BACK TO BEDDINGTON

Back to the patch. I met up with the Sutton Ramblers this morning and walked them through a load of mud without seeing too much of note. Then did a stake out over the lake with 'the boys'. Good numbers of Teal (200+), Shoveler (40+), a Dunlin flew over, 3 Redwing over, a group of 30+ Greenfinch and about 12 Snipe.
November is a potentially good month for me at Beddington as three of my bogey birds are November specialities : Hen Harrier, White-fronted Goose and Snow Bunting. I am hoping this November will be the one- so will be doubling efforts this time round.

The 'Nagoya Protocol'

Perhaps a bit of good news for the natural world. 190 members of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) reached agreement on the adoption of a protocol which basically aims at placing a monetary value on ecosystems . In essence this should mean that if big business develops a drug or other commercial product from, for example, a rainforest, than that big business should share the profits with the communities that own that rainforest. By turning ecosystems into 'equity share units' it should mean that everyone on the planet who benefits from these ecosystems, contribute towards maintaining and preserving them.

Good to see the ideas of 'madmen and mavericks' from 20 years ago being implemented into global policies today.

Articleography

What do you call a collection of articles?- I think I may have invented a word. Nevertheless here is mine (and my writing partners) 'articleography' to date:
http://peteralfrey.blogspot.com/2010/10/articleography.html

PS I just googled it- I did invent a word!! Yesssssssss!

DUTCH BIRDING- BIRDING ON CORVO

Great to see our Corvo article in the latest edition of Dutch Birding- The finest birding periodical for the WP region.

CORVO BIRDERS

More photos on facebook

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=701232517&ref=name#!/album.php?aid=153217&id=701232517

THAT'S ALL MOFOS

A quick stop of at Ponta Delgada before returning to Gatwick and the trip ends how it started- with the American Black Tern.
For the rest of the autumn from the Azores:
http://www.birdingazores.com/

Next on Non-Stop Birding- follow barrel scraping local patching in Croydon and the near-hopeless and pain staking progress of a blindly optimistic project to create an environmental dreamscape in 'Cackbridge' and Beddington Bog Dump.

AZORES AUTUMN 2010

Pics (top to bottom) Lincoln's Sparrow, Northern Flicker, American Black Tern, Double-crested Cormorant, Simon and David, Bosse Carlsson (Birding Azores pioneer), Vincent and David and Corvo Birders.

It's not over yet on the Azores. Vincent is still on Corvo for another week and is being joined by Richard Bonser and a westerly airflow, while other birders are still scattered across the other islands. However it is more or less over for me. Highlights for me this year were the WPs first Lincoln's Sparrow and finally getting to see the Northern Flicker. Supporting cast included Rough-legged 'Hawk', Cedar Waxwing, Northern Waterthrush, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, American Black Tern, Double-crested Cormorant, Baltimore Oriole, Indigo Bunting, Common Yellowthroat, Wilson's Snipe and from Europe; Lapwing and Garden Warbler.