Category: Wildlife Habitat: Ocean & Sea Conservation

1. Calling all bird lovers! It's World Migratory Bird Day on 9 May 2020

   Posted on 9:00pm Wednesday 6th May 2020

   On the 9th May 2020 (and 10 October 2020), it’s World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD for short).  It’s a global campaign  and it’s dedicated to raising awareness of migratory birds and the need for countries around the world to co-operate in their efforts to save them. This year, the theme is “Birds Connect Our World”. It was picked to highlight how important it is to conserve and restore the ecological connectivity and integrity of ecosystems which support the natural cycles that are essential for migratory birds to survive and thrive. The day gives us all an opportunity to discover more about migratory birds and be in awe at their amazing feats. Migratory birds need networks with stops Migratory birds travel far.  They need to be able to stop to rest and feed and breed. If you like, you could liken it as a journey along a motorway system and every so often, they need to stop for a break to fill their tummies and have a break. Birds need networks of sites They need a network of sites along these routes to breed, to feed, to rest and spend the winter.  They need different sites and habitats, irrelevant of which country they are in. They can cross incredible distances and over impossible terrains such as deserts and open seas.  They cross national borders and soar above any national agenda.  What they do need is for countries to co-operate to ensure their routes are kept open and safe for them.    Examples of migratory birds’ routes The East Asian – Australasian Flyway goes from the Russian Far East and Alaska through East Asia and South-East Asia, down to Australia and New Zealand – 22 countries in all.  The Flyway is home to over 50 million migratory waterbirds from over 250 different populations.   They need a system of wetlands to rest, feed and build up the energy they need for the next part of their journey.  Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust has an example of swan’s migrating from Slimbridge up to their tundra breeding grounds in the Russian Arctic.  RSPB has information about the Arctic tern who travels a rather amazing 22,000 miles a year – the longest migration of all – as they move continually between the Arctic summer and the Antarctic summer.   Swifts breed throughout Europe as far north as Lapland and the Arctic Circle, reaching east across Asia to China. So you can see how important it is that countries work together to give these birds the flight paths they need, with all the facilities along the way. What can be done at a national/international level: Increase action globally via environment treaties such as the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and the Africa-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA).  These are vital to protect migratory birds on their international flight paths. Creating habitat corridors which are protected and which go across boundaries would really help animals who migrate and fly over national boundaries.  Networks of crucial sites which are imperative to migration needs must be safeguarded and managed properly.  Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas as described by BirdLife International give migratory birds all they need during their long flights - necessary feeding, breeding, nesting and sheltering grounds. What individuals like you & me can do: Have a bird-friendly garden with safe shelters and a bird bath.  Give them bird food. Put feeders out of reach of cats.    Spread the word about how important it is to protect migratory birds.  Download and use birding apps – it’s a great way to connect to like-minded bird lovers. Find out more about migratory birds.  There are resources on the WMBD website so fly off and nest and rest there a while and peck at all the information you can.  This day is held twice a year , on 9 May and 10 October so you could prepare an event or attend an October event. Visit BirdLife International and the WMBD’s site here

    

2. Please see this video from Gravitas - how nature is reclaiming its spaces due to the Coronavirus

   Posted on 2:00pm Friday 10th Apr 2020

   Sometimes you see something on the internet or on television that really hits you hard and makes a point extremely well. I saw this video, this afternoon, and I wanted to share it with you.  Please share it with everyone you can. The ultimate message is that we SHARE this planet.  It demonstrates how dominant the human race has become - and how selfish.   I am not going to tell you anymore about it - please just watch it for yourself.   Here it is: Thank you, Gravitas. Please vow to make a difference today.  Find out how to reduce your impact on the earth's resources here.

