Choughs to be (re)introduced to Kent (1 Viewer)

[lockbreeze926]

Chough to be reintroduced to Kent

The first birds will be released in the coming weeks.

www.birdguides.com

 

[Julie50]

Hope it works

 

[PYRTLE]

There was a piece about this on the Beeb this evening. Seems the Cornish birds have been accepted by most birders but will the Kent birds be as welcome? I've personally only ever seen the Anglesey birds in the UK.

 

[Julie50]

Furthest south I’ve seen then is Malvern Hills.

 

[Andy Adcock]

There was a piece about this on the Beeb this evening. Seems the Cornish birds have been accepted by most birders but will the Kent birds be as welcome? I've personally only ever seen the Anglesey birds in the UK.

Why wouldn't they be Pat, were they native to Kent?

Wallcreeper would be nice

 

[jurek]

Great idea!

Technically, British nature is islands on an island. Patches of habitat are isolated by human development and wildlife cannot cross between them. Much can be done for conservation simply by moving sedentary species over man-made barriers - Cirl Buntings, Corncrakes, Choughs and so on.

 

[Richard D]

Choughs certainly were native to Kent (appear on Canterbury's coat of arms). The cliff-top habitat should be fine. I'm not against the idea, particularly as they appear to be largely sedentary - whether the costs of the project are the best use of limited funds I don't know.

 

[Paul Chapman]

Prospecting birds have appeared in Somerset and natural expansion is perfectly possible. My recollection is that human persecution played a significant role in extinctions but I am away from my copy of the Historical Atlas.

Personally, I wish every penny spent on this was instead spent on purchasing land to save it from chemicals and development.

All the best

Paul

 

[Phil Andrews]

Choughs certainly were native to Kent (appear on Canterbury's coat of arms). The cliff-top habitat should be fine. I'm not against the idea, particularly as they appear to be largely sedentary - whether the costs of the project are the best use of limited funds I don't know.

I think the answer to the last line is surely "no" - far better to spend it on broader habitat restoration/protection to serve a far wider swath of species

 

[Bismarck Honeyeater]

There was a piece about this on the Beeb this evening. Seems the Cornish birds have been accepted by most birders but will the Kent birds be as welcome? I've personally only ever seen the Anglesey birds in the UK.

The Cornish birds introduced themselves (from Ireland or France, I can’t remember). The I’ll fated, and possibly Ill prepared, human re-introduction failed. Let’s hope the Kentish plan was better thought out.

 

[PYRTLE]

I was beaten to naming and giving the example of Cirl Bunting, a species now restricted to and "managed" to some suitable coastal valleys yet it was a breeding native species in many Southern and Home counties..... I too would rather see funds channelled into habitat aquirement but the bigger picture is far more important. Good luck to the scheme though.
Interesting footnote in that the Cornish reintroduction failed, how come?

 

[Bismarck Honeyeater]

Prospecting birds have appeared in Somerset and natural expansion is perfectly possible.

And Devon & Dorset. Money would be best spent preparing clifftop habitat in IoW, Hampshire & Sussex for their natural spread. They will get to Kent when they are ready.

 

[Phil Andrews]

The Cornish birds introduced themselves (from Ireland or France, I can’t remember). The I’ll fated, and possibly Ill prepared, human re-introduction failed. Let’s hope the Kentish plan was better thought out.

Not sure the source was ever established as per the British Birds article

 

[Jon Turner]

I think one of the reintroduction attempts in Cornwall was based at the Paradise Park Centre in Hayle. A cage of Choughs (12?) were kept there for a while pending something or other. A huge gale blew through an sent a great branch down on top of the Chough cage. next morning they had all gone, and were never seen again. ....

 

[Jack Dawe]

Not sure the source was ever established as per the British Birds article

I'm sure I read that DNA evidence subsequently established that the Cornish birds were from the Irish population.

 

[Phil Andrews]

I'm sure I read that DNA evidence subsequently established that the Cornish birds were from the Irish population.

Cornish choughs returned from Republic of Ireland: Study

The Cornish chough population, which returned to the county in 2001, came from the Republic of Ireland, a study suggests.

www.bbc.com

 

[Phil Andrews]

I think one of the reintroduction attempts in Cornwall was based at the Paradise Park Centre in Hayle. A cage of Choughs (12?) were kept there for a while pending something or other. A huge gale blew through an sent a great branch down on top of the Chough cage. next morning they had all gone, and were never seen again. ....

Can't find any reference online to Choughs escaping from Paradise Park - birds raised there appear to have been released in Jersey and is now also the source of the Kent reintroduction scheme.

 

[hopster]

I saw my first pair of Choughs last week near Nash Point lighthouse in the Vale of Glamorgan. Was a little confused about an apparent Crow with red beak and legs but I had a vague memory from one of my old birding books about such a thing and checked when I got home.

 

[Essex Tern]

I just spent a few days in Anglesey with the Choughs being one of my reasons for going - they are great birds and I look forward to them being closer to home.

 

[Bewick]

There was a piece about this on the Beeb this evening. Seems the Cornish birds have been accepted by most birders but will the Kent birds be as welcome? I've personally only ever seen the Anglesey birds in the UK.

I've only seen them on the Pembrokeshire coast path and Ramsey island.