Stilts walk tall in British home
A few teetering footsteps straight from the Ministry of Silly Walks for four ungainly baby birds yet one massive leap for a species colonising Britain.
After taking their first tentative steps on preposterously skinny legs only a few weeks ago, four black-winged stilt chicks are in the throes of learning how to fly over their nursery grounds.
Delighted conservationists from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust have been keeping a round-the-clock vigil at the Potteric Carr nature reserve near Doncaster, while watching the youngsters develop from eggs to near fully-grown glory.
This summer’s breeding success marks a new chapter in the increasing expansion of a bird long thought of as a southern European speciality. With pied plumage, a pencil-thin bill and striking bubble-gum pink legs, the stilt is adept at wading through the shallow water of Mediterranean saltpans and coastal lagoons.
Arid conditions fanned by climate change may well be the reason for the northerly trajectory of the stilt. Over the last decade, increasing numbers have arrived in Britain, with a few dozen pairs attempting to nest and more than 20 chicks raised.
The four chicks in this picture by nature photographer Niall Bell illustrate the devoted parenting of the adult stilts, which have made history with the most northerly breeding success of the species in the UK.
Any birder who has traipsed around a Spanish or Greek marsh will know the kerfuffle stilts create to drive interlopers away. While foxes, gulls and birds of prey are a threat to young birds, humans also pose risk to eggs.
As Andy Dalton, operations manager at Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, explains: “The nest was vulnerable to predation by other birds and mammals, but the parents were quite aggressive in and around the nest, and have been busy chasing off all manner of birds.
“Our amazing team of volunteers and reserve staff have kept an eye on the nest round the clock to help protect it from egg collectors, who sadly are still an illegal threat to wild birds.”
With such devoted parenting and dedicated protection by conservationists, let’s hope the stilts return to Yorkshire next summer.
Any birder will know the kerfuffle stilts create to drive interlopers away