Innehållsförteckning för March 2017 från Bird Watching

ONE OF the most satisfying ticks on my #My200BirdYear list so far was a single Barnacle Goose among a huge flock of Pinkfeet on the Black Isle on New Year’s Day, and on page 74, Jonny Rankin shows how focusing on watching one family of birds invariably brings you a few pleasant surprises. By the time you read this, wild geese will be starting to head north, and the breeding season will be beginning, and this issue looks at why it’s a great time of year to see a greater variety and number of birds. It all starts on page 22. Finally, we take a pictorial look back at the extraordinary rare birds of 2016. If it inspires you to get out and look for your own rarities in 2017,…

MARCH IS THE time when the first true summer migrants appear. Classically, these include Sand Martin, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Little Ringed Plover, Sandwich Tern and Wheatear. These are all great birds to look forward to this month, as are these five alternative birds to catch up with this month. RARITY RATINGS Common, widely distributed Localised – always a treat Very scarce or rare BRAMBLING The Brambling is a bird of the north and east in Europe, with the tiniest possible breeding population in the UK (one or two pairs). It is essentially a winter visitor to the UK, also found on passage. So, we tend to see them in winter plumage, when they are very pretty but not quite as spectacular as the black and orange breeding garb. They start returning…

“Their incredible recovery, once released from persecution, is testament to the adaptability of this species” I OFTEN SEE BUZZARDS near my home; small groups soaring in clear springtime skies, or single birds sitting impassively in the roadside trees. British Buzzards are resident, occupying territories roughly a kilometre across all year round, so the birds I see must nest nearby; it’s exciting to think that in a tree very close to home there will be a massive Buzzard’s nest, at least a metre across. There aren’t actually that many large trees here in the open, arable landscape at the edge of the Fens, and I often look through the small copses, wondering where they might be nesting. For 10 years now, Buzzards have been Britain’s commonest bird of prey, with a…

“It was more bothered by a couple of spaniels... and showed a great reluctance to dive while the dogs were on the bank” WHEN YOU ARE out birdwatching in a familiar area, do you have a habit of looking at a particular patch of scrub or pool or grassy slope and remembering a bird you’ve seen there previously? I do, and I often have a strong longing to see that kind of bird again in the same spot. In the spring there are certain short-cropped fields with rough hedge linings, which I know have attracted Ring Ouzels (and I always hope they will again). And on certain gravel pits and lakes, I remember previous Little Terns which have dropped in and dream of more. But there are other places where…

“The more we adopt this mindful way of being, the more we will do for birds” MINDFULNESS SEEMS to be the buzzword of the last year or so… it’s a therapeutic technique, the idea being that you achieve a desired mental state by focusing your awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting your feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations etc. It’s not a new idea of course, just a recasting of an old one. Hindus were meditating 3,500 years ago! Our pastimes are not all adrenaline rich activity, some are very much in the mindful mode. Isaac Walton wrote in The Complete Angler (1653) “God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation than angling.” He also reported Sir Henry Wotton saying “…angling was an employment for…

The ideal temperature for most species to incubate their eggs is 38°C Dunnocks take 0.1 seconds to copulate and can mate more than 100 times a day In the breeding season, around 10 times as many birds visit your garden as you actually see – if you regularly see five Great Tits on your feeders, around 50 are visiting The Stock Dove may be the most prolific breeder of British birds – it regularly attempts four broods each year Grey Partridges lay 15-16 eggs in most clutches, and sometimes as many as 19 Robins can have up to three clutches a year, with up to nine eggs in each 70-80% of mating at leks involves just 10-20% of the males present Great Spotted Woodpeckers can incubate their eggs for as…

Get in touch with Bird Watching Bird Watching, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA birdwatching@bauermedia.co.uk facebook.com/BirdWatchingMag twitter.com/BirdWatchingMag White-tailed Eagle with catch by John Cobham Camera: Nikon D7100 Lens: 200-500mm Shutter Speed: 1/2,500 Aperture: f/7.1 ISO: 1,000 Male Bearded Tit by Julia Brooks Clark Camera: Canon EOS 70D Lens: 150-500mm Shutter Speed: 1/640 Aperture: f/6.3 ISO: 500 Bullfinch by Terry Hancock Camera: Canon EOS 7D Lens: 150-600mm Shutter Speed: 1/200 Aperture: f/6.3 ISO: 1,250 Snow Buntings by Julian Keeble Camera: Canon EOS 7D Mark II Lens: 100-400mm Shutter Speed: 1/50 Aperture: f/6.3 ISO: 250 A birding experience that I will never forget I write in response to your ‘best bird’ in Matt Merritt’s welcome section in the December 2016 issue of Bird Watching. Your description of seeing the Eleonora’s Falcon…

