‘Phone First’ A&E system to launch
ANEW study has shown that golden and whitetailed eagles were once widespread across Wales, supporting the case for their reintroduction.
Archeological finds indicate the birds were already present in the country during the last Ice Age period some 20,000 years ago.
The evidence was collated by a Cardiff University team led by PhD student Sophie-lee Williams, 28, who manages the Eagle Re-introduction Wales Project.
She said there was previously a dearth of data on the distribution of both eagle species in Wales.
To fill in the gaps, scientists examined fossil and observational records – and even Welsh place names.
“We hope this opens up new optimism about restoring these magnificent species to Wales in the near future,” said Sophie-lee.
The team gathered 151 historic records for eagles across Wales – 81 for golden eagles and 70 for white-tailed eagles.
As expected, most golden eagle records were from North Wales, centred on Snowdonia and stretching over to Denbighshire.
White-tailed eagles were more commonly found in lowland coastal areas with larger numbers along the Swansea coast.
“We also looked at placename records incorporating the Welsh word for eagle – which is “eryr,’” said Sophie-lee.
“These records were dispersed across much of Wales, but were more abundant in
North Wales, Mid-Wales Pembrokeshire.”
The earliest records came from fossilized remains in archeological collections. Fossils of both species from Cathole cave, Gower, are believed to be from 20,000 years ago.
The last breeding records for golden eagles were in Snowdonia, and
between
1850s.
Breeding pairs of White-tailed eagle were recorded at Kenfig Burrows, near Swansea, during 1828. The species was last reported there in 1906.
Historic persecution records describe eagles being shot by farmers due to “scavenging on the 1820s and sheep carcasses” or the belief that eagles “killed sheep and lambs”.
This human-wildlife conflict was first recorded in Wales in the 17th Century and continued through the 19th Century until the birds were wiped out.
Sophie-lee hopes her team’s finding will now satisfy reintroduction criteria laid down by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“Our results fill knowledge gaps in the historic ranges of both species in Britain,” she said.
Further work is now assessing whether the modern Welsh landscape could support both golden and white-tailed eagles.
A PROJECT to re-introduce Golden Eagles in Snowdonia aims to move forward once Covid-19 curbs are eased.
Conservation company Wilding Britain, headed by Dr Paul
O’Donoghue, had hoped to apply for a release licence from Natural Resources Wales last year. But he said Brexit, then the lockdown, had delayed progress.
A series of public feedback meetings was planned this spring and these still need to take place before the project design can be finalised.
An ecological scoping study has been completed and some funding is in place, said Dr O’Donoghue.
“We are keen when allow,” he added.
If Wilding Britain’s bid is successful, 10 young Golden Eagles – all equipped with GPS transponders – will be brought to Snowdonia from mainland Europe.
However the scheme faces strong opposition from farmers, who fear Golden Eagles could prey on lambs, alter delicate natural systems and compromise existing wildlife initiatives. to make progress circumstances
PATIENTS wishing to attend hospital emergency departments will have to phone ahead to make an appointment under new Wales NHS guidelines.
Health Minister Vaughan Gething touched on the idea in a long written statement on July 21, in which he said patients “will be assessed remotely by a suitably qualified doctor or a nurse”.
Depending on their circumstances they will then be:
● encouraged to self-care
● signposted to a more appropriate service in their local community
● directly booked in to an appointment in an emergency department if they need further assessment and treatment
He added: “Access to emergency care for people with lifethreatening or serious conditions will not change, nor will there be any change to how 999 calls are dealt with.”
Welsh Government hopes it will ease crowded waiting rooms and give people appropriate care, as the spectre of a second Covid-19 wave of infections hovers over Wales.
However, patient advocate groups believe the public should have been consulted.
They also believe it could put extra pressure on the Welsh Ambulance Service, as people attempt to bypass the call centres.
Called “Phone First” it has already been trialled in Cardiff and Vale Health Board.
A briefing note on the scheme reveals a group will monitor progress but that won’t include community health councils (CHCs), who represent patient rights.
Geoff Ryall-Harvey, chief officer of North Wales CHC, said: “I think the public need to be engaged with this.
“It’s a fundamental change to the way people access emergency services and we believe NHS Wales should be engaging people before making fundamental change.”
A Welsh Government spokesman said a national group has been set up to oversee the development of the ‘phone first’ approach.