Exterminators called in to deal with an infestation at a police station found a mouse nest on a messy desk.
Published: 9:21AM GMT 05 Jan 2010
Pest controllers were called to an office in Kennington, south London, used by weapons and technology experts at the Metropolitan Police after reports of 'mice everywhere'.
According to internal police reports, a family of mice even set up home in one police worker's desk - burying themselves in his paperwork.
The report reminds workers of 'the Met's clear desk policy' - meaning everything on your desk must be filed away by the end of each day so cleaners can do their jobs.
It states: "Employees came across a number of mice at a police building.
"Action was taken to remove the mice from the premises and there have not been any sighting of mice since."
A spokeswoman for the Met said that the 'paperwork home' set up on one desk by mice consisted of 'paperwork that did not relate to operational police matters'.
"Some of the desks were so messy it was a wonder anyone could find anything," said one officer.
"It got to the stage where mice droppings were found on desks and that's when everyone thought 'it's time to do something about our desks'.
"That's when one guy found a mouse nest in his paperwork. It's fair to say he was a little embarrassed."
Lambeth cops spend more than £25,000 on vermin exterminators last year, including £4,299 to get rid of 'unwanted birds' and £12,018 on 'rodent or mammal extermination'.
The sum also included £108 for 'getting rid of geese', although a police spokesman could not shed any further light on this particular expense.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/6935222/Mouse-nest-found-on-policemans-filthy-desk.html
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts
Showing posts with label birds. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Monday, 4 January 2010
Puffin warden wanted for Welsh island
A fresh start for the New Year is up for grabs - as a castaway on a remote island with just half a million birds for company.
Published: 10:09AM GMT 04 Jan 2010
The vacancy for the job as warden of Skomer Island is expected to attract hundreds of applications from people wanting to get away from it all.
It is being described as the British equivalent of The Best Job in the World - the competition held last year to find a warden for Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Skomer, two miles off the Pembrokeshire coast, has no blazing sunshine, coral reef or exotic wildlife.
But to those who want the great escape, it is closest Britain has to a desert island paradise.
It has no mains water, no electricity, no roads, shop, or pub, and is separated from the mainland by Jack Sound, one of the most treacherous stretches of water off the British coast.
It is inhabited by puffins, manx shearwaters, kittiwakes, razor bills and guillemots, along with thousands of wild rabbits.
It even has its own unique species - a tiny creature called the Skomer Vole which is not found anywhere else in the world.
The island is carpeted by bluebells throughout the spring and surrounded by a marine reserve, rich in sealife, including dolphins and porpoises.
And the new warden will live in a clifftop bungalow in the heart of the island's main puffin colony.
Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales chief executive Sarah Kessell said: "We are looking for a very special person to take care of our flagship reserve.
"The warden will have to manage people and resources, be familiar with conservation techniques and be confident on board boats."
The vacancy has come up because the current warden Jo Milborrow wants to return to the mainland after six years on Skomer and its sister island Skokholm.
She and her husband Dave, the assistant warden on Skomer, want a fresh challenge.
Jo, 33, said: "After six unforgettable years we have packed up and shipped our belongings off for the last time.
"I feel incredibly lucky to have lived in such an amazing place.
"Gaining an intimate knowledge of one place, its wildlife and seasonal rhythms are things I value greatly.
"This in-depth relationship with our surroundings is hard to establish in modern life."
The job pays between £14,000 and £16,000 for a 48 hours week with accommodation thrown in free.
Part of the work involves greeting the hundreds of birdwatchers and day trippers who arrive by the tiny ferry boat in the spring and summer - weather permitting.
But only the warden and a few overnight visitors get to see the island's greatest spectacle - the nightly arrival of hundreds of thousands of Manx Shearwaters, a rare seabird which lives underground.
A third of the world's breeding population of Manx Shearwaters breed each summer on Skomer before flying off to warmer climes in the winter.
Jo said: "To have shared my home with puffins, peregrine falcons, shearwaters and storm petrels and to be able to help protect these birds and inspire other people about them has been a high point of my life.
"I wish the new warden as many memorable times as we have been lucky enough to share."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/6931016/Puffin-warden-wanted-for-Welsh-island.html
Published: 10:09AM GMT 04 Jan 2010
The vacancy for the job as warden of Skomer Island is expected to attract hundreds of applications from people wanting to get away from it all.
It is being described as the British equivalent of The Best Job in the World - the competition held last year to find a warden for Australia's Great Barrier Reef.
