Bird habitats of Great Britain and Ireland : a new approach to birdwatching

260 Pages·1989·141.013 MB·English

by  Morrison, Paul

•
•
The British Isles are home to nearly 500 species of
bird. From the rare and magnificent osprey of the
Scottish highlands to the ubiquitous sparrow; from
the elusive Cetti's warbler to the brilliantlv coloured
kingfisher; from the wonderful array of s~abirds
around our coasts to the nightingale whose song it is
a privilege to hear - these are just a few examples of
the abundance and variety of birdlife that enriches
our countryside. But today many of these species are
under threat and declining in numbers - primarily
because we have been unaware of the significance of
the habitats which are vital for the survival of our
birds. This superbly illustrated new style of bird guide
demonstrates exactly how important these habitats
are.
Unlike other guides, this book shows you how to
identify birds not in isolation, but in ·their natural
context. It looks at all the habitats in the British Isles
and describes the birds found in each one: deciduous
woodlands which ring with the sounds of birds
during spring and early summer; farmland with its
lapwings, buntings, barn: owls and spiralling skylarks;
mountains with snow buntings, ptarmigan and golden
eagles; shingle beaches with attractive oystercatchers
and ringed plover; lowland heaths with Dartford
warbler, stonechat and churring nightjar. By
describing these and many other habitats, Paul
Morrison illustrates the diversity of our landscape
and its corresponding wealth of birdlife. He explains
why the birds are found in each environment, and
how they coexist with each other and adapt to their
surroundings. Thus he enables us to appreciate the
delicate balance of birds with their habitat; and, most
importantly, he makes an urgent plea for
conservation by showing how the ever-increasing
destruction of our countryside forces birds to change
their lifestyle and, at worst, threatens their very
existence.
Paul Morrison draws on knowledge and experience
gained from years of watching birds closely through
binoculars and camera lenses. His book is
authoritative, constructive, infectiously enthusiastic
and, with its new approach to bird-watching, an
inspiration to birdlovers. illustrated with over 200
magnificent colour photographs, it will compel
readers to go out and look for themselves. It is a
must for every seasoned birdwatcher, a practical
asset on a family holiday and important reading for
anyone with an intelligent and concerned interest in
the countryside.
Tacket design bv Downes Design. £16.95 net
BIRD HABITATS
of Great Britain and Ireland
bythesameauthor
BRIJISH.BUTI'ERFLJES
(JarroldP1.1blicatio11s)
BIRD HABITATS
OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND
A New Approach to Birdwatching
FOREWORD BY
SIR PETER SCOTT
Paul Morrison
MICHAEL JOSEPH
LONDON
TITLE PAGE PICTURES:
Above left: Pied Flycatcher (page 26)
Below right: Wheatear (page 105)
Right: Nuthatch (page 33)
MICHAEL JOSEPH LTD
Published by the Penguin Group
27 Wrights Lane, London W8 STZ, England
Viking Penguin Inc., 40 West 23rd Street, New York, New York 10010, USA
Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood, Victoria, Australia
Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 2801 John Street, Markham, Ontario, Canada L3R 184
Penguin Books (NZ) Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road, Auckland 10, New Zealand
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices, Hannondsworth, Middlesex, England
First published in Great Britain 1989
Text copyright© Paul Morrison 1989
Illustrations copyright© Natural Selection
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved
above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored
in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form
or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both
the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book
Typeset by Goodfellow & Egan, Cambridge
Colour reproduction by Anglia Graphics, Bedford
Printed and bound by Kyodo-Shing Loong Printing, Singapore
ISBN O7 181 2899 0
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements 6
Bibliography 7
Foreword 8
Introduction 10
1 BRITISH WOODLAND 14
2 DECIDUOUS WOODLAND: 18
Oakwoods, Beechwoods, Ashwoods, Alderwoods,
Birchwoods
3 CONIFEROUS WOODLAND 48
4 LOWLAND HEATH and BRECKLANDS 60
5 DOWNS and SCRUBLAND 70
6 HEDGEROW and FARMLAND 78
7 MOUNTAINS and UPLAND MOOR 96
8 RNERS and STREAMS 114
9 MARSHLANDS, FENS and BROADS 130
10 LAKES, PONDS, GRAVEL PITS and RESERVOIRS 142
11 THE COAST: 170
Cliffs, Rocky Shores, Off-shore Islands, Shingle
Beaches, Sandy Beaches and Sand-dunes, Estuaries,
Mud flats and Saltmarshes
12 CITY AND SUBURB: 202
