been recorded in the vicinity of Plémont almost every summer at the height of the breeding season. Unfortunately it is unclear whether they have actually nested here or are merely non-breeding individuals visiting the area looking for a potential future nest site.
This year’s survey detected more shearwaters (four were over the land after dark) in the area than in any previous years, and local biologists are eager to find out if the species is breeding in Jersey. Further surveys are planned for the next few weeks.
Whilst the birds may not be breeding this year, they might be prospecting the area for a suitable nesting site, and their presence is an encouraging sign. If shearwaters were to establish a small breeding colony in the Jersey it would greatly enhance the ecological value of our coastline and maintain seabird diversity of the Channel Islands. Pairs from this species form life-long monogamous bonds and can live for over 50 years, so it is hoped that a breeding colony would have a long and safe future in the coastal cliffs. Any possible restoration projects at Plémont like those mentioned above aimed to encourage nesting by shearwaters could only be beneficial to puffins as well.
The avid reader amongst you will have noticed a delay in monthly reports of late. There are two very worthy reasons for this. The first is the extraordinary busy schedules of the breeding season and the release project. The second is the sensitivity surrounding both those areas. However, I am now pleased to be able to report on the highs and the lows of April and it was well worth the wait!
Breeding season begins at Durrell
A decision was made at the start of the season to hand-rear the first clutch of eggs from each pair and try double clutching. The parents would then be allowed to rear the second batch. Hopefully we would increase productivity and have a mixture of hand-reared and parent-reared chicks to release into Jersey. Each group would share their knowledge with the other, thus avoiding imprinting in the hand-reareds and making the parent-reareds more willing to co-operate with training.
The first chough egg of the season was laid on 6th April. Nest-cameras had been setup in all three breeding aviaries so keepers could closely monitor progress. And boy did it pay off!
Down in Shep’s Field we had Gwinny with her inexperienced male (Mauve) in SF3 aviary and Tristan with our inexperienced female, Black, in SF2 aviary.
Gwinny’s nest with an egg before the male removed them. Photo by Liz Corry
Despite Gwinny being the first female to start nest building she was the last to lay. In fact she did so only after the others had already laid their clutches. On the 25th keepers noticed that there was an egg in her nest and a second on the 26th. Then suddenly nothing!
Searching back through the recorded footage an interesting relationship unfolded. Bearing in mind these two birds did not choose each other as the other pairs did it was quite warming to observe the male feed Gwinny in the nest.
Closer observations, however, showed a very inquisitive, slightly confused, male. With an egg in the nest, the male would often stand on the edge of the nest peering at it. Gwinny would come back, chatter at him and display until he left the nest. On the morning of the 26th the male edged further into the undefended nest, moved a few twigs, and then carefully removed an egg.
Gwinny laying an egg whilst the male watches with interest. Photo by Liz Corry
He repeated the behaviour an hour later leaving behind an empty nest and a very disheartened female.
In SF2 things were looking more promising. A nest had been built and an egg was laid on the 6th around 23.00. The video showed an exhausted female panting and pushing out the egg, resting in the nest until dawn and then leaving to find food. When she returned three hours later she looked in the nest and spotted the egg. Having never seen an egg before, and maybe not realising that is what she had been pushing out (?), she decided it shouldn’t be in her nest and carefully removed it.
Black removing her first egg from the nest. Photo by Liz Corry
A decision by staff was made to swap the next egg she laid for a dummy egg and artificially incubate the next egg. For some reason the male took offense to the dummy egg and removed it in the evening. In total the female laid five eggs, but with one already destroyed, only four were taken to Durrell’s Bird Department for artificial incubation.
Black was only left with the dummy eggs for a couple of days after the last egg was laid. They were removed by keepers to encourage the pair to double-clutch. They did! On the 26thBlack laid an egg in the morning, but once again destroyed it by the evening. A second egg appeared on the 29th and was taken for artificial incubation. Egg-laying stopped.
