Wild Isles

A most insightful episode of Countryfile tonight. One theme was Britain, a most nature depleted nation in the world.. It highlighted the concerns, the actions, the legislation and the solutions. We do need to take heed! From simple bug hotels to fruit box gardens to farming alongside nature to larger rewilding projects. It all makes sense.

No mention of our wonderful  Heather moorlands. The best managed and the last retreat for most of our red list species. Predator control allows ground nesting birds to thrive there. So much that 120 curlew eggs will be harvested, incubated and the young released in Southern England,  where curlews are extinct. Likewise here on our uplands because we control foxes we have a good curlew and other species numbers. All land is managed in one way or the other, even our Nature reserves and its thanks to the like of gamekeepers and farmers that wildlife still exists. Unfortunately the single issue people, so called celebrities et al dont understand the complexity of the issues.

This was pointed out, Fish, in Iolo's programme when he was in North East Wales. One of his visits was to a heather moorland site to witness Hen Harriers that were allowed to breed and had done so for decades.

There are unfortunately reserves elsewhere in the UK that undoubtedly persecute raptors to preserve Game bird stocks.

Shame that those landowners don't realise that raptors will only take sufficient food to eat, not for fun like foxes.

Iolo mentioned as he says covid and fox control is necessary. The others  on those canned programmes, Countryfile and Spring watch etc, where all the presenters do is read an autocue  could not mention such action. Insufficient depth of knowledge of how the countryside  works and their own warped agenda. Just like that bloke telling people this  week end to join Extreme Rebellion and he is supposed to present balanced programmes. As in all walks of life (Just see the police force) you have some rogues, and people latch on, every gamekeeper and farmer are tarnished, its life

Have you all seen the Telegraph article- RSPB paying to shoot Foxes and Covids away from public eye. Not news they have been doing it for decades but pay us in cash, cant go through the books. The most hypocritical organisation in the UK

News? It been going on for years.

https://protectthewild.org.uk/who-we-work-with/undercover-investigations/rspb-predator-control/

The only way to repair the damage we humans have done is to rewild wherever is possible and allow, no, help nature to sort the problem. Get rid of those barren unnatural environments which quite honestly are incapable of providing any agricultural value and help nature return. These areas are denuded of wildlife in preference for sporting profit. It can be done but it need those who truely understand the issues to step up and lead. Iolo is one of those who champions such! This would be a win, win!

Far more life in the heather moorlands than most other habitats, certainly the vast Sitka plantations. Management works as all the countryside is man made to some degree and has been since man trod the earth. The curlew situation is just one example. Those that insist on no human involvement are just bringing species extinction faster and faster, pandering to the single issue zealots. When you have hypocritical organisations like RSPB spouting their bile but doing the opposite in secret there is really no hope. In the meantime we take their cash doing our bit to help the endangered ground nesting birds and small mammals.

‘We take their cash’, so you take their cash but attack them for ‘spouting their bile’. Do you not think that very action destroys your principles?. I owned a land area that the local Hunt wanted to ride over in pursuit of Fox. I denied them access, in fact I paid handsomely to ensure they could not have the very access they wanted. . .Principles see. The cost to my wallet was high but the cost to my principles was priceless in my contentment.

I’m not advocating no human involvement, more of it in my opinion, just that right, informed, work in harmony with nature kind. Maintaining proper sympathetic natural habitats is being achieved today. The misguided and self interested who presently ‘cultivate’ uplands tracts of land principally for shooting birds claim they help certain species, truth is these species are pawns, species that have no impact on their pastime and they use them in their defence. They too certainly need help along with plenty of other species which suffer and have declined as a result of unnatural development of those rather barren tracks of land. Iolo in his protests has explained very eloquently how nature denuded these areas have become and who the people are that are doing it. 

No problem at all. I take their cash to help protect my livestock as do my mates and others. Win, win for us. It is no coincidence that the rapid decline in ground nesting birds came after the banning of hounds. The red coated, horse riding mob actually caught very few. It did drastically impede the driving of foxes out of thousands of acres of impenetrable sitka to guns. Alternative means are snares which are indiscriminate and hardly instantaneous. Likewise night shooting is effective if a quick kill is made in the narrow light beam. Those injured of course slink away with no follow up. That is what happens when single issue or political driven action takes place. A reaction occurs not necessary for the benefit intended. So the decline n wildlife carries on.