Part 8: Losses and recoveries

 

Skylark

Around 40,000 years ago the last glaciation culminated in the Last Glacial Maximum. Modern humans by this time had already reached Australia, and this time saw the end of the Neanderthals, Denisovans and other pre-modern humans who had lived all across the world. They did not disappear entirely however – before they vanished as separate peoples they produced children with modern type humans and their DNA lives on in all of us to this day.

Grey Partridges

How much modern humans were the direct cause of the total extinction or range restriction of the animals I have talked about is not always clear, but a combination of rapid climate change and the selective targeting or large animals by modern humans (who unlike Neanderthals had developed distance weapons such as arrows and other sophisticated technology) must be a main contender. The extinction of elephants and rhinos especially would have resulted in massive expansion of close-canopy forest as the climate warmed compared to earlier periods, a disaster for animals and birds adapted to warmer grasslands. Ironically, it was the invention of agriculture that might have helped them, as fields would have sufficiently emulated the old elephant-created open grassland to provide habitat for what we now think of as “farmland” birds such as Skylarks, finches, buntings, partridges or even Great Bustards.

Great Bustard

In the past few decades an increasing number of different species rendered extinct in this country being reintroduced or having their numbers greatly supplemented by additional released animals. For example, Red Kites were restricted entirely to Wales and were on the verge of extinction until a carefully planned and monitored release programme extended them across the UK and they are commonly seen along many of our motorways as they scan for roadkill. More recently an equally successful reintroduction of White-Tailed Eagles has restored them to Scotland, and a release programme has started on the south coast of England where the first released juveniles are approaching breeding age.

White Tailed Eagle

More problematic is the reintroduction of mammals.  Beaver reintroductions were controversial for a long time – not without reason from the point of view of a farmer whose fields of maize border a river – but they are now in several areas as either fully wild animals or at least as self-supporting animals in fenced areas. The next big areas will be carnivores, of which Wild Cat and Lynx are possibilities. True Eurasian Wild Cats are almost extinct in Scotland as a result of persecution and hybridisation with domestic cats, but their natural range was throughout the UK. There are discussions of possible reintroductions either in Wales or the South West. Lynx are key predators of Roes Deer, which will certainly get them points with arable farmers and foresters, but they are unfortunately also quite capable of killing sheep and as a result sheep farmers are putting up a lot of opposition. Larger predators such as Wolves are talked about, but outside of a fenced enclosure I cannot see wild Wolves being let loos in the UK sadly, although in western Europe Wolves are actually doing very well at the moment – in fact they have already reached the North Sea coast and if they were only slightly better long distance swimmers they would be showing up in southeast England in the next few years.

Eurasian Beaver

The crowded and heavily farmed areas of Britain make rewilding over truly large areas in this country very difficult, but on a smaller scale quite a lot can be done. Conservation grazing is standard practise on reserves to preserve habitat, but usually this involved domestic livestock of various “primitive” breeds such as Exmoor Ponies, Highland Cattle, or indeed, as in the Avon Gorge, Domestic Goat. In 2022 the Wilder Blean Project in Kent plans to use European Bison (inside a large, fenced enclosure) for the same purpose. However, the largest rewilding type project in the UK is currently the Knepp Estate, which has pioneered many new ecological practises by using a mixture of domestic livestock (Longhorn cattle, Exmoor Ponies, Tamworth Pigs) plus deer (Red, Roe, Fallow) to affect the habitats. As a result, Knepp is now home to the largest colony of Purple Emperor butterflies in the UK, and is also a successful site for the Turtle Dove. Knepp is also home to a reintroduction project for White Stork, which became extinct in the UK in the Middle Ages and has now bred successfully (14 chicks fledged in 2021). Knepp is now a role model for what rewilding might look like in a crowded island like Britain in which there is little room for majopr landscape-scale projects in much of the country.

White Stork in Sussex

This brings an end to this series of discussions, I hope readers have enjoyed them, over the next few months I will be looking at the histories of reintroductions in the UK and the lessons that can be learned from how they turned out.

