April

No wonder they have a day dedicated to them each year. But curlew are in dire straits. They have declined across Scotland by 61% (1995 to 2016), twice the rate in England. This is worrying as Scotland holds around 60% of the UK population or approximately a whopping 15% of the world population of this globally declining species. Something needs to be done to help them.

World Curlew Day is a grassroots initiative, supported by major environmental organisations, to raise awareness of the plight of curlews and to encourage activities to help them. We cannot simply preside over extinction. We must take the opportunity to assess all practical options at our disposal to safeguard the future of our curlews.

Living in the middle of nowhere is difficult at the best of times. But when a global pandemic hits and you’re not allowed near civilisation, different challenges arise. Limited to brief once-weekly interactions with our boss and farm research assistant Marlies, and the occasional grunt and wave from the farmer Allan, it would be easy to start losing your mind a bit. Thankfully, spring was on hand.

Over the past month, thrush surveys have been the primary job here at Auchnerran. Luckily we have been able to continue this study despite the COVID-19 pandemic as we are based on the farm, which is in a remote location, and no travelling is required.