Thanks to Andy Bunting at In Focus for taking copies of "Wild Merseyside" today, which means copies can now be bought at the In Focus store at Martin Mere, for the paltry sum of ã4.99.
If you haven't got a copy, why not call in - I'm sure Andy has lots of optical goodies to tempt you with over the Easter Weekend. Check out the second hand Leica scope - oooooh!
And if that doesn't float your boat, ask Andy to show you his pictures from his recent trip to the bird-rich African state of Macaroon - stunning wildlife and great biscuits to boot.
Stocked up with more copies at the Sandgrounders Hide at Marshside RSPB today too...so if you haven't got a copy yet...just ask one of the volunteers and they'll get a copy for you.
Thanks to everyone for their help.
"Wild Merseyside" would make an excellent Easter present for youngsters of all ages, being a much healthier option than a big choccy Easter egg, in my humble and totally unbiased opinion.
Providing of course, the little mites don't try to eat their copy.
Which would be a different kettle of fish (or paper and ink) altogether.
And one which I would take absolutely no responsibility for.
Eyes to the skies everyone, eyes to the skies...
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Is it farewell for the Cuckoo?
In the newly published âÂÂSay goodbye to the CuckooâÂÂ, Mike McCarthy laments the
disappearance of the sound of summer from the British countryside.
The latest results from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) support this feeling. Since 1994 these show a
decline of 37%, and an overall decline of 59% since 1980. It is thought that the Cuckoo is the victim of a
double whammy, struggling to find enough food during the breeding season here in the UK and suffering a
similar fate on its wintering grounds in Africa.
âÂÂSay Goodbye to the Cuckooâ highlights the enormity of the challenges that these birds face. It is estimated that
16 million migrant birds arrive here every spring, and this natural spectacle is eagerly awaited by many of us.
The Cuckoo is just one of these species but being the harbinger of summer, it might just be the most significant.
The distinctive âÂÂcuckooâ song is one of the best known of any bird, many people have never seen the bird but
most of us know the song and relate this to the end of winter and the arrival of summer.
Andy Clements, Director, BTO, commented, âÂÂMigrant birds are important to us all and Mike manages to
capture the essence of this in his wonderful book. We will all anticipate the arrival of the Cuckoo more keenly
this year, and the inspiration Mike gives us helps re-energise the BTOâÂÂs work to understand the declines of
iconic birds like Cuckoos, Nightingales and Swifts.âÂÂ
The first Cuckoos of 2009 have already been reported, with single birds being seen and heard in Ireland, on the
Isles of Scilly and in Kent. Over the next few weeks BTO volunteers will be out monitoring the arrival of
Cuckoos and other migrant birds as they complete their long journeys. All of this information will then be
reported to the BTO and form part of the long-term datasets that the Trust keeps, helping scientists follow the
ups and downs of these global travellers.
For more information visit www.bto.org
We've run out of "Wild Merseyside" at In Focus!
No worries Andy - I'll get another batch sorted out, in the meantime, there are still copies for sale at the Sandgrounders Hide at Marshside RSPB (just ask the on duty volunteer, and they'll sort you out a copy).