Part 5: Interglacial birds

 

Golden Oriole

The avifauna of the British Isles during the Eemian would have been similar to that of today, with the addition of species now more often found further south in Europe as the climate was slightly warmer. We can imagine as well as the current birds of Britain such species as Golden Oriole, Hoopoe, Serin and Melodious Warbler in the woodlands. Some birds such as House Martins, Swallows and Common Swifts that are strongly associated with human houses as nest sites would have been restricted to their original habitat of cliffs and rocky outcrops, but might have been joined by Red-Rumped Swallow.

Red-Rumped Swallow

Birds today that are associated with farmland, such as most of the finches, Skylark, Grey Partridges and Great Bustard would have been using their original habitat of elephant and large ungulate grazed grasslands, and would probably have been less numerous than in modern times (at least before intensive farming after WWII reduced their numbers)

Black Stork

White storks formerly bred in the UK in historic times and are currently the subject of a reintroduction project. As well as these Black Stork must be a strong possibility as a British breeding species. Unlike the sociable and farmland loving White Stork the Black Stork loves woodland and wetland and has a vast range from Spain across to China, migrating south to Africa and India for the winter. Glossy Ibis is another likely resident, as well as many of the various southern herons that have recently begun colonising Britain in response to climate change. The exception to that would be Cattle Egret – it has finally started breeding in the UK but its current worldwide spread is a result of its adaptation to livestock farming, and without that it would have probably stayed further south.

Western Swamphen

Other specialist marshland and reedbed birds would have included Western Swamphen, Zitting Cisticola, Black-necked Stilt, and Penduline Tit. European Cranes are also known, but they might have been joined by a now extinct, even larger species Grus primigenia. This species has been variously placed as just a large form of the extant Eurasian Crane, but might also have been a second crane species – in many parts of the world multiple cranes species live in similar habitats and in east Asia can be found several large species even today, for example, the Siberian Crane. If it was a real species it might have survived as late as the early Roman period, and remains from Malta suggest it might have been a rare migrant to southern Europe.

Mandarin Ducks

Among ducks Ruddy Shelduck is known to have been present – it now occurs only as a vagrant or escape. The Garganey is a small migratory duck that is a very scarce breeder in Britain and Ireland. It prefers to breed on shallow lakes surrounded by grassland, a habitat that elephants and hippos would have helped create. One remote possibility is Mandarin Duck. Although today they are only native to the Far East, either Mandarin or a closely related species is known from a previous interglacial and presumably became extinct as a result of elimination of habitat by ice advances at some point. Today Mandarin is well established as a feral breeding bird in Oak woodland in England and the Eemian interglacial would have provided a very similar habitat.

Dalmatian Pelican

Dalmatian Pelican sounds like an unlikely species for Britain – it is the largest living pelican and today has a distinctly east European/central Asian distribution, but they had a much wider range even in historic times and are known to have bred at several sites in England up to at least the Bronze Age, so it is quite possible they were at least briefly a British breeding resident during the warmest parts of the Eemian, at least until the climate cooled towards the start of the next glaciation.

Capercaillie

Most of Britain’s grouse species are today associated with the north of the island, especially moorland and pine forest. There would probably have been similar extensive forests of pine and birch in many areas holding the world’s largest grouse, the Western Capercaillie, which in the males is turkey sized. Today these amazing birds are only found in the Highlands, and even there they are a rare and declining reintroduced species, having already gone extinct in the UK once, but we have records from the Mesolithic of Capercaillie as far south as Wales. Also present would have been the ancestors of the modern Red Grouse, an endemic subspecies of the circumpolar Willow Grouse which is confined to the British Isles. When the British and Irish Red Grouse developed its distinctive features is hard to determine, but they can live quite happily in Arctic climates, so they probably survived the heights of the last glaciation in southern England while their current Scottish homes were a mile deep in ice.

Corys Shearwater

Two seabirds in addition to those found today would also have been present. The Great Auk is sadly no longer with us, having become finally extinct less than 200 years ago, but it is known to have bred in at least one island off the coast of Scotland in historic times and would have fed in the offshore and inshore waters around Britain. The other species is happily still with us. Corys Shearwater is only a visitor to the waters around Britain today, but remains found in Welsh caves show that it once also bred here.