Tristan and his female Black fighting in nest-box. Photo by Liz Corry
Without looking back through the footage keepers would never have known that on at least two occasions in the nest-box the pair had been physically fighting. This implies that despite choosing each other as mates there is something amiss. It might just be her inexperience and a second season may be needed before the pair can become harmonious.
The third pair, both established breeders, housed in the display aviary starting laying on 6th April as well. The camera in here is linked straight to a monitor and not recorded so information is based on keepers’ periodic observations. This pair followed the plan of laying a clutch of five eggs which could then be exchanged for dummy eggs after a period of parental incubation. From observations it appeared that Issy (female) did not really sit tight on the eggs when it came time (they incubate from third or fourth egg). When keepers’ observed from outside of the aviary she would leave the nest every time the public went past. This problem needs to be addressed by next season.
Issy also went on to produce a second set of eggs two weeks after the dummy eggs were taken away. Unfortunately, for some reason she did not take to these eggs. The first was kicked out, the next two were taken for artificial incubation, but she kicked out the dummy eggs. There was an additional problem. Two days after the first egg of the second clutch was laid Arthur (her mate) escaped. He was seen in the morning on the other side of the netting. Presumably he left through one of the holes in the netting. These cannot be fixed by staff without scaffolding or a cherry picker and during the breeding season neither can be used.
Arthur paid a visit to the other choughs down in Shep’s Field before flying over the Orang-utan House and out of sight by 10:30. Appeals to the public resulted in a positive sighting at Gorey Castle four days later and then two days later at Les Platons. There have been a handful of reports since but all describing blackbirds or (we think) in one case a jay. We have tried to follow up as many as possible. In reality it will be very hard to recapture Arthur unless he is weak or injured. If he is located and remains in that area it might be possible to supplementarily feed him and later, if the situation allows, trap him. For now we have to hope that Arthur has the means to survive and may well be the first breeding chough to live in Jersey.
Artificial incubation of chough eggs
Four of the eggs set in the incubator. Photo by Liz Corry
In 2012 Durrell attempted to incubate two eggs from an abandoned nest. These unfortunately failed early on. So you can imagine how nervous keepers were this time round with nine eggs to incubate followed by another three from the second clutches. With advice from Paradise Park, who have achieved success in the past, and using our existing knowledge with other species we managed to hatch five eggs. A lot has been learnt from the experience and will be used next season to increase this success rate.
All eggs were weighed and candled on a daily basis to monitor development. Egg weight-loss graphs were plotted so incubation parameters could be altered in accordance to development. Eggs such as these are expected to lose 15% of their original weight by the time of hatch.
Eggs are candled and weighed daily to monitor development. Photo by Liz Corry
Our eggs all appeared too wet and were not losing enough weight so humidity was reduced dramatically. For some eggs it was too late or made no difference. Some embryos died early on, two eggs reached the chipping stage but died before hatching. One chick hatched but had developed an abnormality with its yolk-sac which led very swiftly to death.
Post mortems were carried out on eggs and chick to try and underpin the cause(s). No evidence of bacterial infections was found. Most signs pointed to failings with the environmental conditions in the egg.
The first egg hatched on 30th April with the second close behind. Photo by Liz Corry
For those eggs that were successful in hatching there will be more to read in May’s report. Not simply to keep you hanging on bated breath, but because the first egg only hatched on 30th April.
First release of 2014
The choughs at Sorel have spent the last few months riding out the winter gales in the aviary. All hatches firmly battened down. With conditions favourable and all health checks passed it was time to restart the releases. On 9th April the hatches were opened and the birds allowed to fly free. The intention was to give them thirty minutes of playtime before calling them back in for food. What happened in those thirty minutes was exhilarating, poetic, and simply nerve-wracking for both chough and their team.
The group of eight choughs took to the air, rising higher and higher, swooping left, swooping right. Sometimes in a 3, 3, 2 formation, at others a 2, 2, 4, and 5, 1, 2. It was like watching a red arrows display only without the trailing smoke (in discussion for next year’s releases). All the time they stayed around the neighbouring fields, never really crossing over Mourier Valley, never out of sight to the east and only two or three fields inland. Bearing in mind at the height they were reaching they would be able to see Jersey in its entirety.
