Red Kites; Natural or not?

Most people have probably heard about the Red Kite lately, whether it be on the television, the radio or in a newspaper. Many people are extremely fond of the Red Kite although not everyone it seems.

The Red Kite (Milvus milvus), was one of the British Raptors that succumbed to our ruthless persecution. By the year 1900, the Kite was extinct from both Scotland and England, with its only stronghold remaining in central Wales. Despite many people alluding to this bird as our most beautiful we allowed it to be continuously targeted; poisoned or shot by gamekeepers and farmers, whilst having nests purged by egg collectors.

Red Kite, Gigrin Farm, Wales

Since then some of us have come to our senses and multiple re-introduction schemes have been successful. The Welsh population grew, along with numbers released in the Chilterns, North East England, North West England and Scotland.

The concern now is the dramatically increasing numbers and the public opinion. In some areas the Kites are fed daily at purpose designed stations. Tourists, photographers and conservationists are all attracted to see these stunning birds at close quarters – but still wild.

How wild are they though? One of these sites in Wales feeds the birds twice a day, all year round. You’ll be graced with the awe inspiring sight of 600 plus birds dancing on the breeze as you sit comfortably in a hide. I’ve been. I admit it’s a spectacular experience. But this must be having an impact on both the Red Kite life cycle and the local ecosystem.

Firstly, this population must be largely dependent on the feeding stations. The numbers are probably superficially high due to the readily available food. This link to the area and the ‘free’ sustenance will reduce the number of birds moving out into new territories to establish populations elsewhere. This has been noted in other sites i.e. Northern England; release schemes have taken place in Griezdale Forest (Cumbria) and Gateshead (North East). Despite good numbers of birds at both sites, the areas in-between the two are still devoid of Kites. This is not for lack of habitat or prey, but may be due to the food being provided at both release areas.

Red Kites at feeding site

Despite the gluten of food Red Kites are given daily, these bumper populations must be impacting on the ecosystem. Local wildlife must be influenced in some way. For instance, there have been many reports of ground nesting birds disappearing from farmland completely – and for once probably not due to agriculture. Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) chicks are small, vulnerable and easy pickings for any Raptor. What Red Kite would pass on the opportunity to pluck one from an open field? Considering such mass numbers of Kites, I doubt these birds would be able to counteract this with a second clutch.

Voles and mice will also be substantial snacks between set meal times. According to the BTO Breeding Bird Survey, the Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) has declined by 13% (2010). Could the Kites have an impact on Kestrel numbers whose favourite prey is the Short-tailed Vole (Microtus agrestis)? Surely this should be investigated before the ‘beneficial feeding’ continues and the numbers continue to rise.

In addition to my concerns about wildlife, many of the general public are beginning to tire of the ever increasing numbers. Some are looking upon them as a pest, or a worry. Due to lack of knowledge, Kites are accused of carrying off dogs and cats and attacking children. This would almost definitely never happen, but people are obviously unhappy enough to come out with these accusations.

If our Kite numbers were left to fend for themselves the problems would be resolved. With the correct protection from persecution, along with habitat management and monitoring schemes the species would be able to fly the skies naturally. The population booms we have created would fall, diminishing the influence on the surrounding wildlife and easing the mood of the public. Hopefully then, the Kites would expand across the remaining uninhabited territories to give an even coverage across our country.

Red Kite & Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo)

Tags: birds of prey, conservation, england, kestrel, lapwing, raptor, red kite, reintroduction, scotland, wales, wildlife

Day 1 – Bijilo Forest Park

For our first full day in the country we all visited the nearby Forest Park – Bijilo. The park is a protected area of around 126 acres with a huge number of Bird species, along with 2 monkey species, reptiles and a wealth of invertebrates.

We were lucky to have a brilliant guide for the two weeks; Mamadou W Jallow.With his fantastic knowledge of birds, bird calls and all other wildlife of the Gambia, Mamadou made the two weeks even better. So on the 14/04/2012, Mamadou came to the Forest Park with us and pointed out many birds species, telling us information about them, ensuring we got a good glimpse of them and had the opportunity to photograph them.

Over the two weeks, I studiously listed every bird I had seen on each day. I have pages of my notebook filled with my sightings and I’ll try to give the best idea of what we saw out there without boring everyone with mile long lists.

Bijilo Forest Park is a coastal rainforest – although in April (the dry season) its seems far away from a rainforest.

The Forest is also known as the Monkey Park. Tourists are drawn to the area – they have the opportunity to get close to Green Vervet Monkeys (Chlorocebus pygerythrus). Unfortunately, tourists often feed them – this has knock on effect for the other wildlife as the monkey population is un-naturally high. Some bird species are absent now, probably due to egg predation from the Monkeys.

Western Red Colobus Monkeys (Procolobus badius) are also present. The forest is a reallly valuable habitat for this species which is now listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List with a decreasing population.

Starting with my favourite group of birds; the Raptors.

