Waxwings - I actually went out looking for them in east Northants yesterday and failed completely despite many recent local records. Did see lots of rowan berries, industrial estates and redwings though! Will I ever see a waxwing this winter?
Farmland birds - a short blog of a week ago has attracted a large number of comments - mostly from a so-called 'Essex peasant' otherwise known as Essex farmer and NFU mouthpiece Guy Smith. The comments are mostly longer than the original blog! Guy has problems with Hope Farm, the Farmland Bird Index, and most things that the RSPB does. Makes for an interesting read if you are interested in that type of thing.
Dancing - now is the time to download Bird is the word to try to get it to be the Christmas Number 1.
Last date to order from the RSPB before Christmas - 15 December.
jane griggs - no he hasn't has he? I wish I had detailed records of the places where I saw birds in my youth so that I could compare them with now. But it is clear that whilst at the local gravel pits many species have increased in numbers, on farmland many have decreased.
Hi trimbush,
Fair point and supermarkets are very adept enticing us to consume more. I would still contend that it's still to do with us as consumers. These offers offers keep coming as we go for them, but as you imply supermarkets have to accept some responsibility as well, the prices they pay suppliers etc.
Essex peasant doesn't seem to me to have answered mirlo's question about whether he agrees that wildlife on farmed land is in a better or worse state than 25 years ago. It's quite a simple question. I'm sure the wildlife around me is worse - and I've lived in this bit of countryside all my life (although I'm not a farmer). There are fewer of many of the characteristic birds of my youth. Fewer skylarks and fewer English partridges. I'm not a bird expert but it's pretty clear to me that farming has driven wildlife to the edges of the fields and sometimes driven it away completely.
Hi curiousPan
I'm soory to say it but I expect it to get even worse - why - Supermarkets - eg Tesco PLC 2 for 1, 3 for 2
Nowt to do with farming!
CuriousPan - welcome! And thank you for the kind comments. Good comment - when it comes down to it, everything is consumed by the 6.5bn of us on earth, and some of us consume more (more food, more water, more energy, more space, more resources) than others.
trimbush - I will blog on badgers soon. It can be a Christmas present for you - although it might be the type that you want to return to the store after it's unwrapped. We'll see.