Bricks and Mortar, Gardens, Orchards, Parks,
Churchyards and Cemeteries, Wasteland, Rubbish
Tips, Sewage Farms, Watercress Beds, Linear Habitats
13 HABITAT MANAGEMENT 240
and the Future of Bird Conservation in the
British Isles
Recommended Sites 246
Index 251
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Natural history, especially birds, has been a consuming passion all special thanks are due to Jimmy Young for his tireless enthusiasm
my life. Even so, it would be impossible for one person to be totally and dedication to bird photography and whose skill has largely
authoritative on all the species and habitats covered in this book. enabled this book to materialise. Chris Knights spent considerable
In writing it, I have drawn widely on the experience of many time locating and helping me photograph the stone curlew for
experts without whose generous help and specialist knowledge this which I am grateful and Sid Clarkson should be thanked and
book would not have been possible. I should like to thank Robert congratulated for his attempts to cross open moorland by jeep in
Fuller of British Trust for Ornithology for allowing me to quote pursuit of red grouse.
from his own classic publication and Dr O'Connor (formerly BTO), My inspiration has come from many sources, but I should like to
Mike Shrubb and Chris Feare (MAFF) for their information on pay tribute to Eric Hosking who, through his photographic books,
farmland birds. Steve Carter of BTO was also very helpful in motivated me as a schoolboy and gave me 'an eye for a bird'; and to
providing research papers and specialist publications at short Percy Edwards whose legendary imitations of birds encouraged me
notice. to use my ears and learn their calls in the wild. I shall always
Numerous staff of the RSPB have been helpful with information remember the late Geoffrey Kinns for the field knowledge he
and literature, including Chris Harbard for keeping me up to date taught me. Dorothy Herlihy should be thanked for her enthusiasm
with the ospreys at Loch Garten, Richard Porter for allowing me to and encouragement and Alison, who for seventeen years tried to
quote from orie of his articles, Chris Sargeant in the Photographic understand what birds meant to me and encouraged me to realise
Library, Ian Dawson in the Reference Library and Anne Smith in my ambition.
the Conservation Department. Richard Nairn and Maggie Kelgh of Knowledge of birds is insufficient to produce a book and without
the Irish Wildbird Conservancy were very helpful, together with the editorial skills of Jenny Dereham and Anne Askwith, and the
Clive Hutchinson and Richard Mills, for information on Irish sites ability of Penny Mills to design it, this book would never have
and species which is not readily available. Dr J.T.R. and Mrs progressed. I am particularly grateful for their help and patience.
Sharrock (British Birds) kindly gave permission to use Irish site Finally, the administration of any book is vast and my sincere
details from their publication. I should also like to thank John thanks go to my mother, Priscilla Morrison, for her devotion to
Hayward and Robin Pay of Aylesbury W.P.C. Works for their time typing my handwritten scripts often at short notice, and for
and advice. checking the manuscript, and to Hilary for her typing assistance
The photographs in this book represent a lifetime's work and and encouragement.
Illustrations Credits Michael Leach 205 David Sewell 25, 100, 114
All photographs supplied by Natural lain Malin 29, 52 Dr C. Tydeman 106
Selection Richard T. Mills 116, 117, 119, 135, 159, Ivan West 121
174,175,180 Mike Wilkes 17, 128, 129, 200
A.S. Beamish 26 Paul Morrison 5, 33, 34, 51, 54, 55, 58, J.F. Young 3, 4, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 18, 20,
H. Goodall 86 64,65, 71, 76,84,94, 107,122,143, 21,23,24,28,31,37,39,40,41,42,
Alan Goodger 1, 6, 125 148,152,157,176,177,185,187,191, 43,44,45,46,47,49,50,53,57,59,
C.H. Gomersall (RSPB) 36 196,197,203,204 60,61,63,68, 73, 75, 77, 78, 79,80,
David Hyde 144 R.Nairn 115 81,82,85,88,89,90,91,93,95,96,
E.A. Janes 7, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 22, 27, Geoff Nobes 188 97, 98, 99, 102, 103, 104, 105, 108,
32,48,62,66, 70, 72, 74,134,150, M.D.E. Oates 132 109,111,118,123,124,126,130,131,
170,173,179,194,195,199,209 Bill Parker 158 133,136,137,139,140,142,145,146,
A. Jollands 9 W.S. Paton 2, 69, 92, 101, 110, 112, 113, 147,149,151,154,160,162,164,165,
Geoffrey Kinns 83, 161 138,153,155,156,163,167,168,182, 166,169,171,172,181,186, 1S9, 190,
Chris Knights 38, 56, 67, 120, 127, 141 183,184,201,202,208 192,193,198,206,207
Gordon Langsbury 30, 35, 87 A.J. Pennington 178
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