Observing Roookie….Jackie’s Sparrer…..Right To Roam….
by Bernie Bell - 08:03 on 18 January 2023
Observing Roookie….
There’s a Rook which frequents our garden – we call him Roookie… http://www.spanglefish.com/berniesblog/blog.asp?blogid=15868 .
Each morning, we put a mixture of grain and peanuts on the bird table. When the nuts have been eaten, Rookie has trouble picking up the grain with his big beak. We noticed that he then stands on the table, turns his head sideways, and uses his big beak to scoop up the grain. Clever bird.
There are people who wouldn’t think of doing that.
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Jackie’s Sparrer…..
I don’t check many ‘Twitters’, but do look at Jackie Morris’ regularly as she posts so many items of interest, and her Twitter page led me to her blog page with Jackie’s latest auction for a good cause.
Jackie & her good friend Robert MacFarlane are rightly incensed at yet another example of exclusivity in relation to the natural world – humans thinking they are the Alpha species which, considering their track record on damaging the planet, is questionable.
My vote goes to the bees – they can do without us, we can’t do without them.
I’m not going to rant about that. With her permission….I’ll present my readers with Jackie’s blog post…..
The Stars Are Ours
Posted on January 16, 2023
Last week campaigners to retain the right to wild camp on Dartmoor lost their case. This is a continuation of The Enclosures Act of 1773.
Was a time when much of the land was common land, a common wealth for all, with grazing rights, and access rights, and the right to manage woodland and glean for firewood.
Land access is being eroded at a time when it is proven that access to the natural world is important for both physical and mental health.
You can read much more about the Right to Roam at the website, so beautifully illustrated by campaigner and spokesperson, Nick Hayes, author of The Book of Trespass, a brilliant book detailing the erosion of the rights of the majority.
My father, a policeman, taught me to trespass when I was young, enforcing in my mind that trespass was not a criminal offence, teaching me to respect the land, and life of the land. We often crossed the lines together when out walking. In my teens I saw large areas of land acquired by wealthy consortiums, to fence in for pheasant shoots. Wires went up across footpaths, access was denied, gamekeepers decimated the small predators and rooks and jays and crows, as well as raptors, stringing up their bodies. The most shocking of these for me was when I came upon a gamekeepers gibbet with a pine marten hanging…. so rare.
The land is ‘owned’ by wealthy folk. Dartmoor, a place of outstanding natural beauty, was one of the few remnants for wild camping. It changes you when you experience that vast dark sky, makes a mockery of how someone can own the stones and trees, walls and ways that were there long before they were born and will be there when those who would deny access are bones and dust.
In support of the right to Roam campaign Robert Macfarlane and I want to offer a humble sparrow, painted by me, with words written on by Robert, signed by us both, for auction.
House sparrows were such common birds when I was young. Now they are in decline. They live in colonies, gathering together. And together, my hope, our hope, is that the legislation that would deny access to Dartmoor for wild camping, and many other places, will be overturned.
To bid, simply leave your comment below with the amount in £ sterling ( please refresh your browser as that will allow you to scroll down to the highest bid) The sparrow ( male) is painted with sumi ink, and was a provisional sketch for the bird book Rob and I are working on together. We are happy to post the piece anywhere in the world. I have to action the bids, so they won’t appear straight away. The auction will not close until there have been no bids for 48 hours, and as it nears closure I will email the 3 top bidders to let them know of bids against them. 100% of the money will go to Right to Roam. If you wish to make a small donation to their campaign you can do so here. I will contact the winner of the auction with details for payment when the auction is closed. Reserve price is £50.
https://www.jackiemorris.co.uk/the-stars-are-ours/
Here’s her website, with even more good things…. https://www.jackiemorris.co.uk/
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PS
I've just seen this....
https://twitter.com/GeorgeMonbiot/status/1615037972780285952?cxt=HHwWgICwpdee4uksAAAA
The only comment I can think of is...... ??????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Right To Roam….
On the subject of ‘trespassing’…..A poem by Bartholomew Barker https://bartbarkerpoet.com/2022/08/17/the-grave-of-edna-st-vincent-millay/ about when he encountered Edna St. Vincent Millay………
Labyrinth for Vincent
“Ignore the No Trespassing sign,”
she beckoned from the other side.
“Come with me through the forest.
I’ll read my poetry as we travel
barefoot on the mossy path.”
Side-by-side we walked,
the sun enflamed her hair,
her voice like bird song
on the wind tickling the leaves.
And at the center—
gray and lichened
as a standing stone
felled by time—
her grave.
I asked why she hadn’t read
her famous First Fig
or my favorite Spring.
She just smiled,
kissed my cheek
and faded.
Leaving me
to remember my way
back to living.
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Here’s one I made earlier….. https://theorkneynews.scot/2019/10/16/the-knowes-and-thens-of-trotty/
N.B.
My article about the Knowes O’ Trotty was first published in 2019 – since then the preferred access route has changed…….
https://www.northlinkferries.co.uk/orkney-blog/knowes-of-trotty/
And – more info. from the ever-informative Ness of Brodgar Trust blog…..
https://www.nessofbrodgar.co.uk/knowes-of-trotty/
It really is an ace, place.
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