Lucky old you two blogs in two days! But after what I saw this morning I just had to put 'pen to paper' to try and convey how we could change the fortunes of many of our common birds.
For starters shouldn't conservation truly be about abundance and diversity rather than rarity although often the focus is on species that are severely declining which is in so many ways a symptom of the problems facing birds in the UK and across the world. For me what I experienced this morning while shepherding the livestock really exemplified what this truly means while giving me a brief glimpse of the past but also with a bit of better management of the countryside maybe an amazing vision of what could be the future?
Mixed livestock produce different habitat mosaics - all pictures are from this morning
A video of the livestock
https://community.rspb.org.uk/cfs-file.ashx/__key/communityserver-blogs-components-weblogfiles/00-00-01-22-14/00026.MTS
So read on and find out just what I'm on about and hopefully if you can view the video it will help set the scene.
The reserves grazing marsh is managed at low intensity by a mix of grazing stock, cattle, sheep and of course our lovely Konik ponies with much of their and our work aimed at a wide range of wetland and farmland birds but also a diverse range of wildlife. The species that use it of course changes with the seasons but is also often dependent on how much or how little flooding we have across it.
A couple of the gals - Belted Galloway cattle that is.
When it's wet in winter it can be brilliant for ducks and waders but as it dries out the plants that set seed can provide food and insects for many of our common farmland birds that seem to love the conditions that are created. I will just add at this point that the livestock are not all just there for show, both the lambs and cattle go towards producing high class lamb and beef that are sold at a local butchers, so we are not just hobby farming!
This morning the wind had calmed and as I walked up towards the cattle yellow wagtails were running around their feet, and as I lookered the sheep there were tens of meadow pipits, reed buntings mixed with skylarks and a flock of 40+ linnets feeding around some of the dock plants we has purposely left for them.
Meadow pipits
Reed buntings were everywhere feeding on both the seeds and insects
As I walked further along it soon became apparent that there were birds everywhere in among the vegetation and livestock and along the edge for the reserve where a large sugar beet field seemed to be providing good feeding. I couldn't help asking myself was this what it used to be like before intensive land management and extensive use of pesticides?
Yellow wagtails were finding insects around the livestock
The spectacle was further enhanced by small skeins of pink-footed geese constantly flying over giving their wink-wink calls, the odd marsh harrier flying through hoping to nab an early morning meal and a pair of peregrines jousting in the air just across the river.
Pinkfeet overhead
Pinkfeet video
https://community.rspb.org.uk/cfs-file.ashx/__key/communityserver-blogs-components-weblogfiles/00-00-01-22-14/00021.MTS
Then I heard the distinctive jangle of a corn bunting coming from the beet field adding to the mix, curlew were feeding at the top of the field and their cry was carrying on the wind, in the moment it felt like I was in the past.
Corn bunting
This hare with a sweet tooth popped it head up to see what was going on!
I had been looking for one of the sheep that had been treated for a foot problem and she was laid up in one of the corners of the field recovering, then on the way back in among yet more pipits and reed buntings was a lovely migrant whinchat.
Once relatively common as a breeding bird in lowland areas whinchats have declined considerably and now seem to be considered an upland bird
it really was superb to see such a mix of what all should be common birds but all have declined and all should have much greater populations than they have now, but rather than being the past could it be a vision of the future? For me it really showed what could be done in the countryside with just a few changes, it really doesn't take as much as you'd think to tip the balance back for some species to be successful.
Maybe with so many changes taking place in the UK now is the time for us all to help make this sort of experience commonplace by making it clear to those making the decisions that we want a more bird and wildlife friendly countryside or by just get involved in its direct management by volunteering.
Wouldn't it be great if we could make the vision come true rather than it always be a glimpse of the past?