Wildlife News for October

An area for archived forum posts
Post Reply
RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

Wildlife News for October

Post by RachelMC »

Wildlife News for October:

Here is an interesting article by Patrick Barkham in the Guardian online describing the history of the persecution of the Badger - The current Badger cull is the latest chapter in a long history of persecution. he writes that our relationship with Britain's largest surviving carnivore is based on fear, superstition and ignorance.

These are his final words:
Our relationship with the Badger has always been oddly confrontational. We seem compelled to find it, watch it, feed it, photograph it, poke it, catch it, torture it, defend it, kill it. It seems to be virtually a competitor on an island denuded of big mammals. Perhaps it simply plays too significant a role in our landscape for us to ever leave it in peace. When its interests clash with ours, we seek to "manage" or exterminate it, just as we can't help ourselves in our curiosity, greed and desire to seek dominion over every other part of our miraculous world of animals and plants.


Read the full article here: http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ ... -carnivore

RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

Cygnet killed by dog off its lead

Post by RachelMC »

Cygnet Killed By Dog Off Its Lead:

Some tragic news to report ......

WITNESSES are being sought after a much-loved baby swan was mauled by a dog off its lead near the River Weaver.

Hundreds of residents have delighted in watching the six-month-old cygnet grow and develop by the riverside.

But last Wednesday the young swan, which had sustained a fractured wing, had to be put to sleep at the RSPCA’s Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre.

Centre manager, Lee Stewart, says he is working with Cheshire East Council on erecting signs warning dog owners to be more responsible and keep their pets on leads.

He said: “Dogs not on leads is an ongoing problem for us where swans and other wildlife are concerned".

“One of the things we’re working with the council on is putting up signs around as many Cheshire lakes as possible, highlighting the issues of uncontrolled dogs, fishing lines and litter".

“This is a really sad ending to an amazing story. We were aware of this cygnet from early on, as were most of the town".

“Those types of fracture never heal and, in our experience, the only thing to do is put them to sleep.”

The cygnet was born in early spring to inexperienced parents – one an older male and the other a young female. The mother built a nest on the riverside and the eggs fell in. One hatched and the cygnet was left to fend for itself at first as its mother focused her efforts on the other eggs, but they never hatched.

Town resident Juliet Court wrote to the Chronicle about the bird’s sad demise.

She said: “The parent birds appear to be lost and grieving. It is a despicable act to allow your dog to pester wildlife, and an even greater crime to allow it to attack and kill".

“There will be many in our town who are very upset about this, but I personally am very angry too. When will we ever learn to let wildlife be wild?”

Anyone who saw the attack is urged to contact the RSPCA appeal line on: 0300 1234 999.

Article re-posted from the Crewe Chronicle

RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

BTO Winter Thrushes Survey

Post by RachelMC »

BTO Winter Thrushes Survey

The BTO Winter Thrushes Survey began again on 12 September 2013 and all birdwatchers are invited to take part. It's not too late to register and contribute to the survey!

The aim of the survey is to investigate which are the key habitats and food sources used by passage and wintering thrush species (Fieldfare, Redwing, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Ring Ouzel and Blackbird) in the UK, and to compare findings between different winters.

There are two parts to the survey. For the first part, which started on 12 September 2013 and continues until April 2014, any interested person can register their chosen site and collect information on thrushes each time they walk there. The second part of the survey involves randomly allocated sites which will be visited during a specific midwinter period, 27 December 2013 to 10 January 2014.

More at: http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/winter-thrushes

Local regional BTO reps:

Wirral and mid-Cheshire: Paul Miller - email: paulandhilarymiller@o2.co.uk - tel: 01928 787535
Cheshire North, East and South: Mark Eddowes - email: mark@eddowesaviationsafety.com - tel: 01565 621683

RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

Biodiversity Trainee Vacancies at Chester Zoo

Post by RachelMC »

Biodiversity Trainee Vacancies at Chester Zoo
Fixed term contract 1 year

Chester Zoo, one of Europe’s leading Zoological collections, along with RECORD and Cheshire Wildlife Trust, are working together to provide training placements giving diverse work experience in the UK wildlife heritage sector.

This is an entry level placement for those looking to complement their education with practical experience and is possible due to generous funding from Heritage Lottery Fund. The successful applicants will be required to complete assignments and obtain recognised qualifications as well as undertaking practical training over 12 months in the broad areas of:-

- Species identification and biodiversity recording.
- Habitat and species conservation and management.
- Environmental education and interpretation.

Successful applicants will have a BSc in a biological, conservation, or environment-related discipline, or equivalent. They must have an interest and enthusiasm for wildlife and individual awareness of areas for personal development that the placement would provide. They will be IT/computer literate and be conversant in Microsoft Office packages. The successful applicants will be highly organised, have good communication skills, and be able to manage self and workload effectively. They will be able to work as part of a team. Travel is required around Cheshire/North Wales and candidates must have a full driving license, access to a vehicle is desirable.

The successful candidates will ideally have the ability to present information clearly. Some work experience in one or two of the identified areas above (paid or voluntary) is desirable. We are looking for self-motivated people with initiative.

Hours are 35 hours per week worked from 9 – 5 over Monday to Friday, to include some evenings, weekends and bank holidays. Salary is £13,362 per annum. Criminal Record Bureau checks may be made for this post.

To apply, please contact the recruitment line at: recruitment@chesterzoo.org or by tel. on: 01244 389477.
Applications will only be taken from people resident and eligible to work in the UK. Closing date for applications is 25th October 2013. The recruitment process will involve two stages.