Day 1 of the 2014 release and the choughs fly higher than ever before (look for two black dots to the left of the vapour trail). Photo by Liz Corry
As the stop-clock ticked down and their keeper was about to call them back for dinner, the inevitable happened. They headed for the quarry. Interestingly when the keeper blew the whistle one bird, Red, headed back to the aviary. She did the same thing last year after her original mate died in the quarry. She has the desire to explore, but maybe it is overcome by her knowledge of easy food and protection at the aviary.
Red obediently returning to the aviary. Photo by Liz Corry
We had thought she would stick with her new partner, Yellow, the older male who arrived in December. With hindsight and all the ingredients of your favourite soap opera we should have realised otherwise. Whilst in the aviary Yellow had been seen courting Red and they would often feed and roost together. As hormones kicked in for the breeding season Yellow started making advances on Mauve. Mauve’s partner, Green, naturally objected to this and on a few occasions the team had witnessed fights between the two males. Red, whilst still keen on Yellow, was starting to get the cold shoulder.
Yellow, the oldest in the group, before he disappeared on Day 1 of release. Photo by Liz Corry
It is hard to tell who is who when they are flying high above your heads, but we know that Yellow parted ways after the thirty-minute mark on the first day of release. When the others flew to the quarry, Yellow headed inland. Rather naively we thought he was heading the long way round to the quarry, but after a relatively short time of radio tracking to account for the other six birds we had lost his signal completely. Not only had he ditched Red but the entire group. We expected from previous behaviour that the two older males would not want to hang out together given the choice, but we didn’t expect a new arrival to leave the entire group.
To further add to the confusion only five choughs were visible in the quarry yet six signals were being picked up. After many questions, equipment testing, and stroking of chins it became clear that the sixth signal was not a true signal. Instead it was a combination of electrical interference (e.g. electric fences surrounding horse paddocks) and picking up the tail-end of another bird’s frequency. Much like when you tune in a transistor radio and can hear two stations competing. This missing bird was Cerise a 2013 female brought to Jersey in December. We think she might have followed Yellow.
By the end of the first day there was one chough in the aviary, five roosting in the quarry, and two missing. It is worth noting that the birds in the quarry visited the exact same sites as they did last year and did not deviate. They returned to the aviary over the course of the next two days and were locked back inside as they arrived. Releases were put on hold until we had a better idea of where the missing birds were.
The new students Pierre and Adam were put to the test straight away. The team covered many miles on foot and even more by car in an attempt to radio search the island in a short a time as possible. After two days of hearing nothing but white noise it was an tremendous feeling to be able to hear the beep beep of a transmitter signal once again.
It was Yellow’s signal, detected at Noirmont Point but coming from the St Aubin side. This is an area 9.5km south of the release site. In fact it is quite close to the last reported breeding site for choughs back at the start of the 20th Century. The cliffs to the west of the point seem favourable for a roosting chough and Noirmont has a large area of suitable feeding ground. However, these days it is a popular tourist and recreational area so disturbance is frequent. What didn’t quite fit was the exact location of the transmitter; low sandy cliffs and a forested area above them. Visual searches were hampered by the tides and when access was finally gained the signal had disappeared. No sight or sound of Yellow has been detected since. Nothing at all has been heard from Cerise.
Within the first few days of their disappearance two other search methods were adopted based on previous studies. Lee Durrell kindly allowed the use of her plane piloted by Colin Stevenson. Whilst the choughs in the aviary could be detected from the air no other signals were picked up. This method has its flaws. It is very dependent on the bird being out in the open. It is also easy to miss something as you can’t tell the pilot to “stop, back up, I think I heard something”.
A search from the sea was also attempted. Peter Haworth of New Era Vets loaned his boat and services to search the north coast. Signals from the Sorel choughs could be detected, but no others. Time constraints meant that further boat searches have not been attempted.