Lammergeier

Among raptors Kestrel and Red Kite are known to have been present, but it would be very surprising if the other birds of prey found in Britain today were not also present. What is not certain is if any of Europe’s vultures visited or bred in this country. In 2020 a vagrant young Lammergeier from the ongoing reintroduction project in the Alps spent several months in the north of England before returning south. It was well able to look after itself by feeding on carrion and roadkill even in 21^st century England, and both Lammergeier and European Gryphon and Cinereous Vultures are quite capable of surviving European winters where plenty of carrion is available, so it is quite possible that they lived in Britain and fed on the kills of Lions and Hyaenas just as their relatives do in Africa today.

Grey Junglefowl

However, one bird in Britain’s woods would have been very surprising – a wild chicken! Today there are four species of Junglefowl, of which the Red Junglefowl is the ancestor of the domesticated bird. However, the genus seems to have possibly originated in Europe and various species are known throughout the Pleistocene, with the form in western Europe identified as Gallus europeaus. Junglefowl all have very distinctive male plumages, but the life appearance of the British species is of course unknown. Today the nearest ecological equivalent would be Common Pheasant, but this is an introduced species originally native no nearer than the Balkans and without the vast number released each year by the hunting fraternity might not even survive long term as a British breeding species.

Bird fossils are always fragile and many species go unrecorded. Amphibians and reptiles have the same problem only more so, and it is to those I will turn next.

British Birds: Eurasian Nuthatch

Eurasian Nuthatch, Sitta europaea caesia

After Blue Tits and Great Tits, one of the British Birds most likely to be seen at a feeder in a garden, especially near woodland, is the Eurasian Nuthatch Sitta europaea. This species is currently doing well in the British Isles, and is currently spreading northward in Scotland, although it is currently absent from Ireland. There are at least 20 subspecies, with a range from western Europe across to China and South Korea, and southwards into the Caucasus. The form in the UK is caesia, which is also found in much of western Europe, and is typical of a group of subspecies with buff underparts and a white throat. Further east from Scandinavia across Siberia the europaea group has white underparts, and finally in China the sinensis forms have the throat and underparts pale buff.

Bristol Birds: Waxwings!

Bohemian Waxwing, Bristol

The UK is currently experiencing an invasion of Waxwings. These starling-sized birds originate in Scandinavia and Siberia where they breed, but travel to the UK in the winter to feed on berries. Usually they mostly stay in Scotland and eastern England, but this year the flocks have spread much further to the southwest and are now found in the Bristol area close to where I live.

Spain 21: Rock Bunting

Rock Bunting - male

One of the over 40 species of true (Emberiza) buntings is the Rock Bunting Emberiza cia. What actually defines a bunting is a rather complex issue, as the Emberizidae also includes New World Sparrows, Juncos, and Towhees. On the other hand, Snow and Lapland Buntings are now placed in an entirely separate family, the Calcariidae, which is closer to tanagers, cardinals, New World warblers and other species found in the Americas. Emberiza buntings are an Old World genus, with various species found from southern Africa to northern Europe and across to Asia.

Spain 20: Hawfinch

Hawfinch

In the UK the Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes is an extremely scarce and hard to see species, with a breeding population of under 1000 pairs. Across Europe it is doing much better and is consequently classed as Least Concern by the IUCN. Its range extends from Eastern Europe across temperate forests as far as eastern Asia and northern Japan. It is closely related to two American species, the Evening and Hooded Grosbeaks which have rather similar ecological requirements. Slightly more distantly related are other grosbeaks found in east Asia and the Himalayas.

Spain 19: Rock Sparrow

Rock Sparrow. Note yellow throat patch

All over the world, the English name for a small, brown, streaky bird tends to include the word “Sparrow” even if the bird concerned is not at all closely related to the pretty much universally distributed House Sparrow. Having said that, the subject of the present post, the Rock Sparrow Petronia petronia, does belong to the same family as House and Tree Sparrows, albeit a separate genus.

Spain 17: Choughs

Red-Billed Chough, Ireland

Across Eurasia can be found two species of distinctive crows that are distinguished by the colour of their beaks, the Red-Billed and Alpine (or Yellow-Billed) Choughs. They are associated with short grass and rocky areas, especially mountains. Red-Billed Choughs Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax also use sea cliffs while Alpine P. graculus is only found in high mountains. They are rather distinctive crows and in some ways their ecology is similar to some starlings, although starlings are on a completely different branch of the passerine family tree.

Spain 16: Wallcreeper!

