counting coots

You have to love the One Show - they regularly have slots on regarding our native avifauna, and occasionally an urban birder pops up!



Last night's slot was about the re-introduction of Great Bustards to Salisbury plain, and I just cannot see the bloody point of it. I get the Kite situation in Wales, I get the Eagles in Scotland, I even get the Corncrakes in the Fens, but I don't understand the need for Sea Eagles in Norfolk, and least of all the Bustards in Wiltshire. As I see it, the Kites and the Scottish Eagles have plenty of scope for expanding their range as their terrain is essentially unlimited - but the Bustards have nowhere to go! Once they have filled up the areas of Salisbury Plain that they have, the habitat disappears and they will reach saturation point with no nearby population to meet and greet. The boundaries of Salisbury Plain turn this project into a ruddy great aviary stuffed with ruddy great birds. Pointless.



Anyhow, I'll be off later to search for fictitious signs of spring. Mrs Thing asked me to kill a Robin this morning that has taken to signing it's bloody head off outside our window at 4am, so perhaps spring is now on the way. The Tufties that came in from the cold snap seem to have gone. The odd gadwall is knocking about, and the number of Herring Gull (of whatever damned subspecies) seemed to have tailed off. Yesterday was spent looking for Linnets (which are reported further up the river) and hoping for a Greenfinch - but to no avail.



Have a really rubbish picture of an Egyptian Goose, its Cat D (I think) so it's the closest pic I have to an introduction...