Skomer, two miles off the Pembrokeshire coast, has no blazing sunshine, coral reef or exotic wildlife.
But to those who want the great escape, it is closest Britain has to a desert island paradise.
It has no mains water, no electricity, no roads, shop, or pub, and is separated from the mainland by Jack Sound, one of the most treacherous stretches of water off the British coast.
It is inhabited by puffins, manx shearwaters, kittiwakes, razor bills and guillemots, along with thousands of wild rabbits.
It even has its own unique species - a tiny creature called the Skomer Vole which is not found anywhere else in the world.
The island is carpeted by bluebells throughout the spring and surrounded by a marine reserve, rich in sealife, including dolphins and porpoises.
And the new warden will live in a clifftop bungalow in the heart of the island's main puffin colony.
Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales chief executive Sarah Kessell said: "We are looking for a very special person to take care of our flagship reserve.
"The warden will have to manage people and resources, be familiar with conservation techniques and be confident on board boats."
The vacancy has come up because the current warden Jo Milborrow wants to return to the mainland after six years on Skomer and its sister island Skokholm.
She and her husband Dave, the assistant warden on Skomer, want a fresh challenge.
Jo, 33, said: "After six unforgettable years we have packed up and shipped our belongings off for the last time.
"I feel incredibly lucky to have lived in such an amazing place.
"Gaining an intimate knowledge of one place, its wildlife and seasonal rhythms are things I value greatly.
"This in-depth relationship with our surroundings is hard to establish in modern life."
The job pays between £14,000 and £16,000 for a 48 hours week with accommodation thrown in free.
Part of the work involves greeting the hundreds of birdwatchers and day trippers who arrive by the tiny ferry boat in the spring and summer - weather permitting.
But only the warden and a few overnight visitors get to see the island's greatest spectacle - the nightly arrival of hundreds of thousands of Manx Shearwaters, a rare seabird which lives underground.
A third of the world's breeding population of Manx Shearwaters breed each summer on Skomer before flying off to warmer climes in the winter.
Jo said: "To have shared my home with puffins, peregrine falcons, shearwaters and storm petrels and to be able to help protect these birds and inspire other people about them has been a high point of my life.
"I wish the new warden as many memorable times as we have been lucky enough to share."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/6931016/Puffin-warden-wanted-for-Welsh-island.html
Sunday, 3 January 2010
Tropical wildlife washed-up on Dorset beaches
3:00pm Saturday 19th December 2009
WILD and windy weather has washed up some rare and unusual visitors to Dorset’s beaches.
Tropical crabs, birds blown off course and rare barnacles are among the wildlife reported by Dorset Wildlife Trust after storms and strong south-westerlies.
Six rare types of goose barnacle have reached the coast in recent weeks, including one, Conchoderma virgatum, which trust staff have nicknamed the “pyjama barnacle” because of its stripy skin.
“These animals usually spend their lives in warmer waters, drifting around the oceans of the world, hitching a lift on any floating debris, whether it be mats of seaweed, bird feathers or plastic bottles,” said Julie Hatcher, marine officer.
Very rarely, other oceanic hitch-hikers find their way to the coastline, including a tropical Columbus crab, found by local marine expert Lin Baldock on Ringstead beach.
This is only the second time in 100 years that Columbus crabs have been found here. They hit the headlines in 2006 when around 30 were discovered on the beaches, following extremely stormy conditions.
Among birds driven by the storms was a grey phalarope, a wading bird blown off course as it headed for the southern oceans from its Arctic breeding grounds.
It was seen surfing the waves and picking tiny bugs from the water just below the trust’s Fine Foundation Marine Centre, at Kimmeridge.
Birds including puffins and petrels, that are normally far out to sea at this time of year, have been washed up dead, battered by the wind and waves and unable to feed.
“Now is the time to get out on the beach and search among the strandline,” said Julie. “After such a stormy period you never know what creatures you may turn up, and it may even be something never recorded in Dorset before.
“Take photos and send them to Dorset Wildlife Trust for recording. The more we know about what’s out there, the better we will be able to protect it,” she said.
Send marine sightings to kimmeridge@dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk or call 01929 481044.
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/4805552.Tropical_wildlife_washed_up_on_Dorset_beaches/
(Submitted by Mark North)
WILD and windy weather has washed up some rare and unusual visitors to Dorset’s beaches.Tropical crabs, birds blown off course and rare barnacles are among the wildlife reported by Dorset Wildlife Trust after storms and strong south-westerlies.
