RIDICULOUS LISTINGS

Dr Marnie Lovejoy of BASC and my fellow contributor Alasdair Mitchell have both written about the daftness of the current Birds of Conservation Concern listings. Amberlisting woodpigeon is clearly ridiculous, as this is not only one of the most numerous and successful birds in the UK, but also its numbers are increasing. It seems equally daft that greylag and pink-footed geese are listed, as both species are thriving in the UK, while the amber-listed marsh harrier has a growing population of hundreds of pairs. Curiously, the herring gull shares its redlisted status with such birds as turtle dove and capercaillie: one is left pondering why.

Both lesser black-backed and herring gulls may have declined in recent years, but that’s only because the populations rose to unsustainable levels thanks to rubbish tips providing an abundance of food. In Suffolk the lesser black-backed gull (amber) was once a comparatively rare bird. Ticehurst, writing in his History of the Birds of Suffolk (1932) states that “it is a passage

reports, it sounds as though the pollution continues and I would only fancy eating samphire purchased from a reputable supplier.

Tess Thompson, by email migrant on the coast”, while Payn’s Birds of Suffolk (1962) notes that the first breeding in the country was in 1958, when two pairs bred on Havergate Island “but for the sake of the avocets further breeding was discouraged”, presumably by the RSPB’S warden. (At that time the RSPB’S Havergate reserve held Britain’s only avocet colony.)

Today lesser black-backs are abundant in the county. I often see hundreds of birds close to my home in the Suffolk Brecks. These birds are a threat to the Brecks’ population of stone and common curlews, both of which deserve listing as Birds of Conservation Concern. No one seems to know what to do when one bird of conservation concern threatens another. David Tomlinson, Suffolk nymph, in a natural manner on the current back towards the fish that will be facing away from you. You stand less chance of spooking your quarry and may have a better chance of success.

Phil Trotman, by email

The lesser backblacked gull was once relatively rare