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), Shikra (Accipiter badius) Lizzard Buzzard (Kaupifalco monogrammicus), Black Kite (Milvus migrans), Yellow Billed Black Kite (M. m. migrans),  African Goshawk (Accipiter tachiro), Palm Nut Vulture (Gypohierax angolensis), Hooded Vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus)

Out the these sightings, the one which stands out in my memory is the African Goshawk. It had never been sighted in the Forest Park before. So it was not only a first for me, but for my lecturer (whos been to Gambia more times than I can count). As I watched through my bins, I realised there was a Sun Squirrel (Heliosciurus punctatus) right beside it, apparently not taking predators seriously. A big mistake for the squirrel; as I watched the Goshawk lashed out with its talons and then off it went, no more squirrel!

Some other bird species on my list include;

Blue-bellied Roller (Coracias cyanogaster), Red Billed Hornbill (Tockus erythrorhynchus), African Grey Hornbill (Tockus nasutus), Blue Breasted Kingfisher (Halcyon malimbica), Western Grey Plantain Eater (Crinifer piscato), Snowy Crowned Robin Chat (Cossypha niveicapilla), Yellow Crowned Gonolek (Laniarius barbarus), Paradise Flycatcher (Terpsiphone viridis) and Little Bee Eater (Merops pusillus). Another which stands out was the Black Scrub Robin (Cercotrichas podobe), which was a first for the County, let alone us!

My list for that one day goes on! The forest park is an amazing place and its protection should continue. Not only does it hold a wealth of birds but strange mammals; a friend of mine focused his media project on the Importance of Camera Traps in Conservation and got shots of Civets, Mongoose and more. Follow this link to have a look at his work; http://natureswonders.wordpress.com/2012/04/29/camera-trap-project-2012-bijilo-forest-park-gambia/

Forest Park Entrance

Forest Park - View from the Beach side

Green Vervet Monkey

Western Red Colobus Monkey

African Grey Hornbill

Thanks for reading – more posts from the rest of the trip to come; including Abuko Nature Reserve, Bijol Island and the Tendaba Creek Crawl!

Tags: africa, birding, conservation, gambia, monkeys, wildlife

Project Gambia 2012 – The Beginning

As part of my degree with the University of Cumbria studying a BSc in Animal Conservation Science I had the opportunity to visit the Gambia in West Africa. The two week trip would make up an applied Field Studies Module. Each of us would design a field project whilst out there, present our work and then write a scientific report.

We left Cumbria on Thursday 12th April to travel by coach down to Gatwick airport, arriving at around 6.30am. We then flew straight out to Banjul airport, arriving in the late afternoon. I was completely overwhelmed as soon as I took my first step out of the airplane – the heat was unbelievable and with my first glance up to the sky I find Hooded Vultures (Necrosyrtes monachus) soaring effortlessly above us. This was a massive moment for me, seeing Vultures for the first time in their natural habitat, I was completely moved.

We then travelled by open Land Rovers from the airport to our hotel for the most of our trip. This fairly short journey brought plenty of surprises and was an adventure in its own right. It is different World to what we’re all used to; cows, goats, chickens, dogs and people roam about with no regard for the rushing traffic. Vultures perch on the top of buildings along with Pied Crows (Corvus albus). Small children wave and cheer as we drive by. A Gambian stands by the busy roundabout with a bunch of fish, selling what he can.

Despite being thoroughly exhausted after our travelling, we get settled into our rooms and then head out to Bijilo Beach, this is right opposite our hotel, a short walk down a track. Even on the short stroll along the sand I see my first Palm Nut Vulture (Gypohierax angolensis), Black Kites (Milvus migrans) and more Hooded Vultures. We also see the Gambian version of our familiar Sparrowhawk, a Shikra (Accipiter badius). 

We all manage to make it to Senegambia Road and find a restuarant. After filling up, we troop back to the hotel and I presume everyone of us fell asleep within minutes. We knew the next day we’d be out walking around Bijilo Forest Park and I was full of anticiptation.

More to come from my Gambia trip and there’ll be some images tomorrow too, keep reading!

Gambia, 2012

 

Well, I am about to fly off to Gambia, West Africa. I leave for London on Thursday night to fly on Friday morning along with my fellow conservation, media and forestry students. We are there for two weeks, working on research projects and visiting various reserves, hopefully seeing a lot of wildlife too. I’ve always wanted to go to Africa, and work in Africa; from a very early age I wanted to be a veterinary surgeon and work on a large game reserve. I’m finally getting my first chance to visit the continent and I am very excited.