3. Tell These Big US Banks That Arctic Drilling Is Bad Business!

   Posted on 5:00pm Wednesday 26th Feb 2020

   The Sierra Club (a grassroots environmental organisation in the US) has announced that there’s big, exciting news from a bank! JPMorgan Chase have announced at its annual Investor Day that: It will not finance oil and gas extraction in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge It will not continue financing many coal-related enterprises, including thermal coal mines and coal-fired power plants across the world. The bank is by far the leading US investor in fossil fuels, and environmentalists and indigenous peoples have put pressure on the bank for years trying to move away from projects which threaten the climate. They promised to stop investing in and providing services to companies which derive “the majority of their revenues from the extraction of coal” by 2024, and not to provide financing to offshore and onshore oil and gas extraction in the Arctic Goldman Sachs also made a similar commitment not to financial oil drilling in the Arctic two months ago. Now, it’s vital that we put the pressure on other big banks to follow suit.  I wonder... Could their executives and shareholders live with themselves if there was an accident drilling for oil and gas in the Arctic which they had agreed to finance?  It only takes ONE spill to do unrepairable damage.  As the Sierra Club say, “Clean air, safe drinking water, wildlife and wild places are under attack-and once they're gone, they're gone for good.”  © istockphoto.com Mario Hoppmann Tell These Big US Banks That Arctic Drilling Is Bad Business! The Sierra Club say that banks worldwide are refusing to fund Arctic drilling.  Some US banks are dragging their feet.  But Goldman Sachs have done it;  they were the trail-finders who have ruled out financing Arctic oil and gas drilling, thermal coal mines and coal-fired power projects around the world.  Thank you, everyone at Goldman Sachs. Sierra Club Big banks don’t want to fall behind on industry trends.   The Sierra Club is asking us all to focus our efforts on the other US funders which, they say, are notorious for propping up dirty fuels:  Wells Fargo, Citi, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley. The Sierra Club are asking everyone to: Send a message to the CEOs of the other major US banks, telling them that bankrolling Arctic drilling isn’t just bad business -- it’s a threat to Indigenous human rights and to the climate. Add your name here and you can send a message too, if you want to add power to it. Let’s all fight for wildlife and indigenous peoples and drill hard and deep for change in the right direction.  Let’s put pressure on.

4. Basking Sharks in Scotland need your support

   Posted on 9:00pm Sunday 1st Sep 2019

   Basking sharks love Scotland (and who can blame them – it’s stunning).   They head to the rich waters off the west coast every summer and they take a long journey to take there, coming from as far away as the Canary Islands. There’s an opportunity to really make a difference to basking sharks. The Scottish Government has launched a consultation on Marine Protected Areas – including one specifically for Basking Sharks. They are now considered vulnerable.  Although they have been a protected species I Scotland since 1998, they face threats in Scottish seas from fishing gear, boat traffic and micro-plastics. Back in the 19th and 20th centuries, 100,000 basking sharks were hunted in the North Atlantic……   so there aren’t as many of them left as there used to be. The proposed Sea of the Hebrides Marine Protected Area will give extra protections to basking sharks and other species such as minke whales.  Currently, it is proposed that 4 new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) be added to Scotland’s exiting MPA areas.   These areas will protect important habitats and large mobile species such as Risso dolphins, Minke Whales and Basking Sharks. Find out more and give your support here.

5. Slipped up with plastic? Donate your guilt!

   Posted on 5:00pm Wednesday 28th Aug 2019

   So with the best will in the world, there will be times when we forget to bring along a re-usable bag, or we need to buy a plastic bottle of water. And we think, “Oh dear, I shouldn’t have done that.  I must be more organised next time,” or “Oh dear, that’s one more bottle to add to the millions that will end up in a whale’s stomach…” or “I must do better next time” or “Oh well, it doesn’t happen very often”  etc etc Well, the Marine Conservation Society have come up with a way to help us all overcome those moments of guilt! Donate your guilt to the Marine Conservation Society!!  Yes, you can now donate your guilt and help the MCS continue its work to stem the plastic tide. You can donate in different ways: Donate money Donate your time – clean up a local beach, for instance Donate a share online with this idea – let’s spread it about! Remember, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse Repurpose, Recycle.  I repurpose all the water we don’t use e.g. in water glasses – it goes straight onto the garden.  Donations will help the MCS organise more beach cleans and run more campaigns to encourage the UK government to bring in vital legislation.  It will also help them hold companies, industry and governments to account. Find out more here Make a donation here