By Mary Colwell and Russell Wynn Summary Finland has a human population of 5.5 million, the UK is nearly 70 million. Finland in 1.4 times larger than the UK. Most people live in the south of Finland. More than 75% of Finland’s land area is forested, but these forests are significantly different to UK woodlands, …
curlew action fact-finding mission to finland: May 2023 Read More »
Day 4 – Curlews in North Karelia It makes sense when you see curlews in vast peatlands. A large brown bird doesn’t look so big or stand out so much in the vast mires of North Karelia, in fact it looks small, and it blends into the background, camouflaged against the browns, whites, and greys …
Finland – Day 3. Linnunsuo wetland and Liperi to see the curlews in the nesting areas in the western part of North Karelia. The sun glinted off the freshwater pools, and the azure sky was filled with the sound of hundreds of little gulls and migrating barnacle geese. In the shallows were dabbling shoveler, teal, …
This morning, before we left Helsinki, we were hosted by Nina Mikander, Global Director of Policy for Birdlife International. She put on a magnificent brunch – a big thank you from Curlew Action! Our conversation was wide-ranging, from the declining status of ‘meadow birds’, of which curlew are just one, to the main threats facing …
Saturday 13th By Mary Colwell We are on our way to Helsinki! A small group from Curlew Action – Professor Russ Wynn (a trustee and ecologist/naturalist), Ellen Bradley (Manager of Curlew Action) and myself – are on a mission to explore the relationship between curlews and trees and predators, a complex but increasingly vital interaction …
Next to my home in central Bristol is a block of flats that saw fame in the BBC series, The Outlaws, which used them as the set for desolate, inner-city living. In a small patch of waste ground in the midst of the concrete someone has created a mini garden, complete with flowers, herbs and …
The Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus, is aptly named for having one of the longest bills of all shorebirds in America. Its plumage contains shades of light brown, speckled with cinnamon and a paler underbelly. Its curved bill is complemented by a long, elegant neck and slender long legs to help the Long-billed Curlew traverse through …
Sometimes it helps to set aside a day to shine a light on something important, and for a number of reasons I chose April 21st for World Curlew Day. It happens to be the birthday of my environmental hero, John Muir, who was born in 1838. It is the average first laying date for curlews …
The aptly named Little Curlew (Numenius minutus), is the smallest of the Curlew species. Its long neck and upright posture give it an elegant appearance as it walks through the grasslands it inhabits on its slender blue-grey legs. Its upper body is speckled with buff, brown and black feathers, whilst its lower body has a …
The Far-Eastern curlew, Numenius madagascariensis, is the largest migratory shorebird in the world. Its iconic curved bill is well known across the many countries that span the East Asian and Australasian Flyway. Its famous call is similar to that of the Eurasian curlew, but noticeably deeper in tone. Despite its status as a well-loved bird …
Photo by Annemarie Loof By Mary Colwell. I can’t think of a more Irish bird than the Curlew, that singer of bitter-sweet songs over fields and bogs that heralds the start of warmer days. Come April, the bubbling call builds into a crescendo of urgent notes, at once sad and ecstatic, and it never fails …
By Lottie Trewick In the latest Curlew Action webinar, The Cost of a Curlew, we took a closer look at the economics of nature. A complicated and sometimes controversial topic; some argue putting a price on nature is the best way to save it, whilst others regard it as another cog in the wheel of …
By Mary Colwell The Eurasian Curlew is such an important indicator of the health of landscapes, not just in the very western end of its range in the UK and Ireland, but right across Europe. This is a bird that breeds on the wet peat bogs of Southern Ireland and across the wild steppes of …
In October 2022 we held a webinar on Curlews and Predators. Predation of Curlew eggs and chicks is one of the leading causes of their decline. It is an emotive and complicated topic to discuss, but it is important these discussions are held so that we can get closer to the solution of such a …
Written by Mary Colwell. I’d like to think there is one thing we can all agree on – at a time of mounting ecological stress where species are thinning out or disappearing at an unprecedented rate, everyone should be much kinder to the natural world. And I use that word ‘kinder’ with care. Kind has …
Mary Colwell is the Founder and Director of Curlew Action. She has worked tirelessly to raise awareness about the plight of the Curlew. For eleven years, she spearheaded the campaign for a GCSE in Natural History, which was confirmed earlier this year and will be in schools from September 2025. The team at Curlew Action …
Anyone who has heard the call of the Curlew knows they are worth protecting in their own right, their evocative, eerie cry across a moor or a mudflat belongs to the soul of our wild places. To add to their significance as an iconic and much loved British bird, they are what is known as …
Umbrella species: why saving curlew helps more than curlew Read More »
“A GCSE in Natural History is a unique opportunity for young people to engage with wildlife in a structured, guided way, to learn the skills of a naturalist at a time when we need them more than ever. I am so delighted it is, at last, a reality.” – Mary Colwell At a meeting of …
Blog post by Ellen Bradley & Phillip Edwards The impact that the natural world has on our air quality, our soil fertility and our water purity is, by now, well understood. But what about our culture? For millennia, the wildlife around us has been inspiring poets, artists and writers. Without the astonishing array of plants, …
Following their hugely successful 2021 campaign, Natural Kingdom: Wild Walls, UK Youth for Nature, the UK’s leading youth group calling on governments and politicians to tackle the loss of nature, is once again sending a clear message to our government that nature cannot wait. Last year, Curlew Action supported the youth group with their campaign …
Young people draw lines in the sand over nature loss Read More »