The releases of the six remaining choughs continued on 15th April. At first the birds were behaving as individuals. The pair Green and Mauve would fly off to the quarry in search of the buildings. The lone females, Black, Blue, and Red would follow but head to the grassy areas in the quarry. They would return to the aviary but often Black and Blue would look to Green and Mauve for guidance as to when to do this. White, the 2013 male brought over in December, did the opposite.
For the first week of releases White wouldn’t leave. Photo by Liz Corry
His behaviour was typical of a scared bird that wanted to be with other choughs but didn’t want to leave the security if the aviary. His first day of release on the 9th saw him return in the evening to the cliffs by the aviary. He spotted the team but was too anxious to take food and went back to the quarry to roost with the others. He returned the next morning and went straight into the aviary. For the next week or so any time the hatches were opened he would fly to them with the others but never actually leave. He would fly straight back to the other end and call loudly. Almost as if he was shouting “Where are you going? Why can’t we just stay here where the food is? I don’t like wide open spaces. Come back”.
White searching for the others at sunset on Day 1 of release. Photo by Liz Corry
Finally he caved-in to the pressure of being left alone each day and joined the group. By this point the other five had started flying and feeding together. The team found it difficult sticking to their original plan of calling birds back and locking them in as they arrived. For starters this meant waiting around all hours from dawn until dusk. We were also faced with the intelligence of the pair. Whilst they knew that returning to the aviary meant food, it also meant they would be locked in and their freedom to roam the quarry restricted. At the first sign of one of us approaching the aviary they would bolt straight out and off to the quarry. Unless they were desperately hungry or one had been caught and the other wanted to be with it. April was a hectic time for all involved. Yet all signs were positive that the release process was heading in the right direction and choughs were once again flying free in Jersey.
A new study has found that anthropogenic electromagnetic noise, emitted everywhere that we use electronic devices, has a negative impact on birds’ magnetic compasses. The work, which used robins as a study species at the University of Oldenburg, found that the birds could not use their compass when exposed to electromagnetic noise but, when shielded from it, soon regained their navigational abilities. The ‘noise’ is produced by equipment plugged into mains electricity supplies and through AM radio signals.
Prof Henrik Mouritsen (University of Oldenburg) said “They (birds) have their different compasses: a star compass, a sun compass and a magnetic compass”. It is thought that a built-in magnetic compass, which senses the Earth’s magnetic field, helps them to find their way. Prof Mouritsen told BBC News he stumbled across the fact that low frequency waves could be interfering with this by accident while studying European robins.
“The basic experiment we do in bird navigation research is that we put birds into an orientation cage,” he explained. “They are so eager to migrate, that they will jump in the direction in which they want to fly, and if you turn a static magnetic field in the horizontal plane they will start to jump in a different direction.
“That experiment has worked for more than 40 years in a number of locations. But here in Oldenburg, we couldn’t get that basic experiment to work until one day we got the idea to screen these huts on the inside with aluminium plates so the electromagnetic noise was reduced about 100 times.
“And suddenly the birds started to orientate.”
Over the course of the next seven years, he and his team carried out numerous experiments to look at how the weak electromagnetic field affected the behaviour of the robins. In essence, he found that birds exposed to electromagnetic “noise” between 50 kHz and 5 MHz lost all sense of direction. But when the field was blocked out, they found their bearings again.
Prof Mouritsen said that migratory birds flying over towns and cities, where there are more homes and businesses that use electrical devices, would be most affected – and they would probably resort to back-up navigational systems.
“The birds wouldn’t be completely lost because they have three different compasses: a star compass, a sun compass and a magnetic compass, and they work independently of each other. As long as it is clear they should be fine with their sun compass or star compass.”
These findings are particularly fascinating when considering the vagrancy of migratory birds. While the impact of electromagnetic noise is unlikely to be a primary cause of vagrancy, its potential to disrupt migrating birds — whether lost or following a more typical path — is evident if and when they pass through populated areas, where use of electronic devices is high, and there can be no doubt of its potential as a contributing factor. Further study on other migratory species would be useful in establishing the true extent of such problems.
