Blog Posts from Curlew Action
Upton-on-Severn is a small town on the west bank of the River Severn (as its name suggests!), south of Worcester. The town itself is on slightly higher ground, alongside “Upton Ham”. Upton: Ham in the foreground, the town, Malvern Hills in the background. (Photo by John Dickinson) The Ham is a meadow which regularly floods […]
Earlier this month I went to an evening event to mark the achievements of Caroline Lucas, organised by the Green Alliance. It was held in the Southbank Centre, and it was packed with 400 people. Here I’d like to share what I took home as the main messages. It felt like the end of an […]
In the midst of our daily routines, it’s easy to get consumed with administrative work, science, emails, and even the politics of conservation. However, we should never forget why we genuinely care about Curlews and other birds, the simple pleasure we get from seeing this wild bird living in their natural habitat. When you are […]
This is the second of two blog posts from Curlew Action’s visit to Belgium. Read the first one – a diary detailing the different locations visited. Headstarting Belgium’s Eurasian Curlew population is supported by the small but effective headstarting project based at the wildlife rescue centre. It is a service offered for free to Natuurpunt, […]
This is the first of two blog posts from Curlew Action’s visit to Belgium. Read the second one – with further thoughts from Mary on Belgian and European Curlews. Meet Griet Nijs, a Curlew hero. She works for the conservation organisation Natuurpunt, the largest environmental charity in Belgium. Curlews are Griet’s passion, and she works […]
This is the second of two blog posts on Curlew Action’s visit to Poland, read Mary’s reflections in this blog post. The first link with Polish Curlew workers was established when a Curlew colour-ringed on the Usk estuary in Wales in January 2016 was resighted in Poland from 19 to 26 April 2018 in one […]
This is the first of two blog posts on Curlew Action’s visit to Poland. Read Mike Smart’s blog post. A warm wind blew across a very large field in Eastern Poland, it was mid-April and uncharacteristically mild. In the distance a farmer ploughed one small area, his engine a grating background to the music of […]
Did you know that 21 April is World Curlew Day! Isn’t there a day for everything? Why then does y gylfinir deserve a special day’? As is frequently the case the standard Welsh term for the Curlew – y gylfinir – describes Britain’s largest wading bird perfectly: gylfin = bill, hir = long! It’s difficult […]
In 2024, we are being joined by three guest judges for our World Curlew Day Competition! Each guest judge will assist Mary Colwell in choosing the winning entries from a category. Meet the World Curlew Day judges: Head judge: Mary Colwell Mary is a writer, TV and radio producer and conservationist, whose massive walk across […]
Farlington Marshes Nature Reserve sits within Langstone Harbour, down on the busy south coast of Hampshire. Managed by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust since the 1960s, it forms one of the most important sites in the Solent for overwintering waders and wildfowl, as well as providing a very important role for local breeding […]
I am intrigued by Lucy McRobert’s article for the Birdwatch magazine, ‘Missed Connections‘ (18/01/24). She describes University Challenge panellists being baffled by even the simplest nature questions, and astonished they had never heard of wading birds. Some of the brightest in the land know nothing about the common life that lives around them. No wonder, […]
As we say goodbye to 2023 it’s a good time to look back on the Eurasian Curlew breeding season and search for signs of optimism or despair! This summary is largely based upon results presented at the recent Curlew Forum meeting at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) Slimbridge Wetland Centre on 16 Nov 2023, […]