View From The Shed by Volunteer Shaun - WHAT DO I KNOW?

WHAT DO I KNOW?

Someone recently approached me at Old Moor’s Welcome Shed and said, “I really like your blogs but I’d like to know; Are you a proper writer or do you just make them up?”

I didn’t know how to respond. Was it an insult?  Knowing the person in question asking the question, I doubt it. A compliment? Possibly. A genuine query? Most likely, but I wasn't sure at the time what he meant and I’m still no closer to working it out. So I replied in the only way I could. “Err... Well I’ve been writing for a living all my adult life”. Happily, that seemed to placate him but what exactly is a “proper writer”? I don’t think I’ll ever work it out but this exchange got me thinking about some of the other unanswerable questions that I’ve been asked while on Welcome Shed duty.

What’s a “proper” wild bird? 

Many people would say that any bird that was raised in captivity but has now gone feral (by either escape or via deliberate release) can never be classed as being a ‘wild’ animal even though it’s living in the… wild. They could never add it to the list of birds they’ve seen, referring to it as a ‘plastic’ bird. Others might say that if it’s living naturally, escaping predation and finding its own food by hunting or foraging for itself, how does that differ from any other beast of the air? So as long as the bird is happy enough, the notion of it being 'plastic' or 'flesh and feather' is really in the eye of the spotter. And any discussion of birds with such complicated histories inevitably leads to a follow up question.

What counts on your year- or life-list? 

Many birdwatchers keep lists. This might be as simple as “What birds have I ever seen?” or it could be a complex series of linked spreadsheets, sorted by date, location and resulting happiness level of the spotter. You won't be surprised to learn that I'm in the latter category. My lists sometimes even have a cast of characters, plots and subplots involving revolting pheasants. Whatever, it’s an intensely personal thing and each person sets their own rules. The only problems arise when people try to compare lists and they have different criteria as to what is allowable. It’s like comparing oranges to hardback novels but it doesn’t stop the arguments. 

What’s a real nature reserve or just a bit of wild land to walk your dog?

I’m sure that there’s some technical definition and it would probably change depending on who ran the particular nature reserve. It would probably relate to how much land management or public access is involved. But to me it matters not one jot, tittle or other writerly term. Nor, much more importantly, will it matter to the creatures that choose to make their home there. Every one of these places, whatever label we assign to it, can be a suitable environment for them to breed and survive, regardless of whether it occurs naturally or by man’s design. All they need is security and a ready supply of food. As long as the wild swimmers, picnickers  or dog walkers respect all creatures and their natural habitats, then we can call it what we will. We’re all ‘interfering with nature’ to some extent, just by being there but with just a little care we can all live together in harmony.

This is as good a time as any to stress that these writings are my views, which may or may not tally with those of the RSPB as an organisation. I'm a grumpy old man, as you may have noticed, and I'm settling into the role happily in my retirement - if one can ever be grumpily happy. I may sometimes have strong opinions on certain things, but I always try to keep an improving natural world at the heart of it. I'm sure that's something we all want.

Another set of questions that we are regularly asked relate to our Sightings Board, the big whiteboard attached to the side of our Welcome Shed. It lists all of the less common birds, dragonflies and other creatures that have been seen around the site over the previous few days. We update it regularly, adding new sightings as they occur and removing old ones when they haven't been seen for a while. For example at the time of writing some Hobbies have been spotted around the lake and on the lower rungs of our electricity pylons. When they first arrived we eagerly added them to the list. Hobbies may not be seen by every visitor and indeed we may go a grey day or two without any sightings at all, but they will hopefully be here until the end of Summer when their food supply of dragon- and damselflies diminishes. Then they’ll begin the long migration to the southern African countries where they’ll spend their winter. 

Now I'm not going to remove a Hobby from the Sightings Board if none have been spotted for a couple of unseasonably rainy days. A few days without being seen doesn’t mean that they aren’t still around. But if they aren’t seen for four days or so then maybe the ones that live here have fallen prey to a bigger hunter or perhaps a traffic accident. If they weren’t sighted for that length of time then we’d probably erase them from the board. It’s always a judgement call relating to the species, it’s (relative local) rarity and the time of year. If, for example, we saw an Osprey land, have a rest and then take off, heading far into the distance, then I probably wouldn’t even remove the top from my felt tip. There would be no point in raising guests’ expectations in a situation like that.

I always tell people, everything that’s on the board has been seen over the last few days. They are out there, but that doesn’t mean to say that you will definitely see them. They’re wild animals with wings. I guarantee nothing. It’s a big list and a big reserve. Please don’t expect to see everything when you come, but it’s always best to be informed - and to live in hope. You might just get lucky and see things we never even knew were there!

Of course these questions pale into insignificance when put up against the one that overshadows every other that we’ve ever been asked. 

“Excuse me, where’s the toilet?”