Fishing vessels have a far bigger ecological footprint than previously thought, according to research which tracked the movement and behaviour of seabirds using GPS devices.
Scientists discovered that northern gannets change their behaviour in response to the presence of large vessels such as trawlers, suggesting each boat can significantly influence the distribution and foraging patterns of these and other marine predators.
Northern gannets are known to feed on discards from fishing vessels as well as diving for fish, and their population has been steadily increasing for decades. Studies have confirmed their use of fisheries waste by showing that the birds are eating fish that have come from far deeper than they are able to dive.
Scientists at the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at the University of Exeter and the Coastal & Marine Centre at University College Cork analysed GPS tracking data from 74 gannets from six breeding colonies around Ireland, and combined these with similar GPS tracking data from fishing vessels.
The information gathered revealed that gannet behaviour is influenced by fishing vessels at distances of up to 11km – the first estimate of the distance at which vessels start to affect these birds’ behaviour.
Dr Thomas Bodey of the University of Exeter, who led the study, said: “Our work suggests each fishing vessel has a substantial footprint, with the behaviour of seabirds affected within a 22km diameter circle surrounding it, much larger than we expected.”
By studying bird-boat interactions, the team also discovered that individual gannets can adjust their behaviour depending on whether the vessel is actively fishing or not, and also based on the type of fishing gear carried.
Dr Mark Jessopp of the Coastal & Marine Centre at University College Cork, a co-author of the work, added: “The fact that birds responded differently to boats depending on whether they were fishing or not, and the type of gear they were carrying, indicates just how finely attuned these animals are to the opportunities humans can provide”.
The findings help to understand the spatial influence of fisheries, which is critical to marine planning and policy – including shipping, offshore development, bycatch and fisheries themselves.
Co-author Professor Stuart Bearhop, also of the University of Exeter said: “We know that seabirds are facing many impacts within the marine environment, and we have tended to think that interactions with fishing boats were a localised phenomenon. Our work indicates that the scale of impact on these top predator’s behaviour is much broader.”
Gannets are the UK’s largest seabird, foraging up to 500 km from their colonies. They forage almost exclusively during daylight hours, with birds resting on the sea surface at night. They are visual foragers with no external nostrils and relatively small olfactory bulbs.
All fishing boats greater than 15 m in length must carry a GPS transmitter as part of the European Union Vessel Monitoring System.
The National Trust for Jersey announced on 31st May that it has entered into an option agreement with Plémont Estates Limited to purchase the former holiday camp at Plémont for the sum of £7.15 million.
The Trust is in the process of confirming pledges amounting to just over £3.5 million, and is also seeking the support of the States of Jersey to provide a ‘pound for pound’ grant to match the generosity of its supporters .
In this respect, Senator Sir Philip Bailhache will be lodging a proposition early next week requesting States members to agree to a one-off grant to the National Trust for Jersey to assist them in securing the area for the benefit of the Island and the people of Jersey. It is envisaged the proposition will be debated during the week commencing 1st July. If the States decides to support the Trust’s request, it is hoped that demolition works will commence later in the Autumn, with the whole site being cleared during 2015.
Celia Jeune, President of The National Trust for Jersey, stated:
“We are delighted that Plémont Estates Limited has agreed to sell this important coastal site to the National Trust for Jersey so that we may secure its future permanently.
“Over the last 18 months, we have actively sought to address the valid concerns raised by States Members in the debate of December 2012 by agreeing a fixed figure with the owners of the site and dispensing with the need for compulsory purchase. We sincerely hope that States Members will now be able to fully support our on-going efforts to help restore a significant part of our coastline forever and for everyone.
“Finally, I would like to add that the National Trust is enormously grateful to Carey Olsen for helping facilitate this agreement, as well as the owners of Plémont Estates Limited for negotiating with us to secure this outcome.”