Six rare types of goose barnacle have reached the coast in recent weeks, including one, Conchoderma virgatum, which trust staff have nicknamed the “pyjama barnacle” because of its stripy skin.
“These animals usually spend their lives in warmer waters, drifting around the oceans of the world, hitching a lift on any floating debris, whether it be mats of seaweed, bird feathers or plastic bottles,” said Julie Hatcher, marine officer.
Very rarely, other oceanic hitch-hikers find their way to the coastline, including a tropical Columbus crab, found by local marine expert Lin Baldock on Ringstead beach.
This is only the second time in 100 years that Columbus crabs have been found here. They hit the headlines in 2006 when around 30 were discovered on the beaches, following extremely stormy conditions.
Among birds driven by the storms was a grey phalarope, a wading bird blown off course as it headed for the southern oceans from its Arctic breeding grounds.
It was seen surfing the waves and picking tiny bugs from the water just below the trust’s Fine Foundation Marine Centre, at Kimmeridge.
Birds including puffins and petrels, that are normally far out to sea at this time of year, have been washed up dead, battered by the wind and waves and unable to feed.
“Now is the time to get out on the beach and search among the strandline,” said Julie. “After such a stormy period you never know what creatures you may turn up, and it may even be something never recorded in Dorset before.
“Take photos and send them to Dorset Wildlife Trust for recording. The more we know about what’s out there, the better we will be able to protect it,” she said.
Send marine sightings to kimmeridge@dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk or call 01929 481044.
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/4805552.Tropical_wildlife_washed_up_on_Dorset_beaches/
(Submitted by Mark North)
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Christmas lights? No, it’s the wagtail tree: Hundreds of roosting birds cover every twig and branch
Going back to Jon's posting a few days ago about the pied wagtails outside Tesco in Barnstaple, here is another sighting of a wagtail roost over the festive season - this time in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.
With most town centres currently festooned with fairy lights, you might not give this tree a second glance.
But take a closer look and you'll realise that it's not been decorated but is in fact alive with little birds.
The long-tailed black and white bird is usually seen on its own, flitting through the sky in search of insects. Its other common trait is to stand on the ground frantically wagging its tail up and down – hence the name.
But when dusk falls, they gather in large numbers.
This flock was spotted by photographer David Tipling among the decorations in Tunbridge Wells.
He said: 'At first I thought they were lights that weren't working. People were walking underneath oblivious.
‘It has been so cold recently that perhaps they find it warmer roosting in the middle of town rather than out in the countryside.
'They did look a little spooky, all of them gathered there together.'
Dr Nigel Collar, from conservation group BirdLife International, said: 'There are two theories as to why so many wagtails roost together. The first is information exchange – they're all sizing each other up to see who's put on weight, lost weight and where the best food is to be found.
'The second is that it helps protect them from nocturnal predators as the larger numbers mean there's always one bird with his eyes open.'
The birds can be found across most of the UK, and leave some of the highland and northern areas of Scotland in winter.
They are a sub-species of the White wagtail, which breeds in much of Europe, Asia and north Africa.
By Emily Andrews
Daily Mail Online
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1239545/Christmas-lights-No-s-wagtail-tree-Hundreds-roosting-birds-cover-twig-branch.html
With most town centres currently festooned with fairy lights, you might not give this tree a second glance.
But take a closer look and you'll realise that it's not been decorated but is in fact alive with little birds.
The long-tailed black and white bird is usually seen on its own, flitting through the sky in search of insects. Its other common trait is to stand on the ground frantically wagging its tail up and down – hence the name.
But when dusk falls, they gather in large numbers.
This flock was spotted by photographer David Tipling among the decorations in Tunbridge Wells.
He said: 'At first I thought they were lights that weren't working. People were walking underneath oblivious.
‘It has been so cold recently that perhaps they find it warmer roosting in the middle of town rather than out in the countryside.
'They did look a little spooky, all of them gathered there together.'
Dr Nigel Collar, from conservation group BirdLife International, said: 'There are two theories as to why so many wagtails roost together. The first is information exchange – they're all sizing each other up to see who's put on weight, lost weight and where the best food is to be found.
'The second is that it helps protect them from nocturnal predators as the larger numbers mean there's always one bird with his eyes open.'
The birds can be found across most of the UK, and leave some of the highland and northern areas of Scotland in winter.
They are a sub-species of the White wagtail, which breeds in much of Europe, Asia and north Africa.
