Buzzards - to be persecuted again?

I could hardly believe what I heard on the radio this morning - DEFRA to  spend hundreds of thousands of pounds to research ways of controlling the number of buzzards to protect pheasants. Under consideration, making it legal to destroy buzzard nests and trapping birds to keep in captivity. All this despite the fact that the buzzard is protected native species while the pheasant is introduced and is farmed for shooting.

The population of buzzards in the UK has only just recovered from the lows of  50 years ago, when they were persecuted by gamekeepers and suffered the effects of DDT. Now it appears that the shooting lobby has convinced DEFRA that once again the buzzard has to be controlled so that fewer pheasants are taken.

Given that commercial shoots put down more than 40 million pheasant poults of birds each summer, a few thousand lost to the buzzard is hardly going to have that much of an impact.  And what about the other predators - foxes, badgers, kites, sparrowhawks - are they to be controlled too? No wonder the RSPB and other wildlife charities are up in arms.

Chris Packham Quote: "In these times do we want to be spending £400,000 battering buzzards? The money would be better spent helping the remnants of English hen harriers I'd say." Hear hear

 

 

Photos - top buzzard on post (Pete Cairns), buzzard on deer carcass (Pete Cairns), close up of head (Chinch Gryniewicz), buzzard nest (Frank Blackburn)

Dogfood bags and seaweed harvesting

For several years now I have found large empty dog food bags on a local beach and, until this weekend, I could never explain why or how they got there. On Friday there was a large truck parked near the start of the walking trail that leads to the Sardinia Bay Marine Reserve in the village of Schoenmakerskop near Port Elizabeth. I recognised the truck and knew that it belongs to the firm that has the concession to harvest seaweed along the east coast of South Africa. I also know that they can collect seaweed anywhere along the coast as long as it is not in a marine protected environment. Seaweed harvesting is a good thing as the seaweeds grow back quickly and it counts as an environmentally sustainable practice. Seeing as I had my cameras I thought I might photograph the illegal harvesting in the reserve and use it to stop the practice. Seaweed harvesting is not easy and the workers work at low tide getting wet and working on what is very rough terrain. Of course once you have harvested the seaweed you need to get it back to the truck and the workers have to carry the heavy wet bags back to the truck. It was while I was examining these images that I finally understood the large empty dog food bags on the beach. The locals are used to carrying heavy loads on their heads like firewood – it is a cultural practice and something that is often seen. Firewood might be heavy but at least it does not drip salt water so it makes sense to put the heavy wet bags of seaweed that have to be carried on the head in another bag that does not leak and continually shower you with water. Dog food bags are strong and watertight and are perfect for the job. Now I just need to find out why empty dog food bags are used (there are so many different bags out there) and how they obtain them. (The good news is that today the seaweed harvesting was not in the reserve – it helps to raise concerns and sometimes you get a good response!)

Cape Verde Islands

I  have just returned from the Cape Verde Islands which are about to become the next big thing. Life here has in places not changed in centuries and much of the traditional use of cane production still survives from small local farms.

The cane is used for rush mats, roofing materials, firewood and producing the traditionl rum based drink grogue in traditional family distilleries as above above.

Fortunately cruise ships can't get to the smaller islands as their draft is to large but expedition cruise ships with their zodiacs and small passenger numbers are discovering the islands and hopefully will add extra income without damaging their lives. These companies I am glad to say also have an ethical outlook on the local population, wildlife  and landscape.

Leap year specials

A few images to celebrate 29 February   'leap day'

Breaching humpback and mountain lion  Phillip Colla
Polar bear Steve Kazlowski
Tiger Satyendra Tiwari
Gliding Frog by Robert Pickett

The Hazards of Volunteering at a Bird Rescue Centre

The volunteers at the South African Marine Rehabilitation and Education Centre in Port Elizabeth on the east coast of South Africa are warned about the sharp beaks of the Cape Gannet (Morus capensis) and the beaks and claws of the African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) but all the warnings cannot save you from an angry Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca) attacking your rear from the rear.

Tsunami debris arrives on the Canadian West Coast

Nine months after the deadly tsunami struck Japan the enormous debris field, washed out to sea when the water receded, has started to arrive on Canada's west coast. Much of the coastline is wilderness with absolutely no land access except for a few small fishing villages with connections to the interior. There are several National and Provincial Parks where access is possible and it is in these locales where the first signs of the disaster are being washed up. At the moment, the majority of the items are hundreds of plastic containers but much more solid debris is expected in the coming months. Various outdoor groups are cleaning the beaches and creating a database of collected items. The next few months will provide a snapshot of the devastation experienced by the people of Japan.

tadpole frying pan

For some or other reason the tadpoles of the Raucus Toad like to congregate on the leaves of the lily pads in my garden pond. Maybe the water is warmer and they can save energy by not having to swim and can just bask in the water. In any case this is disaster for the tadoples because as the sun comes up the water dries out and the tadpoles dry of dehydration and lack of oxygen.

We all know that photographers should not interfere in the processes of nature and this means taking a back seat (and taking pictures) and recording what happens. I feel I must apologise because I sneezed and saved some 30 tadpoles.

I am looking forward to the photographic opportunities that 2012 will bring!

Merry Christmas

Wishing our contributors and readers a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Roll on 2012

Dog Trek

I had one of those photo grab moments while travelling along a road in South Africa. People walk along the dusty roads but I could see that this young boy in bare feet was doing something special. He was walking from his home to the local Animal Welfare carrying his dog on his shoulder. It was a hot day and the road was long. Always heart-warming to see people prepared to suffer hardship and heat on behalf of an animal.