The coastline at Plémont is very important for a great variety of bird and other animal and plant species. Both peregrine and raven nest along that stretch of cliff as do Atlantic puffin, razorbill, fulmar and gulls. Storm petrel and Manx shearwater have an enigmatic presence here too. Possibly Jersey’s largest (but declining) colony of swifts nests on the headland and kestrel, rock and meadow pipit, common whitethroat, Dartford warbler and linnet nest on the clifftops. Stonechat nested here until recently and may come back with restoration.
UPDATE At the beginning of July Jersey politicians voted to support the above plan. National Trust for Jersey responded:
THANK YOU AGAIN…….Words cannot express our gratitude to all Islanders who have helped us to secure the future of Plémont. Without your support it would simply not have happened. From those who signed our petition forms, joined hands along St Ouen’s Bay, completed our Love Plémont cards, emailed and wrote to States members, donated and pledged money, wrote letters to the JEP, joined us in the Royal Square this morning, and made passionate speeches in the States Chamber, we are enormously grateful for your vision and determination…Plémont is indeed now safeguarded forever and for everyone
House martins, like their close relative the swallow, return each spring to their familiar mud nests, typically built onto our own homes and offices. Like the swallow, their return each year cheers us up as it reminds us that summer is coming. It is, therefore, somewhat surprising then that, for a bird that is so familiar to us, we know virtually nothing about what happens to house martins after they leave Jersey.
Recoveries of ringed birds from across France and on into North Africa have revealed a migration route south but we have no idea what happens to these birds once they cross the Sahara. House martins are rarely seen in Africa during our winter. There has only been one record of a ringed house martin from south of the Sahara, despite the many thousands of individuals to be fitted with rings in Britain each year (see tracking house martins).
It has been suggested that they remain on the wing and feed above the canopy of the equatorial rainforest, out of sight of human eyes.
However, what we do know is that house martin population in the UK may have declined by 15% over the last decade and may have fallen by as much as two-thirds longer term. In Jersey the house martin was (in 2011) Amber listed as it has shown a moderate breeding population decline (see report here). Since 2011 numbers have continued to decline alarmingly suggesting that it might be Red listed (severe decline in the Jersey breeding population size, of more than 50% over 20 years) when the list is next revised.
It is not clear how many house martins there are in Jersey as it has been difficult to survey them. What we can do is watch closely their colonies and see how they are faring each year and from year to year. If you have a colony on your house or other buildings and would like to record the birds please get in touch with Birds On The Edge by e-mail birdsote@gmail.com The BTO will be carrying testing survey techniques this year before starting a wider survey of house martins in the British Isles in 2015. We will feed Jersey’s results from this year into the national survey.
House martins and their nests are fully protected in Jersey. Please download guidelines here.
In Jersey we are rightly excited by the colonisation and spread of marsh harriers. First breeding on the Island in 2002 they have become a well-loved and much photographed member of our bird fauna. Marsh harrier numbers have increased right across the UK while, sadly, and totally unrelated to their relative’s success, the smaller hen harrier has undergone alarming declines.
Hen harriers have never been very common in the Channel Islands but small numbers have been seen each year as birds pass through on migration or come to spend the winter here.
The cause of the declines may be obvious. Of all the UK’s birds of prey, the hen harrier is the most intensively persecuted. Once predating free-range fowl, earning its common name, its effect on the number of grouse available to shoot is the cause of modern conflict and threatens its survival in some parts of the UK, particularly on the driven grouse moors of England and Scotland.
The hen harrier lives in open areas with low vegetation. In the breeding season UK birds are to be found on the upland heather moorlands of Wales, Northern England, N Ireland and Scotland (as well as the Isle of Man). In winter they move to lowland farmland, heathland, coastal marshes, fenland and river valleys. Those found in eastern and south-east England are probably mostly visitors from mainland Europe. Birds in the Channel Islands may be from the UK or from Europe.
Once present throughout the UK, hen harriers fell from grace with the rise of driven grouse shooting in the 19th century.
