Nightingale under catastrophic threat

There is no other bird that sings so deeply, so full of ecstasy as the nightingale. The melody is endlessly varied. Nightingales are best known for their singing talent. In the spring, they sing during the day as well as at night. As a youngster growing up in East Kent, to hear the nightingale sing in Spring was almost as commonplace as hearing blackbird, song thrush or robin. No longer.

Over the years the geographical range of the nightingale has shrunk. Habitat loss, changes in farming practices, climate change and hunters have contributed to the decline of this beautiful song bird. In the United Kingdom this migrant from Africa will no longer be found anywhere north of a line drawn from the Humber to the Severn estuary. Hotspots for the nightingale are still to be found in the south of England and it is now more important than ever to ensure that these sites are protected, lest we are to see the ultimate extinction of this bird from our territory.

Lodge Hill on the Hoo Peninsula of the North Kent coast is a nationally protected wildlife site and is home to a nationally-important population of nightingales. And yet, Medway Council’s Planning Committee has approved an Outline Planning Application by Land Securities on behalf of the Ministry of Defence for the development of 5,000 homes on the 330 hectare Chattenden Woods and Lodge Hill Special Site of Scientific Interest (SSSI). This decision, announced on the 4th of September, will directly destroy 144 hectares of the SSSI, one of the largest losses of a SSSI since the Wildlife and Countryside Act came into force in 1981. The decision is in direct conflict with the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).

Lodge Hill is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), designated by the Government’s statutory authority for the natural environment - Natural England. It was designated for the dense breeding population of nightingales that comprise more than one per cent of the entire UK population. Between 1995 and 2008, the numbers of UK nightingale population more than halved (53 per cent).

For Medway Council to approve this proposal is both arrogant and contemptible and shows a complete disregard for Natural England’s site designation. It puts greed and truculence before any consideration for conservation, before any consideration for the preservation of a song bird, that should be paramount.

If this development goes ahead it will be a crime of magnitude that would lead to irretrievable loss. It must not be allowed to happen. 

Operation Turtle Dove

On the 100th anniversary of the extinction of North America’s Passenger Pigeon [Monday 1 September, 2014], the RSPB is highlighting the plight of the Turtle Dove, which is currently halving in number every six years.

Just like the now-extinct Passenger Pigeon, the Turtle Dove is a migratory bird. The species nests in the UK and Europe and spends the winter in Africa, south of the Sahara.

Tara Proud, of the RSPB, said: “The decline of the Passenger Pigeon is a strikingly similar story to the decline of our very own Turtle Dove, which currently is halving in number every six years. It’s too late for Passenger Pigeon, but 100 years on we don’t have to accept that Turtle Doves will suffer the same fate. Turtle Doves are the UK’s fastest declining bird species. For every 20 doves we had in 1970, we now only have one. At this rate, the bird’s UK extinction as a nesting species is a real possibility.”

Operation Turtle Dove was launched in May 2012 to stop the Turtle Dove following the same path as the Passenger Pigeon and is a partnership between the RSPB, Conservation Grade, Pensthorpe Conservation Trust and Natural England.

Tara Proud added: “Together, we are identifying the primary causes of the decline through research right across their long migration. We then develop urgent practical solutions – such as advising farmers how they can provide food for Turtle Doves on their land.”

Badger Trust Launches Legal Challenge

Today the Badger Trust has launched a legal challenge to halt the killing of badgers. The Trust has warned the authorities to abandon the shooting or face a High Court challenge on the grounds that a plan to more than double the killing period is illegal.

The legal firm acting for the Badger Trust is Bindmans LLC, one of the top ranked chambers in London. Head of Chambers is Sir Geoffrey Bindman QC. The firm is recognised for its public order work and its experience with protest law and the right to protest. The firm has successfully represented campaigners on issues as diverse as racial equality, animal rights, peace, the environment, anti-austerity and social justice. The Badger Trust will be well represented and it will be interesting to see if Owen Paterson and DEFRA continue to defy the challenge and end up in front of the High Court.

This is likely to prove to be an expensive exercise; Bindmans don't come cheaply. I am sure that the Trust will welcome donations to the fighting fund. I am attaching a link to the letter that Bindmans LLC has issued to Natural England.

http://www.badger.org.uk/_Attachments/Resources/941_S4.pdf

Somerset Badger Cull Given Extension

The government agency Natural England (there is nothing 'natural' about this gang of bloodthirsty individuals) has granted a licence to extend the badger cull in Somerset until 1st November. The planned six-week trial came to an end on Monday but the firm charged with slaughtering our badger population asked for more time after its 'marksmen' fell short of murdering the target of 70% of the badger population.

Government ministers and the NFU, that union of wealthy landowning farmers who don't care a fig about our wildlife, say badger culling is needed to control cattle TB. For those of you who read my blog you will know that this is so contrary to the truth behind the spread of bovine TB and yet these wretched people are hell bent on destroying a protected species of our wildlife instead of embarking on a course of vaccinating them as an acceptable alternative.

David Cameron, Owen Paterson and their other right wing allies have polarised the UK voting public over this issue. They have totally underestimated the groundswell of hatred that this has engendered for the coalition government, amongst  reasonable minded people who voted for them. I am a retired Managing Director. In my lifetime I have supported an ethic of business building to create employment, to increase incomes to be spent on the High Street and - yes - I have voted Conservative. But, no more. I now have more time to consider the political motives of our elected government and I am ashamed of what the coalition are doing viz-a-viz the NHS, the Welfare State, Education, Banking, Climate Change and above all - the Environment. You, Mr Cameron, aided by Mr Paterson, have lost the votes of my entire family. Your arrogance in ignoring scientific evidence that has concluded, and been reported to you, that a badger cull is not only futile, may well increase the incidence of TB in cattle by perturbation, and is a crime against a protected species, may well lead to your downfall. To extend the licence for the cull in Somerset is the action of a desperate man and a breach of trust of all those, like me, who voted for you.

Well, let me say this. What goes around comes around. You might not believe that your action and that of Owen Paterson in this crime against our wildlife is a major issue. I believe that you will be remembered for this and you should dwell on your decision when you pack your bags and leave No. 10.

And, frankly, I cannot wait for that to happen.