1 FORT GEORGE A great vantage point for watching migrants and other birds, too 2 FALLS OF CLYDE A must-visit site offering Dipper, Grey Wagtail and Goosander. Wood Warbler is possible 3 POTTERIC CARR With more than 600 acres to enjoy there’s no wonder some say this is one of the North’s best reserves. It boasts birds galore! 4 STRUMPSHAW FEN A well-known site for reedbed birds. Bearded Tits and Bittern breed here, but wildfowl are plentiful, too, so there’s much to see 5 HOPESAY HILL Described as a ‘raptors’ paradise’, this site near the Welsh border is well worth a visit 6 KEMERTON LAKE Birds, dragonflies, damselflies and a mixture of flora will be on your doorstep with a visit to this area 7 PURWELL NINESPRINGS A little-known nature…

HERE WE HAVE another great wetland saved from agriculture by subsidence from past mining activity. The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust has been involved in the 600-plus acre complex since 1968. The site attracted public attention in 1984, when a pair of Little Bitterns bred. The many hides and walk ways give you easy access to watch for wildlife with added feeders and management which have attracted many passage waders, including Black-winged Stilt, Red-necked Phalarope, Wood, Curlew, Green and Common Sandpipers. Islands allow Black-headed and Mediterranean Gulls to nest along with waders, such as Avocet and Little Ringed Plover, not forgetting Lapwing and also Oystercatcher. The reedbeds have large numbers of Reed and Sedge Warblers along with a few pairs of Cetti’s Warblers. Marsh Harriers bred for the first time in 2014,…

KEMERTON LAKE NATURE Reserve is the flagship reserve of the Kemerton Conservation Trust. At about 18 hectares, this former gravel workings offers a pleasant ramble in this rather secluded setting, nestling within the shadows of Bredon Hill. A good variety of birds have been recorded at the reserve, including breeding Pochard, Oystercatcher and passage Garganey and increasingly Little Egret, while it is also an excellent site for wintering wildfowl and an important county site for Snipe and particularly Jack Snipe, although the latter are harder to see. The reserve hosts an impressive roost of several thousand Starlings which congregate in the reedbed at dusk. The site is also notable for dragonflies and damselflies, with about 23 species recorded, while the varied flora includes local rarities such as Clustered Bellflower, Sea…

THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE throughout this birding walk could not be more dramatic as the walker starts on the flatlands of the Romney Marsh, beside the Royal Military Canal, and rises up into the wooded country of the Low Weald. On a clear day, the views to the south across the marshes can be wonderful, all the way to the English Channel. The riparian habitat along the water course with patches of reed, scrub and shallows attracts a wide range of birds, particularly when the water level is low, and where Great White Egrets are increasingly noted. Migrant raptors often follow the southern edge of the Low Weald and early spring is ideal for seeing continental Red Kites on the move. Arable fields either side of the canal are perfect for…

Stefanie Browne is a volunteer at a Lincolnshire-based wildlife centre, where she helps raise the new arrivals – including baby owls. Page 30 David Tomlinson is helping to establish a Tree Sparrow colony at his Suffolk home. Could you do the same? Find out on page 44 Dominic Couzens on how the Twite has adapted to survive the hostile environment of bitterly-cold estuaries. Find out more on page 70 Johnny Rankin explains how targeting one family of birds can really boost your tick list – read about his ‘Goose Fest’ success on page 74 Ed Hutchings highlights the birding hotspots to visit when you’re next in the beautiful county of West Sussex. Plan your trip on page 80 Urban Birder David Lindo heads for a spot of birding in the…

Here we go again with another educated stab in the dark, trying to predict an extreme rarity for March, based on former records of birds which have occurred in the country. ROCK THRUSH There have been fewer than 30 accepted records of this mountain loving, red-tailed thrush, only three of which have been in this millennium. Though April is probably a better bet for one turning up, one in March would not be unprecedented. LESSER KESTREL The Minsmere, Suffolk, male of 2010 was present for four days in late March, so an early spring record is possible for this very rare European falcon. Perhaps this March? AMERICAN ROBIN Every year various presumed autumn arrivals appear as if by magic, often in a garden or a park. Could an American Robin…