Wallcreeper

One of the most sought after birds in the mountains of Europe is the Wallcreeper, Tichodroma muraria. This relative of the nuthatches has a vast range from the Pyrenees across every mountain range in Europe and Asia to Eastern China in the breeding season. Outside the breeding season they spread more widely and to lower levels, with one even wintering in the Cheddar gorge not far from Bristol here in the UK in two separate years in the 1970’s.

Spain 15: Crested Tit

Crested Tit - Spain

One of the most familiar groups of woodland birds are the tits or chickadees in the family Paridae. Various species are found from South Africa across the whole of the Old World and in North America south into Mexico. Many come to feeders and are also familiar back garden birds to people with homes within the range of the various species.

Spain 14: Bluethroat

Bluethroat

One of the tiny gems of the European avifauna is the Bluethroat Luscinia svecica. They have a vast range, with the nominate subspecies breeding across the Old World Arctic tundra and even extending (just) into Northern Alaska. To the south other subspecies can be found in the breeding season from Spain across to western China and Southern Tibet. Outside the breeding season they winter from North Africa to India and Thailand. The Alaskan birds winter somewhere in Asia, but where is not known exactly.

Spain 13: Crag Martin

Eurasian Crag Martin

Spain in November is not a good location to go looking for hirundines, but we managed to locate a Barn Swallow on the last day of the trip at the Ebro Delta. A more expected species we found in the Pyrenees was Europe’s only resident species, Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris.

Spain 12: An exaltation of Larks

Skylark

After covering so many species on my trip to Spain we finally arrive at the passerines, starting with the larks. This is an almost entirely Old World group, with only a single species, the Shore or Horned Lark Eremophila alpestris found in North America.

Spain 11: Sandgrouse

Black-Bellied Sandgrouse

One of the odder groups of birds to be found across Eurasia and Africa are the dry country birds known as sandgrouse. Despite their name they have no relationship to gamebirds, but are much more closely related to pigeons, and in fact they do look very pigeon-like in flight. Another related group are the Mesites, also terrestrial birds but endemic to Madagascar.

Spain 10: Gulls and Tern

Yellow-Legged Gull

Although a few gulls were seen earlier in the trip, most of the gulls and terns were seen on the Ebro Delta on the last day.

Spain 9: Stone Curlew

Eurasian Stone-Curlew B.oedicnemus insularum

The largest of the world’s waders are found among the various species of Stone-curlews or Thick-knees of the family Burhinidae. These strange birds can be found worldwide, often well away from water in grassy or sandy areas, with the notable exception of most of North America. In Europe and western Asia the Eurasian Stone-Curlew Burhinus oedicnemus is the native species.

Spain 8: Bustards

Breeding plumage male Little Bustard in the open - NB:This never happens

There are three species of Bustard that breed in Europe and I am glad to be able to say I have seen all three. Admittedly the Houbara Bustard only counts if you include the Canary Islands in Europe, when in terms of their location and endemic species they are more accurately part of North Africa, but they belong to Spain so I am going with it. This year I have had good views of the mainland species, Little and Great Bustard, in Portugal this spring and again in autumn in Spain.

Spain 7: Common Crane

Adult Common Crane

The Common or Eurasian Crane Grus grus is one of only four species of crane that is not threatened. In fact, it is increasing in Europe, and currently has a total world population of around 500,000 individuals. In Spain we found them at a major wintering ground at Lake Gallocanta. This lagoon in the south west of the province of Zaragosa is the largest staging area for migrant cranes in Europe, with perhaps 80% of the entire western European population using it on passage in both winter and spring. Left over grain and

Spain 6: Purple Swamphen

Purple Swamphen

At first sight the unmistakeable Purple Swamphen Porphyrio porphyrio looks like a Common Moorhen as reimagined by Disney. Although not at all closely related to any domestic hen, they are indeed chicken sized, except for their feet which seem designed for a bird about four times as big.

Spain 5: Eagles

Golden Eagle

In the UK we only have two breeding species of eagle, Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos and White Tailed Sea Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla. The rest of Europe has many more species, and this trip we managed to get good views of three, Golden eagle, Bonelli’s Eagle Aquila (formerly Hiraeetus) fasciatus and Booted Eagle Aquila pennatus.