Bird Flu

We found several of these sad remains on our walk along Littleferry beach this morning, all, as far as we could tell, of geese and, probably, pink-footed, testament to the severity of the H5N1 epidemic that's currently affecting many parts of Britain and the near continent. 

Research published by the UK Government - here - shows that the majority of proven cases are in geese and swans but raptors, such as kestrels, kites and, in particular, buzzards, have been affected as well as the occasional duck and gull. The saddest statistic here is a sea eagle, one of the population introduced to the Isle of Wight.

We're still seeing skeins of pink-footed geese flying north and south but the numbers in each flock is small compared to the large skeins we saw at the beginning of the winter. In the fields at the back of Littleferry beach, where a few weeks ago we saw quite large flocks of pink-footed geese, there are now small groups of half-a-dozen or so. 

Yesterday, after a long absence, we were thrilled to see the first siskin for ages. She was on the niger feeder which has been hanging in our back garden all winter. Other small birds have also been worryingly absent - goldfinches in particular - and we wonder whether some of the small bird species are also affected by this wretched disease.

Happily this morning, the acres of mud exposed by the low tide in the main basin of Loch Fleet was being worked over by ten or more pairs of shelduck but they were almost the only species present. Perhaps the ducks we've been seeing - mainly teal and widgeon - have moved north with the changing season but the flights of waders we've watched in previous years have been conspicuously absent.