Find the location closest to your destination and add or subtract the hours and minutes from the high tide time at London Bridge, below. SOUTH WEST Weston-Super-Mare (+5:05) Barnstaple (+4:30) Newquay (+3:32) Falmouth (+3:30) Plymouth (+4:05) Torquay (+4:40) Bournemouth (-5:09)* Portland (+4:57) St Peter Port (+4:53) Swanage (-5:19)* Portsmouth (-2:29) Southampton (-2:53) SOUTH EAST Ryde (-2:29) Brighton (-2:51) Eastbourne (-2:48) Dungeness(-3:05) Dover (-2:53) Margate (-1:52) Herne Bay (-1:24) Southend-on-sea (-1:22) Clacton-on-sea (-2:00) EAST ANGLIA FelixstowePier (-2:23) Aldeburgh (-2:53) Lowestoft (-4:23) Cromer (+4:56) Hunstanton (+4:44) WALES Colwyn Bay (-2:47) Holyhead (-3:28) Barmouth (-5:45) Aberystwyth (-6:11) Fishguard (+5:44) Swansea (+4:42) Milford Haven (+4:37) Cardiff (+5:15) NORTH WEST Whitehaven (-2:30) Douglas(-2:44) Morecambe (-2:33) Blackpool (-2:50) NORTH EAST Skegness(+4:29) Grimsby (+4:13) Bridlington (+2:58) Whitby (+2:20) Hartlepool (+1:59) Blyth (+1:46) Berwick (+0:54) SCOTLAND Leith (+0:58)…

“In larger groups, more birds can be on the look-out for predators at any one time” SCIENTISTS FROM THE Universities of Bristol and Groningen, in the Netherlands, have created a computer game style experiment which offers new and more certain answers to one of birdwatching’s most-asked questions – why exactly do Starlings form murmurations? Each of these gatherings can hold thousands of birds, and scientists have now observed that flocks of Starlings are larger, and more densely packed, in areas with more predators, such as raptors, and that attacks by such predators are less likely to succeed against larger groups of Starlings. In larger groups, more birds can be on the look-out for predators at any one time, and there is evidence that larger groups also allow faster transfer of…

THE BRITISH ORNITHOLOGISTS’ Union (BOU) will adopt the International Ornithological Congress (IOC) World Bird List from 1 January 2018, after a detailed review. For dedicated listers, it could mean several ‘armchair ticks’ on their British lists. The four main global avian taxonomic authorities (eBird/Clements, HBW/BirdLife, Howard & Moore and IOC World Bird List) were invited to submit proposals. BOU’s landmark decision will mean changes for its British List, as a number of ‘splits’ are currently recognised by IOC but not BOU. Changes include: Isabelline and Red-tailed Shrikes to be considered two different species. Taiga and Tundra Bean Goose to be considered two species. Fea’s Petrel and Desertas Petrel become two species. Thayer’s Gull recognised as full species, not as subspecies of Iceland Gull. Two-barred Warbler becomes full species, not subspecies…

BIRDIE BOOST FOR COURSE Greetham Valley, in Rutland, has been crowned 2017 Environmental Golf Course of the Year. The award recognises venues which demonstrate environmental best practice. Its initiatives include wildflower meadows, a solitary bee tower, a series of nesting boxes for birds and bats, a reedbed and 17 new ponds, wildlife-friendly drystone and log walls, bird feeders, feeding towers and hides, and a floating bird island. VISITOR CENTRE FOR FOREST An RSPB-led consortium has been granted planning permission to build a new state-of-the-art visitor centre in Sherwood Forest. To be built at the Forest Corner in Edwinstowe, the £5.3m project will be a gateway to the forest that is home to a wide variety of wildlife, from birds to rare insects, as well as the iconic Major Oak –…