I have a passion for Raptors and even more so for Vultures. I love them  although most people find them ugly and dirty. I find them interesting, beautiful and charismatic. The trip to Gambia is even more appealing as I will get to see Vultures in the wild for the first time. I am hoping to do my 3rd year dissertation on Vultures and also aim to spend at least 3 months in South Africa next year with an organisation called Vulpro (http://www.vultureconservation.co.za/). Vulpro are pioneering in vulture conservation and rehabilitation in the South of Africa. They care for and release wild injured birds (involving collisions with pylons and electric cables and poisoning). They also monitor multiple colonies of Vultures, specifically the Cape Vulture which is Critically Endangered in Namibia and probably below the population required for breeding. Vulpro also manage vulture restaurants; feeding grounds for vultures. The management of vulture restaurants is important, enabling monitoring of the food supply (much more chance of the food being safe for consumption and free from poisons). They also allow regular sightings of vultures and the capture of the vultures to attach wing tags or satellite transmitters.

Unfortunately, across Asia, Vultures have undergone a massive population decline. This is mainly due to the introduction of NSAIDs (Non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs) for the use on cattle. In West Africa, these drugs have only recently been introduced so the Vultures have not yet been affected in such a dramatic way. I’m hoping with my dissertation to investigate people’s perception of vultures and how education could be used to help prevent the loss of the species.

I’m hoping my research project whilst I’m out in Gambia can involve Vultures, and more specifically, developing a standard surveying method which can be used across the country – this should involve locals, tourists, tour guides, birders etc and help build up a much better monitoring system to help as the introduced NSAIDs take effect.

Whilst I am out there, I will try my best to keep posting about what we all get up too and when I get back I will have much more time to post in more detail.

Some essentials, got so much more to pack!

Tags: africa, birds of prey, conservation, expedition, gambia, persecution, raptors, trip, vultures

Spring!

Daffodils have opened out at home today and I was graced with my first Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly at lunch time today.
We also have a pair of Blue Tits showing some good interest in one of our newly installed bird boxes, fingers crossed they move in!
The sun was shining today and it very much feels like it is actually Spring! Hopefully I’ll have time to get out with the camera tomorrow.

Tags: birds, butterfly, nesting, spring, wildlife

Seeing Red?

Surprisingly, I am on the side of the Conservatives; more so than I am on the side of the other parties. Politics interest me, but at the same time blow me away with the stupidity of a great deal of it.

Red tape is something that everyone will come across whether it be in a business venture, planning to develop your own home, protect wildlife or even collect for a good cause in the street. Despite being young, I myself have come across a great deal of red tape, more often than not in a bad way.

Our country is in a state of disgrace. Small businesses struggle to develop and grow and appear to have no help from the either the government as a whole or from local councils. The phrase ‘mountain out of a mole hill’ comes to mind when rural ventures cannot even put up a road side sign to attract customers without bringing the whole of the council office upon their head. In my opinion, this is the sort of red tape which should be abolished; the red tape which restricts the growth and development of those whom actually have a job, are striving to do better and not taking out of the system.

The government may be beginning to make feeble attempts to remove some of this strangling paperwork but they also seem to be removing it where it surely should not be removed. In this day and age, protecting our resources and the wildlife that are part of the balance we have so upturned must be a priority.

Despite what the Chancellor may think, green and sustainable options are the way forward. We must prevent further disruption to our planet, whilst ensuring that we as humans can still harness what is left. But, it seems that the government are doing quite the opposite. All 278 pieces of environmental legislation have been included in the ‘Red Tape Challenge’.

The first option given under ‘What are we to do with them?’ is ‘Should we scrap them altogether?

Here we are talking about things such as trade in endangered species, fishing provisions, areas of outstanding natural beauty, pollution of our environment and much more. Surely by asking the public to address the question, ‘Should we scrap them?’ leads them to believe that they are not important?

I fully agree with monitoring, changing and simplifying legislation but I find it unbelievable that they could consider demolishing them completely, yet they cannot tackle the small and simple problems which ordinary, hard-working people have to deal with everyday.

Tags: conservation, government, red tape, sustainable, wildlife

Warksburn

Drove back home today from Penrith to Hexham. Almost crashed the car to avoid murdering a stunning Stoat making a dash with his vole for lunch. Also, spotted two Buzzards and two Kestrels on route.

Once back I was pleased to see that our massive number of Siskins are still here. Too many to count, trees are full, along with all four feeding stations. Amusing to see the tiny little females fending the Chaffinches off the peanuts.

I then took our oldest of the five dogs our for a walk around the Warksburn near the village of Stonehaugh. Not a lot about, but the forest was buzzing with Crossbills. The burn seems an ideal place for Dippers, although I didn’t see any today. I stopped all the way around to scan for Red Squirrels, evidence all around showing that they’re there, but none to see.

A Roe Deer hind jumped out in front of me and loped off into the trees on the other side of the track. I then came across some squirrel hair tubes, which I have used before myself for a piece of university. I investigated to find that they aren’t being used, with no sticky blocks inside to trap any hair. I’m not sure if it’s the newly created, lottery funded Red Squirrel Northern England who are responsible for these are not, but I’ll attempt to find out. I’d happily put in my own sticky tape and do it myself.

On reaching the car park, a rabble of Chaffinches and Tits greeted me. Not a wildlife filled afternoon, but what I did see was enjoyable and it was a nice walk.