More information over at:

http://www.countryside-jobs.com/cjsdail ... 410_1.html

RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

False 'False Widows' !

Post by RachelMC »

False 'False Widows' !

Reports that the "flesh-eating" False Widow spiders have made their way to Cheshire appear to be unfounded.

A relative of the deadly black widow spider, the False Widow (Steatoda nobilis), has been blamed for a recent spate of spider bites across the country.

The False Widow is Britain’s most venomous spider and experts believe it arrived in Britain on a cargo ship from the Canary Islands during the 1870s.

It has a brown bulbous abdomen with a cream-coloured marking which some say looks like a skull.

A Cheshire West and Chester Council spokesperson said: “No bites have been reported to our environmental health officers. There is an awareness in the borough, though, as people have sent in samples but these were found to be garden orb-weaver spiders.”

Orb-weavers resemble False Widows and are commonly found in both urban and rural areas.

There have been no confirmed False Widow sightings further north than East Anglia. Usually found in the south of England, it is believed that climate change has encouraged the spider to travel.

(Re-posted from The Chester Chronicle)

About False Widows
False widow spiders belong to the genus Steatoda and the term is most often used in reference to three species found in association with or near buildings and gardens, Steatoda bipunctata, Steatoda grossa and Steatoda nobilis. All have globular shaped bodies and their name derives from the fact that they are commonly mistaken for Black Widow spiders which are in a different genus (Lactrodectus), but the same family (Theridiidae).

Steatoda nobilis, the “Noble False Widow”, is the largest of the three with a maximum body length of 14mm for females and 10mm for males.

It is only a small number of the larger species of spider which have fangs capable of penetrating human skin.
When one considers the undoubtedly large number of people who are stung each year by wasps and bees, the risk of being bitten by a False Widow spider must surely be relatively small. False widows are sedentary by nature, remaining in their webs and the males are only likely to wander when they are ready to mate. Being bitten is therefore likely to be the result of putting a hand into a web, handling one roughly or sitting or lying on one by mistake. Reports of bites by false widows are difficult to substantiate and may be exaggerated by the media.

Being bitten by a spider is unlikely in this country in normal circumstances, and the effect of a bite is unlikely to be worse than being stung by a wasp or bee.

More can be read at: http://wiki.britishspiders.org.uk/index.php5?title=False_Widow_Spiders


RachelMC
Posts: 460
Joined: Mon May 17, 2010 1:04 pm
Location: Chester

Cheshire Badger Debate Splits Council - Second Cull Trial

Post by RachelMC »

Cheshire Badger Debate Splits Council - Second Cull Trial:

A heated debate at Cheshire West & Chester council saw a motion to ban badger culling on council owned and leased land sent to a scrutiny committee, after an amendment vote split the chamber down the middle.

Cllr Nicole Meardon’s motion, which also urged the council to back badger vaccination as an alternative means for tackling bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in livestock, saw more than an hour of passionate exchanges and a split amendment vote seeing the decision sent to a committee where councillors will hear more evidence from experts.

During 15 minutes of public presentations, the council heard from Richard Fair of the National Farmers Union-led bTB action group, Jane Cullen of the Cheshire & Wirral Badger Group and the Cheshire Wildlife Trust who have already been undertaking badger vaccination in Cheshire for over a year.

Members of the public asking for a ban on badger culling were told to watch from screens outside the chamber after the public gallery was said to be over-capacity for safety reasons. Those left in the chamber responded by clapping and cheering as Kathy Owen opened the speeches in favour of banning a cull.

The debate came just hours after Environment Minister Owen Paterson admitted that the Government’s second badger cull trial in Gloucestershire had also fallen well short of its projected 70% badger removal target, with just over 30% of badgers – around 700 - culled in the initial Defra-approved six-week window.

The Gloucestershire culling programme is now expected to last up to 14 weeks in total, with Ministers taking advice on the option for gassing badgers as an additional method to achieve targets set against population estimates made less than 12 months ago.

The Cheshire Wildlife Trust is urging Cheshire West & Chester Council to approve a ban on any future cull of badgers on their land, after a similar move was passed by Derbyshire County Council in summer.

The conservation charity says that Cheshire’s position on the leading edge of the UK spread of the disease gives it the unique opportunity to create a ‘firewall’ to the spread of bTB. It also added that a dispersal effect from the process of culling brought the danger of spreading the disease into currently ‘clean’, unaffected areas.

Tom Marshall who addressed the Council for the Wildlife Trust said: “Whilst an overall vote in favour of banning a cull would have been the best result for our badgers and livestock, we now look forward to putting the facts from over a year’s experience of vaccination here in Cheshire to councillors in even greater detail.

“The worrying figures we have seen in Gloucestershire and Somerset show that the Government’s cull trials have been a failure, and the extensions given to the programmes appear unjustified. Despite Minister Paterson’s recent suggestion that badgers are ‘moving the goalposts’, it is surely Defra and Natural England who have scored an own-goal by having to change their own stringent criteria set months ago.

“The shambles of these cull trials is surely something we do not want to repeat in Cheshire, where we have a real opportunity to set a benchmark for the right way to tackle this disease for the future of our cattle herds and badgers.”


Cheshire Wildlife Trust has so far vaccinated badgers across more than 1,000 hectares of land in South Cheshire across their own sites and a number of private beef and dairy farms.

Post Reply