FOLLOWING THE 1746 defeat at Culloden of Bonnie Prince Charlie, George II created the ultimate defence against further Jacobite unrest. The result, Fort George, is the mightiest artillery fortification in Britain, if not Europe. It sits on the narrows of the Moray Firth, with Chanonry Point on the opposite side (to the south-west) and a large tidal push between the two. The fort is still used for training but open to the public with shooting ranges in the area. Many of the birds using the firth pass through here on migration as well as moving from feeding grounds, so it is a great place to catch up with passage skuas in May, with 2013 being a great year for especially Long-tailed Skua passage, while, in contrast, January 2016 was amazing…

STRUMPSHAW FEN WAS one of the early RSPB reserves on its purchase in 1974. It is in the Broads National Park, six miles away from Norwich. It is a mixed habitat with the River Yare at one end with intensive reedbeds, open water, grazing marshes and carr adding to the variety. It’s well-known for its reedbed birds, with Bittern and Bearded Tits breeding and Marsh Harrier arriving after becoming extinct as a breeder in Britain. Cetti’s Warblers have become permanent residents as they march north, along with Little Egret and occasional drop-ins by Great White Egret, Glossy Ibis and also Little Bittern. Wildfowl are plentiful, with Garganey in spring and plenty of Teal and Wigeon in winter. A harrier roost in winter can add Hen Harrier to your visit, along…

LOCATED BEHIND A housing estate in Hitchin, this little gem of a nature reserve, only 6.4 hectares in size, is so well hidden that hardly anyone knows of its existence. Managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust, Purwell Ninesprings is the top spot in North Hertfordshire for Water Voles. Running alongside a bridleway, this open water site doesn’t just attract water loving mammals but also a wide variety of birds who are enticed to the mixture of reedbeds, meadows and also mature Alder woodland. Sightings here include Reed Warblers in spring and summer, Little Egrets and Green Woodpeckers. Take your wellies along, as even at the driest time of year, the trail through the reserve can be soggy. SITE GUIDE GRID REF: TL206293 POSTCODE: SG3 0NT HOW TO GET…

IT IS STILL quite possible to go quietly birding on an island as small as Jersey. This wander around a very specific area in the north of this lovely sunny island has always been both attractive and productive. There are small fields here which speak of continuing farming practice, as well as stands of pines and genuine hedgerows all with a rugged coastal backdrop. The hedgerows can be very good at migration times and I have encountered Redstart, both regular flycatchers and numerous warbler species in and around. Relatively recently, farming has included growing sunflowers, further differentiating an already fascinating ‘patch’. While the sunflowers have only concealed Stock Doves and large flocks of Linnets for me – as well as an inevitable quartering Marsh Harrier – they may do better…

TARGETING A FAMILY of birds, a particular avian spectacle, or even a single species, can get your #My200BirdYear list ticking along much quicker than you’d think – whatever the reason for getting out into the field, you’ll suddenly start finding birds you didn’t know were there. The evening of Friday, 27 February, 2015 saw six ornithologists with a predisposition towards wildfowl converge on the Caerlaverock Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) reserve, Dumfries, for the inaugural Goose Fest! It was the brainchild of friends Tristan Reid and Jonny Holliday, who devised it over a beer at the preceding year’s Birdfair. Thereafter, Jonny touted the idea round a few more people, and Tris contacted Caerlaverock WWT to arrange accommodation. Phil Cruttenden, Sven Wair, Sir Robert Yaxley and I completed the team. One…

“And then there’s that wailing call of the loons, a mournful and haunting sound, that to many, me included, surpasses all others” WHATEVER YOU CALL the vast open landscape of the Scottish Highlands, there are many images that epitomise the hills, glens, straths, lochs and coastline. Red Deer stags, Salmon and Golden Eagle to name but a few. For many naturalists who regularly explore this wilderness, it is not the visual images but the sounds that haunt these vast areas, that really resonate. For many, the Greenshank has one of the most evocative of all bird calls, such as the flight notes described as “tew, tew, tew”, although this will often mean the bird has been disturbed in territory. For me, the most attractive call is in the spring, when…

THE SIGN SAID: “Welcome to the most southerly city in the world”. However, the word city is a rather lavish description for this urban centre. Located on the shores of the Beagle Channel, in the province of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, this strip of coastal humanity is the gateway to Antarctica, a two-day sail to the south. A range of mountains encircle Ushuaia, the foothills of which are cloaked in forest that is, unfortunately, being eroded away by unregulated development. Ushuaia has the look of a frontier town that has rather oddly been twinned with Eilat in Israel. Walk through the streets in the centre of town and see people from all over the world united by their backpacks and their quest to visit the numerous outdoor and equipment shops.…

