Fisherman Mike Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Thank you for the compliment Red Stagg any award is gratefully received.... My Colleague and Friends already think I am a geek.......... What is a Geek??? Quercus, No need for cull nature will find its own level.. FM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyni Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Birds Of Prey IMO should be watched and admired and definatley not culled or shot they are one of natures 'true hunters' and kill for food alone and cannot be compared to a fox who will kill for the sake of it. I watched BOP at the Irish game fair last year and watched in awe at their agile ability in flight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quercus Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Quercus, No need for cull nature will find its own level.. But at what cost? Why not apply the same theory to deer, foxes or pigeons for that matter? There are very few places in the British countryside that management by man is not evident or necessary. Why should sparrowhawks not be managed? Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyni Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 I am only able to read two of the above links the others are blocked. Interesting reading but it seems that the biggest problem is with the gamekeepers of grouse/partridge/pheasants. Maybe there should be a licence similar to the cormorant problem at fisheries where was proven that there is a 'problem number' of B.O.P. At the end of the day it's MAN that causes the problem by overpopulating the the natural surroundings with prey (iv'e no problem with that). CAUSE/EFFECT SYNDROME. IMO open season on B.O.P. will see there demise which I don't think anyone would want. There are very few places in the British countryside that management by man is not evident or necessary. Or has been totally ****** up by man. Im not talking about countryside pursuit folk we are in the minority that are making an effort to keep it the way it is or improve it. I hope I don't have to explain what I mean here guy's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red_stag88 Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 FM The dictionary deffintion of geek: geek noun 1. (informal) a stupid or annoying person 2. (informal) a person who is obsessed with electronic equiptment, esp. computers. Thats quite harsh actually, I hope you understand in was all in fun. I used it in the sense that your post was HUGE, you were the writer, therefor you were the post geek. Twas all in fun though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernyha Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 The dictionary deffintion of geek: RS you are not honestly expecting any of us to believe that you own a dictionary are you? Prove it by telling us the meaning of "deffintion" :yp: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonnyni Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 :yp: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red_stag88 Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Definition of deffinition: deffinition noun Alt. Sp of definition, see definition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 Red stagg........ Only taken in fun I am very thick skinned the only thing that upsets me is WestHam losing at home and the arrival of the wifes Credit Card statement.... I think description 1 of Geek applies to me.......... Quercus........ Are there sufficient numbers of Sparrow hawk to warrant management by Humans?....... I think not.... Your statement on evidence of man management of wildlife in the countryside is quite true but at whos benefit us or them??? Regards FM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiercel Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 Quercus it seems by your posts that you are in favour of a cull. The 4 links you put up, not one was an impartial view of the numbers of sparrow hawks,each one had a vested intrest in seeing a lowering of the number of sparrowhawks. Only one site was not for the benifit of man. And as for the song bird site! If there was not enough food them, the numbers of Sparrowhawks would not be there. Its not preditation that lowers the numbers of birds,animals, but habbitat loss if they have nowhere to breed then they cant! The farmers of this country grubbed up all the headgerows, how many songbirds were lost in that exersise? Ive had my rant now and feel better Tiercel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fisherman Mike Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 Quite right Tercel....... Couldnt agree more....... When I was growing up in the Cotswolds in 50,s & 60,s There were plenty of derelect barns and unkept hedgerows We played alongside the birds and animals that inhabited them....... Barn Owls... Little Owls.... Song Thrushes..... Yellow Hammers, everywhere. Ive seen flocks of 50 or more house sparrows taking dust baths in the bridle paths. Now all developed or grubbed up, no habitat, Fields and rivers sprayed with god knows what.... (and we blamed Saddam for Chemical Warfare) City dwellers have moved in and proper country folk are dying out. many of them have their noses so far up there own *** they wont even give you the time of day. Recently a well to do woman walking her dog complained because I had shot a couple of woodies ( Should,nt even have been on the land I was shooting ) and yet she had 3 cats at Home. 3 cats x 20 fledglings a year x 10 years = 600 multiply this by 50% of the cat population of GB and conclusion is F..K the hawks lets start shooting the bloody cats!!!.... All I know is that if Sparrow Hawks and Buzzard reach epidemic proportions I might consider culling as a means of Control but isnt the sight of a live adult hawk worth more than £4.00 you might get for a brace of artificially reared pheasants which arent even a indiginous species??.... FM ( Geek of the first order) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quercus Posted February 13, 2004 Report Share Posted February 13, 2004 Tiercel, yes I suppose I would support some form of managed cull. Locally, numbers of sparrowhawks and buzzards have rocketed dramatically. Although a couple of years old the information on the BTO site supports my own observations. http://www.bto.org/birdtrends/wcrsparr.htm http://www.bto.org/birdtrends/wcrbuzza.htm The same site shows an equally dramatic decrease in numbers of bullfinch, yellowhammers, starlings, tree sparrows, song thrush and other birds that are preyed upon by sparrowhawks. While there is some debate as to whether birds of prey are in some way partly responsible for this decline, I am of the opinion that they are. Certainly the Langholm Moor project proved beyond any doubt that increased numbers of harriers resulted in massively reduced populations of prey species. I see no reason why this should not apply to other birds of prey in other situations. I agree that habitat loss is responsible for reduced populations of birds, predation is however an equally important factor. This is supported by much of the Game Conservancy Trusts research and forms the basis of modern wild game management. As for the farmers being responsible for the decline in song birds, they were given considerable financial incentives by the government of the day. Also, a lot less was known about the impact of their actions at the time. Many modern farmers are doing a great deal to try to improve the wildlife value of their properties. Fisherman Mike, I think I pretty much agree with everything you have said in your post. lets start shooting the bloody cats!!!.... LOL Absolutely no comment. isnt the sight of a live adult hawk worth more than £4.00 you might get for a brace of artificially reared pheasants which arent even a indiginous species??.... I agree, but a covey of wild greys is maybe a diferent story? By the way where are you getting £4.00 a brace for your pheasants? I am at least in part playing devils advocate here, and it certainly is not my intention to fall out with or upset anyone. I am not advocating illegal persecution of birds of prey. Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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