By Emily Andrews
Daily Mail Online
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1239545/Christmas-lights-No-s-wagtail-tree-Hundreds-roosting-birds-cover-twig-branch.html
Friday, 1 January 2010
Vultures face extinction as gamblers seek visions of the future
Inhaling smoked vulture's brain confers gift of premonition, according to vendors of traditional medicine in parts of Africa
David Smith in Johannesburg, guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 30 December 2009 17.52 GMT
It's a tiny organ that, the superstition goes, holds the secrets of the future. When smoked and inhaled, the brain of a vulture is said to confer the gift of premonition. To put it bluntly, most users hope to sneak a look at next week's national lottery numbers.
Such is the demand for vulture brains to use in muti – traditional medicine – that wildlife experts fear the birds could be driven to extinction within two or three decades. They also warn that hunting could intensify as gamblers seek an advantage when betting on the football World Cup in South Africa.
Vultures' acute vision, and ability to find prey, has kindled a belief that they possess clairvoyant powers. Their brains are dried and rolled into a cigarette or inhaled as vapours in the hope they will bring a vision of the future - including lottery numbers and sports results.
Andre Botha, manager of the birds of prey working group at the Endangered Wildlife Trust in South Africa, said: "People believe it's foresight and this finds fertile ground in people's imagination. If it worked for the lottery, everyone would use it and we'd have a lot of millionaires walking around today.
"There is a lot of betting in South Africa. So we may see an increase connected to gambling around the 2010 World Cup."
A 2007 study found that 160 vultures are sold a year for muti in eastern South Africa, with the total across the region thought to be much higher. About 1,000 are killed every year in Tanzania alone.
The birds are shot, trapped or poisoned by hunters. One tactic is to poison an animal so the vultures that feed on the carcass themselves fall victim. "You can have 300 or 400 converge on a poisoned carcass and all be wiped out," Botha added. Brains and other body parts are then sold at street markets or shops in Johannesburg and other cities.
Steve McKean, a researcher at the conservation body Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, was quoted by South Africa's Star newspaper: "Traditional use as it is currently happening is likely to render vultures extinct in southern Africa on its own within 20 to 30 years."
Seven of the nine species of vulture are rated endangered. Botha said there was demand for the bearded vulture in Eastern Cape province. Traditional healers prefer that the bird be captured alive as the head needs to be removed while it is still living so that "the brain does not flow down into the spinal cord" and the muti loses its potency.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/30/vulture-extinct-gambling
David Smith in Johannesburg, guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 30 December 2009 17.52 GMT
It's a tiny organ that, the superstition goes, holds the secrets of the future. When smoked and inhaled, the brain of a vulture is said to confer the gift of premonition. To put it bluntly, most users hope to sneak a look at next week's national lottery numbers.
Such is the demand for vulture brains to use in muti – traditional medicine – that wildlife experts fear the birds could be driven to extinction within two or three decades. They also warn that hunting could intensify as gamblers seek an advantage when betting on the football World Cup in South Africa.
Vultures' acute vision, and ability to find prey, has kindled a belief that they possess clairvoyant powers. Their brains are dried and rolled into a cigarette or inhaled as vapours in the hope they will bring a vision of the future - including lottery numbers and sports results.
Andre Botha, manager of the birds of prey working group at the Endangered Wildlife Trust in South Africa, said: "People believe it's foresight and this finds fertile ground in people's imagination. If it worked for the lottery, everyone would use it and we'd have a lot of millionaires walking around today.
"There is a lot of betting in South Africa. So we may see an increase connected to gambling around the 2010 World Cup."
A 2007 study found that 160 vultures are sold a year for muti in eastern South Africa, with the total across the region thought to be much higher. About 1,000 are killed every year in Tanzania alone.
The birds are shot, trapped or poisoned by hunters. One tactic is to poison an animal so the vultures that feed on the carcass themselves fall victim. "You can have 300 or 400 converge on a poisoned carcass and all be wiped out," Botha added. Brains and other body parts are then sold at street markets or shops in Johannesburg and other cities.
Steve McKean, a researcher at the conservation body Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, was quoted by South Africa's Star newspaper: "Traditional use as it is currently happening is likely to render vultures extinct in southern Africa on its own within 20 to 30 years."
Seven of the nine species of vulture are rated endangered. Botha said there was demand for the bearded vulture in Eastern Cape province. Traditional healers prefer that the bird be captured alive as the head needs to be removed while it is still living so that "the brain does not flow down into the spinal cord" and the muti loses its potency.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/30/vulture-extinct-gambling
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