COUNTRY INNOVATION PUFFIN ZIP OFF JACKET, £125 Billed as their warmest jacket ever, the Puffin is stuffed with ‘Primaloft Gold’, which, weight for weight, is as toasty as down. Plus, it’s breathable and has great water repellency, so you stay dry and cosy whatever the weather does. And it’s highly compressible but regains its loft quickly. The Puffin is versatile, too – you can wear it on its own, unzip the sleeves to turn it into a gilet, or use it under another layer. Comes in sizes S-XXL. countryinnovation.com KEELA MEN’S MERINO LONG-SLEEVED TOP, £54.95 Keela’s new range of merino base-layers includes this top, a women’s version, as well as men’s and women’s leggings. Made from 200gsm Merino, which helps keep you warm, but breathes, too. These garments resist nasty…

Many birds nest in holes. Some nest in natural cavities, some in ones they have excavated themselves. Only very few British birds habitually make holes in banks by water bodies, or cliff faces of quarries etc. In fact, there are only two British breeding birds which make such holes. Find an active hole and you can get insights into these birds’ breeding behaviour (watched from a discrete distance, of course). SAND MARTIN Sand Martins are colonial nesters and excavate tunnels in vertical banks in soft rock or compacted sand or mud, often next to water. They will return to previously occupied burrows. The tunnels are a few centimetres in diameter and can be up to metre in depth. The are often arranged in rows near the top of a cliff,…

More predators and less gulls are among the reasons being suggested for the recent decline of Pochards. An investigation in the latest issue of Wildfowl, the international scientific journal of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT), looked at why the number of Pochards migrating to the UK for winter has decreased by 60% since the 1980s, despite the number that breed here doubling over the same period. This decrease reflects widespread declines in breeding numbers recorded elsewhere across Europe. A paper by 29 researchers from across Europe says several changes are likely to have contributed to the Pochards’ decline. Firstly, the decline of Black-headed Gulls, whose colonies are used for protection by many other nesting birds, including Pochards, is suggested. An increase in the amount of nutrients washed off farmland…

At least 120 young Red Kites fledged in Dunfries & Galloway in 2016 People visiting Dumfries and Galloway to see the region’s Red Kites have contributed more than £8.2m to the local economy. The raptors were reintroduced to an area north of Castle Douglas from 2001 and two years later the Galloway Kite Trail was launched as a partnership project led by RSPB Scotland. Now, an economic survey carried out by the conservation organisation, found that between 2004 and 2015, the trail attracted more than 100,000 visitors to the area, and that £8.2m of spending was directly attributable to people who came to the region to see Red Kites. The Galloway Kite Trail is a community-based project facilitated by RSPB Scotland, in partnership with Forestry Commission Scotland and Bellymack Hill…

Baytree Owl & Wildlife Centre is run by Mark Birdsall, who has been passionate about birds since his childhood. He took over running the centre about two years ago and has been slowly transforming it ever since. As well as a wide variety of birds, the centre houses a Red Squirrel (soon to become part of the national breeding programme for wild releases) and two Foxes. Mark has plans to expand the species in future to provide a way for visitors to get closer to our native wildlife, while a new Conservation Corner teaches visitors how they can get involved in protecting Britain’s wildlife in their own gardens. Schools visit the centre frequently when the students are studying nocturnal behaviour or bird life to give the children the opportunity to…

THE FALLS OF Clyde are one of the wonders of this area of Lanarkshire, with the World Heritage Site of New Lanark making this a must-visit attraction. Its river was the main reason for the mills being built here and upstream, you’ll find, there is also a hydroelectric scheme at Bonnington. This plant was built in 1927 and was the first hydroelectric power station in Scotland. With so much water, it is not surprising that the key species are Dipper and Grey Wagtail, with Goosander as well. Don’t forget to look for Grey Heron and Kingfisher. Otters are another great find, and the site was also famous for its pair of nesting Peregrines. Recent years have not been favourable to them and you are more likely to see them nesting…