A ground-nesting bird, hen harriers mainly eat small birds and mammals like meadow pipits and field voles, though they will occasionally take red grouse chicks. This made them unpopular with Victorian gamekeepers and estate managers, who were keen to get rid of any predators that might reduce the number of grouse available for shooting.
The resulting persecution, coupled with lowland habitat loss, drove breeding hen harriers to extinction on mainland Britain by 1900.
Recolonisation and return to the brink
Land-use changes following World War II and new wildlife protection laws helped hen harriers to naturally re-colonise England by 1958, but they now face an uncertain future yet again. A 2011 UK Government-commissioned report, the Hen Harrier Conservation Framework (download here), shows that although there is enough suitable habitat for over 320 breeding pairs in England, ongoing illegal killing and disturbance continue to keep hen harrier numbers perilously low.
The situation is so critical that in 2011, there were only four successful breeding attempts in the whole of England, all on a single estate in the Forest of Bowland owned by the water company, United Utilities and co-managed by the RSPB.
It is time to redress the balance and save the hen harrier in the UK.
Skydancer
Hen harriers are graceful birds, best known for their aerobatic spring courtship displays, known as ‘skydancing’, and the spectacular passing of food from males to females while in flight.
Skydancer is a four-year RSPB project – running from October 2011 to October 2015 – with the aim of protecting and promoting the conservation of hen harriers across their remaining breeding stronghold in northern England. Visit the project’s website here and follow them on Twitter at @RSPB_Skydancer
Throughout this project the RSPB will be working hard to:
•safeguard hen harriers and their habitat with nest protection schemes
•continue to work closely with landowners, managers and game organisations to find solutions to conflict, so that hen harriers and grouse moors can thrive alongside one another
•Work with local communities to educate and enthuse them about hen harriers.
Hen Harrier Day
The concept of Hen Harrier Day was inspired last year by Alan Tilmouth basically for conservationists to take back the so-called ‘Glorious 12th’ (the opening of the grouse- shooting season) and celebrate this beautiful bird that has virtually been ‘cleansed’ from the grouse moors of northern England (and most grouse moors in Scotland, too).
Last year, Hen Harrier Day was celebrated by hundreds of people using the #HenHarrier hash tag on Twitter and other social media. This year, the campaign is going to be even more visible with a series of planned public protests in the northern uplands.
The newly-formed campaign group Birders Against Wildlife Crime (BAWC – of whom Alan Tilmouth is a founding member) has joined forces with Mark Avery to organise four legal, peaceful and media-friendly public protests in four counties where grouse-shooting is a dominant force: Derbyshire, Yorkshire, Cumbria and Northumberland (see news here).
The date for the protests has been set as Sunday 10th August 2014. This date was chosen in preference to the inglorious 12th (which falls on a Tues this year) to enable more people to attend.
According to Mark Avery, so far over 200 people have emailed to say they’d like to be involved. This is a fantastic opportunity to make a lot of noise about a subject that has received relatively little media attention in relation to the severity of the situation.
Enough is enough – it’s time to fight back.
For further information, check out the Hen Harrier Day campaign on the BAWC website here
Many thanks to Blánaid Denman, Project Officer, Skydancer and Charlie Moores, Birders Against Wildlife Crime, for their kind help in compiling this entry.
It is timely that, as we in the Channel Islands, with our friends at Swift Conservation, become increasingly concerned about our breeding swifts (see post here); there is a UK-based survey to try to determine numbers of these birds in the British Isles.
Swifts are fantastic birds, just look at these details of their annual migrations from the BTO. They are amongst the last spring migrants to arrive, but the first to leave. You’ve probably seen them speeding through the air, screaming their heads off, or swooping into crevices in buildings.
But, as we have seen locally, they’re in trouble – they are birds of Conservation Concern. Their numbers have declined dramatically in the past 10 years; we’re not sure why, but one likely reason is that their nest sites are being destroyed.
