The pine marten was once the second most common carnivore in Britain, but persecution and and habitat loss has driven them close to extinction in England.  The last confirmed sighting of a pine marten in Derbyshire was an individual shot in Baslow in 2002 which is now a taxidermy specimen in Sheffield Museum. Recently wildlife photographer Andy Parkinson spotted one dead on the road between Belper and Ripley and passed the information on to enable it to be retrieved.  Vincent Wildlife Trust has confirmed it was a male. It’s really exciting that this mammal has been discovered and I hope it’s the first of many to be seen in the county.…

This year, 34 hen harrier chicks have successfully fledged in England, the most successful season for a decade. coque iphone 7 A total of 14 nesting attempts took place across Lancashire, Northumberland, Cumbria and Derbyshire, with 9 nests successfully raising chicks.  It is thought that a high number of voles and good weather has made it a good breeding season. coque iphone 6 13 chicks fledged on United Utilities land in the Forest of Bowland. coque iphone 4 hen harriers have successfully fledged on National Trust land in the Peak District for the first time in 4 years which is extremely pleasing. 3 nests on Forestry Commission land in Northumberland…

A project to reintroduce white storks into the Sussex countryside has been planned for 2019!  Some captive birds are being held at Knepp Estate in West Sussex, and six birds are roaming free around the 1400ha farm. coque iphone 2019  The plan is to reintroduce about 40 storks each year over a number of years in a similar fashion to the reintroduction of cranes on the Somerset Levels. coque iphone 7  It is hoped that local people will put stork nesting platforms up on the roofs of houses so the birds can nest as they would in other European countries. coque iphone 2019 soldes  The long-term goals of the project…

Marc the hen harrier, who was tagged on the Scottish Borders, has disappeared under suspicious circumstances near Middleton-in-Teesdale. acheter coque iphone  Marc was one of a nest of two chicks tagged for the EU-funded Hen Harrier LIFE+ project in July last year. coque iphone 2019  Marc’s tag had been transmitting regularly until it stopped on the 5th February. coque iphone 8  He had been in the same area of upland farmland since November before moving north-west to an area of driven grouse moor when his tag inexplicably stopped working. coque iphone xs  It is highly suspected that he was persecuted like his brother, Manu. coque iphone 7  Hen harriers are…

The hen harrier brood management (or meddling) scheme is a plan thought out by the government that licenses the short-term removal of hen harrier chicks from the nest to be reared in captivity and then released into the wild. coque iphone pas cher  The scheme is said to limit the numbers of grouse killed by hen harriers and apparently reduce the numbers that are killed, coque iphone soldes but it seems to me that it is a system that will benefit only the shooters.  It is supported by grouse shooters and the government, coque iphone pas cher but not by conservationists and the RSPB. coque iphone xs max  Hen harriers are…

The Shaint Isles in the Outer Hebrides has now been declared officially rat-free, thanks to a four-year partnership project.  A month-long check in February found no signs of rats, and there haven’t been any for two years.  This is brilliant news for the vast colonies of seabirds there. The EU LIFE+funded Shaints seabird recovery project started  in 2014 and is a partnership between the Nicolson family, Scottish National Heritage (SNH) and RSPB Scotland.  It benefited as well from the help of volunteers and donations.  Over the last four years, the project has focused on making the islands a safe place for seabirds to raise their chicks by removing the non-native…

Please sign these three petitions: Ban driven grouse shooting by Gavin Gamble.  In favour of banning driven grouse shooting to stop illegal bird of prey persecutions and reduce flood risk.  Signatures:  34541 License driven grouse shooting by Ed Hutchings.  In favour of licensing grouse shooting to help stop raptor persecutions and end poor practice on moorlands.  Supported by the RSPB.  Signatures:  12210 Strengthen the 2004 Hunting Act by Robert Hownall.  In favour of strengthening the 2004 Hunting Act to stop illegal hare coursing and killings of foxes with hounds in hunts.  Signatures: 15948 Don’t sign: Don’t ban driven grouse shooting by Jane Griggs.  In favour of not banning driven grouse…

A satellite-tagged golden eagle called Fred disappeared on a grouse moor in the Pentland hills near Edinborough’s bypass on 21st January when his tag stopped working at 10pm.  After a while, the tag mysteriously started working again away from land in the north sea.  It is unusual for golden eagles to travel out to see for no reason so it is highly suspected that there was a persecution of this bird of prey.  The bird was tagged by Chris Packham and was named Fred after the landowner’s grandson.  A report commissioned by the Scottish government last year found that 41 of 131 tagged golden eagles disappeared in suspicious circumstances in…

This autumn,  there has been lots of sightings of hawfinches, a large but uncommon finch.  They are actually more closely related to grosbeaks.  There are only 1000 breeding pairs in the UK.  They are quite numerous in Wales, and there’s a few in the New Forest, Wye Valley, Forest of Dean and Cumbria.  There have even been a few sightings at Carsington Water where we sometimes go to watch birds.  They have an extremely powerful beak, and are brown, ginger and have dark blue feathers on their wings.  Their beaks are powerful enough to crush cherry stones, and their range is restricted to large stretches of mature woodland.  RSPB researches…

                                                        SIBERIAN BLUE ROBIN On the 8th October 2017, a rare Siberian blue robin was seen on North Ronaldsay.  It was found by Tom Gale and Lewis Hooper.  It flew inside a building and they caught it for ringing purposes, not this bright blue chat to be caught.  They found it unbelievable that they’d found such a rarity.  They have only been seen in the British Isles three times, and one was last sighted on Shetland in October 2011.              …

Recently, it has been the awful Maltese bird hunting season.  Hunters with no regard for wildlife carelessly shoot any bird that flies into sight, anything from warblers to marsh harriers.  This year, 32 species of protected bird have been illegally shot, including hobby, black kite, honey buzzard, turtle dove, greater flamingo and purple heron and more.  But help is at hand; Birdlife Malta have been doing a brilliant job helping shot birds recover and rehabilitate them, among these birds are flamingos, sparrowhawks, nightjars and a black kite.  Also, lots of people have been going to Cyprus and freeing birds from sticks coating in sticky lyme.  Please visit Birdlife Malta’s website,…

Please go onto the Care2 Petition Site and sign this petition to help ortolan buntings!

Apparently, the recent work towards lynx rewilding in the Kielder Forest in Northumberland could lead to them being there by early 2018!  Lynx have not been in Britain since 650AD, 1342 years ago.  The thought is that as well as reducing the deer numbers that eat the vegetation, it will also bring tourists to the area in hope of seeing these predators.  These cats are thought to have a positive affect on the environment.  I hope that they’re there by next year!

I’m writing this post about the recent rare sightings over Derbyshire, and some of them are at places we’ve been too.  There has been 72 pink-footed geese on Kinder Scout near Castleton on the 15th, and something that really surprised me was that there’s been a grey phalarope at Carsington Water, where we often go, on the 13th.  There has also been a manx shearwater (it was blatantly lost, of course) on Wyver Lane in Derby, and it also turned up at Carsington.  The site seems to have had a battering of rarities recently, and along with the phalarope and shearwater, there has also been a spotted redshank earlier in…