THIS LOVELY, WILD area of Shropshire was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1952 and remains an area of rough hill pasture containing bracken and gorse, together with a stream in the valley and a wide variety of trees. This is a good birding area so long as you have plenty of energy! The name Hopesay is interesting, too, as the De Say family owned the area of land called Hope, so it was Hope de Say originally. This area really is a raptors’ paradise! Some people call it Buzzard country because they are always around but, more and more, we are seeing the flexing and torquing tail of the Red Kite overhead, the totemic bird of Wales, but now well over the border into southern Shropshire. There is a…

RISING IN THE Black Mountains, the Monnow, for much of its 40-mile length, delineates the border between England and Wales, before merging with the Wye at Monmouth. A remarkable feature close to the end its journey and easily found at the lower end of Monnow Street is Monnow Bridge, one of only two remaining fortified river bridges in Great Britain. Built in 1272, it was probably ineffective in defensive terms but jolly useful both as a means of collecting tolls and as a good place for annual battles between those who lived in the main town and those on the outskirts. The bridge is an excellent location for a walk downstream towards the confluence with the much larger River Wye. One surprise is passing an information board with a picture…

THIS MONTH’S CHALLENGE is all about long-necked birds. Or to be more precise, it’s about large, long-necked, long-legged birds. That clarification was just in case you were expecting swans and geese. No, this is about the disparate bunch of not necessarily closely related birds, including heron, egrets, storks and cranes. That is, birds which have long necks and long legs in common. Many of these species are not particularly difficult to identify, so we have made it a tad more ‘challenging’ by providing you with some slightly more ‘realistic’ field views, including a few silhouettes or near-silhouettes. Have a look through this selection of six birds, name them, then, as usual, turn for our solutions and turn again for more ID tips. And, please let us know, at the usual…

CLEY MARSHES NWT: North Norfolk is blessed with a great variety of wintering geese. Pink-footed and Brent dominate, though, and large skeins of both will be encountered overhead. It’s when these flocks are grounded that there’s the best chance of picking out something rarer, like a Bean Goose or a Black Brant. Visit website: http://bit.ly/2iJIkXt RATTRAY HEAD, ABERDEENSHIRE: A total of 70,000 Pink-footed Geese roost on the neighbouring Loch of Strathbeg RSPB reserve and feed in the fields around Rattray Head. The two sites are also good for other wildfowl, such as Whooper Swans. Raptors will undoubtedly be present. RSPB website: http://bit.ly/2j3IPNe FERRY BRIDGE, PORTLAND, DORSET: Foulness, Essex and Frampton Marsh, Lincolnshire, get superb congregations of dark-bellied birds, whereas Holy Island, Northumberland, and Strangford Loch, Northern Ireland, offer excellent pale-bellied…

RED GROUSE: Commonest of the four, and found among the heather in many areas of open moorland – you might even see them skimming across moorland roads. Dark brown with a reddish tinge, the males have bright red ‘eyebrows’, and make a loud, nasal bark. Large groups possible, as well as single birds. BLACK GROUSE: Larger than Red Grouse, and usually found on woodland edges or in clear-felled areas. Males are blue-black with red brows and white undertails, which they fan prominently when displaying to each other at leks. They continue to do this even when females aren’t present – early morning is the best time to look for them. PTARMIGAN: In summer, they will have lost much if not all of their white plumage, so can be hard to…

THE NATURE EXPLORER’S SCRAPBOOK Caz Buckingham, Andrea Pinnington Fine Feather Press, HB, £16.99, BW Bookshop £8.49 if you quote BW-K17 This is terrific – not only do the 80 pages contain a huge amount of information to fire young imaginations, but there are a variety of ‘adventures’ to ensure that they get to discover things for themselves. Where collecting is unethical, youngsters are encouraged to take photos of their finds, but what’s great is that every child who uses this book is going to end up with a very personal version, telling the story of their own discovery of wildlife. RSPB MY FIRST WILDLIFE STICKER ACTIVITY BOOK Illustrated by Gina Maldonado Bloomsbury, SB, £4.99, BW Bookshop £3.99 This book aims to get young children interested in widlife by giving them…

You don’t get much rest as a male Black Grouse. While the full-on lek – with females watching the males fight it out, before choosing the winners as mates – only lasts a couple of months in spring, the males spend much of the rest of the year facing off in preparation for the main event. Visit a lek site at dawn and you’ll be treated to an exhilarating display of braggadocio, with white undertail feathers flared, red ‘eyebrows’ flaming, and a variety of loud, explosive calls.…