The RSPB is working with swift groups around the UK and your information will help our knowledge of swifts so that more nest sites can be provided and protected. Tell us where you see swifts and help us to help them. The RSPB will make sure that Channel Islands records and provided for our use in future.
What to do
The RSPB would like to find out where swifts are seen and where they’re nesting. Look out for low-level screaming groups of swifts (that means they’re breeding nearby) or where you’ve seen swifts nesting – perhaps entering a roof or hole in a building (if you can see the nest, it’s not a swift). The best time to look is around dusk on a warm, still evening, or early morning.
You don’t need to report sightings of swifts that are either very high in the sky, feeding over water bodies or away from villages, towns and cities. These birds could have travelled some distance and may not be local breeding birds (our birds may commute to France daily).
You can enter as many records as you like at different times from anywhere across the UK. You can even record those sightings you remember from the past. The more records the better. If you already have an account for the RSPB’s online community you can sign in and enter your swift sightings using those details when the survey is open. If not, don’t worry, you can still submit your sightings.
I’ve done this before
The National Swift Inventory will only work if information is kept up to date. You may have submitted records in previous years, but it is important to know if birds are still returning to the same areas and using the nests you recorded them at before. Please submit the latest information relating to the site, giving either numbers of screaming birds and/or nests. This helps us know if the birds are returning, if the colony is stable and if the site still in use.
Identifying swifts
Swifts are often confused with similar hirundines (swallow, house and sand martin). This helpful identification video from the BTO show’s the differences:
The Department of the Environment is asking the public to record Japanese knotweed.
This can be done by using a free mobile phone app to help determine the distribution of the invasive plant Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) or records can be sent directly to David Tipping d.tipping@gov.je
PlantTracker, a free app developed by the UK Environment Agency and the University of Bristol, allows Islanders to record and submit geo-located photos of suspect plants directly to the Department of the Environment. These images would then be verified using the photo or a site visit, and subsequent positive records could be plotted on a map. PlantTracker app can be downloaded at no charge from the iTunes App Store or Google Play and you can begin using it as soon as possible. While PlantTracker features 14 invasive plant species, the Department is asking Jersey users to restrict their recordings to knotweed. Guidance on identifying knotweed and on how to submit pictures is included in the app.
If you are on site and come across Japanese knotweed record it using the Plant Tracker app… Here
The Department is also issuing a general reminder to the public that knotweed spreads via its roots and from fragments of the plant, so strimming or flailing only increases the problem. Cutting, hand-pulling and herbicides are the most effective methods of eradication. A leaflet Japanese knotweed: management advice can be downloaded here
In recent weeks we have asked people to look out for and report sightings of chough here in Jersey. Reports will help us understand better the activities of the released Sorel birds. It might also help us locate two birds that have wandered from the group. We lost signals for two birds four weeks ago. One was found at Noirmont Manor, but then disappeared again.
However, our desire to hear of sightings has now taken on a new impetus. On Wednesday (30th April) one of the breeding male choughs at the Wildlife Park (Arthur) got out of his aviary and disappeared.
On Saturday (3rd May) and Wednesday we received reports of Arthur. He was in Gorey Castle and then in the Les Platons area. The quicker people report sightings the sooner the team can catch up with the birds to check on their welfare (and exact identification). Please report any sightings of the choughs to birdsote@gmail.com or through here.
By Cris Sellarés
Their name comes from the Isle of Man, where once a large colony was found on the Calf of Man. The species became extinct there after a shipwreck in the 18th century accidentally introduced rats onto the island. Rat eradication projects have succeeded in restoring the breeding colonies of this seabird not only on Calf of Man but also on Lundy (where the population has grown from 166 pairs in 2001 to over 1,000 in 2008), the Isles of Scilly and Ramsey Island (where its population grew from 850 pairs in 1998 to over 3,800 in 2012).
This year’s survey detected more shearwaters (four were over the land after dark) in the area than in any previous years, and local biologists are eager to find out if the species is breeding in Jersey. Further surveys are planned for the next few weeks.
