Latest News
Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) There are increasing reports of sick sea birds being found washed up on local beaches. Do not touch them
and do not bring them to the Trust premises. Leave well alone. You may report findings to DEFRA on 03459 335577 or visit their web site
for detailed advice here.
***************************
"Swan Notes" News items written by Trust members and volunteers and usually appearing in the “Berwick Advertiser" newspaper each
week. Unfortunately, sister newspaper the “Berwickshire News” are no longer following suit. For those unable to read these items, and
those living outside the Berwick area, here are the last few editions...
30th June 2022
Last week I was telling you about the busy times we have so this week I will start from where I left off.
At the beginning of April we fetched in a Buzzard. He was one of last years young and had had a hard time during the winter. He was
very thin and out of condition and too weak to fly. He had not injuries but was very hungry. We keep a freezer for road-kill finds and he
was soon eating his way through our stock of rabbits and pheasants. When he was fit enough to fly a little we put him in the big aviary
where he was able to build up his flight muscles. He wasn’t eating so ravenously by this time, just as well as our stocks of road kill are
now very low. We checked him a couple of weeks ago and decided he was fit and
ready to go but we called in the ringer to make sure. He looked at him and said
he was it really good condition so the bird was ringed and Dick took him with the
lady that found him, to let him go. She was amazed how well he looked. The
picture this week shows him just before he left his crate fully fit and ready to go
and quite cross.
We have just recently had a tiny Tawny Owl brought in. It needed hand feeding so
Kay took it home so that she could feed it at the right times. Usually owls soon
learn to pick up food for themselves but this one is very slow. It also is quite bad
tempered and it looked to me like a red Tawny and they are always difficult. It is
now picking up for itself so is in the Claw and Talon room. In another week it may
go into the Longridge indoor aviary to stretch its wings a bit before going outside.
Kay is now busy with some very tiny hedgehog babies only a few days old. She
carries them with her like I do with baby birds. They need feeding every hour and
a half so its a full time job. They are very difficult to rear from this age so I will
give a follow up next week. We are just hoping for the best.
A young rabbit has been with us for a few weeks only just able to manage without milk when he came in. He has been kept wild as he
only saw us when we cleaned and fed him. Dick released him last week.
The young pigeons, jackdaws and a crow that were being hand fed last week are now outside in aviaries to learn to be independent and
will be released a bit later.
The little Cygnets came in and were only 7 or 8 days old so very small. They have settled into their quarters in the Longridge Aviary.
They are eating well and are a happy little group. All babies do much better when there is more than one.
One very sad occasion this week was when a lady brought in an injured Kingfisher. It had a smashed up wing joint. It also had some
sort of head trauma as it was moving its head from side to side. It was an adult bird and its plumage was brilliantly coloured. It was so
sad as nothing could be done for it other than put it to sleep. This is always a horrible decision to have to make but the lady that brought
it in also understood the reasons.
We are now preparing for our next Open Day and A.G.M. which is on Saturday 13th August, 2022.
Pat Goff
23rd June 2022
It happens that some weeks we have lots of coming and going this week is one of those and will take two weeks jottings I think.
Last Friday a Cygnet came in from Haggerston. It was beaten up by another family of swans when it came to close to their territory. It
was with a sibling which was drowned by the Cob. Sadly it died the following day. We are now waiting for three more Cygnets which are
boing brought up from the Newcastle area. Our swan that was injured when it collided with power cables is still unable to stand although
we are seeing a slight improvement and we are aware it may take a couple of months to recover. It is eating well and on daily painkiller
to help it.
The duckling colony is now all together in the Lomax aviary. We have three
Eider ducklings. Eleven Mallards and a Greylag Gosling. They love the space
and the grass and now they are growing up a bit we can get the little sunken
water tank filled for them. They will certainly enjoy that. We have since had
another wee Mallard duckling in but he is too small to join this group (they
would beat him up) so he has to stay in a little pen by himself until he is
bigger. We can try to introduce him later. It is surprising that these little birds
group together and have their own little ‘gang’. The gosling and the Mallards
are one group and the three Eiders another.
I was rearing three Robin chicks at home but later as they grew realised they
were Dunnocks. They have now been released at my house after spending a
week at the Rollo Centre to forget the human that fed them.
We also had in a young Starling complete with the fat ball feeder he was stuck
in. He had gone in from the top of the feeder and got himself well and truly
jammed. It took us a while to get him out. We had to push him further in to
get his wings free and then slide him gently out. He was quite cross about the
whole ordeal and squawked loudly to tell us. He had rubbed his legs raw an a
couple of places and grazed the edge of one wing. We gave him antibiotics and
a cage to pull himself together. After three days his grazes were healed so he needed no more antibiotics and since he was very keen to
be out of his cage he was released. If you have a tubular type fat ball feeder please make sure it has a lid so the birds cannot get stuck
inside.
We also took in a small leveret that had been hit by a car but sadly it had a broken pelvis and had to be put to sleep.
We also have had in a variety of young birds not able to feed themselves so we have been busy shoving food into various beaks. As soon
as they can feed themselves they are moved to an aviary to perfect their flying skills and forget that humans have fed them.
We have fifteen little Herring Gull chicks that are very messy and take a tremendous amount of time to keep clean. As soon as we put
down the food bowl it is empty. We have two ‘classes’ infants and juniors. Eight are quite a bit bigger than the little ones and their would
be bullying if they were kept together. This means two areas to clean instead of one but it is necessary. I have run out of space now so
the rest next week.
Pat Goff
16th June 2022
We have been having calls regarding dead and dying sea birds being found on local beaches. This is very distressing to see. It seems to
be mostly Gannets in this area. This is due to Avian Influenza and the birds die within 28 hours. Vets can do nothing to help them. We
cannot take them in, nor should any reputable rescue or rehabilitation centre as this could lead to spreading the infection and all animals
and birds in such a centre being destroyed. Please go nowhere near the birds if they are alive or dead. Findings can be reported to
D.E.F.R.A. There is a link on our website which gives all details and numbers, but they are aware of the situation here. Do not bring any
sick bird to us as we cannot get treatment for such birds and we cannot deal with the bodies as there are special arrangements to
dispose of contagious bodies. The disease stays active within the corpse for over a month.
We do still take in injured or orphan birds. We cannot, however, collect all
the Herring Gull chicks that are being blown off roofs. If the adults are
swooping use an umbrella to cover your head pick up the baby and put it in
a box. Once the parents cannot hear the baby crying they will have nothing
to protect and will leave. We had ten little fluff-ball chicks on Sunday if the
wind continues there will soon be more. The Swan is in the pen we use for
gull chicks so we will have to move her this week. We have a nice paved
and turfed pen with a pond for the gull chicks so that it is easier to clean
but they still make an awful mess and need hosing down twice a day. It is
always a busy time for us.
We had some calls over the weekend about young mammals. If you see a
fawn lying still in a wood or field please do not touch it. The same applies
to Leverets. They will hunker down and lie still when frightened. If you
handle them they may be rejected by their parents. They are not still
because they are injured. Seals also ‘park’ their youngsters on a beach
while they hunt for food. The parents collect them at night. Fledglings are
also a cause for concern at this time of year. Please leave the parents to
feed them if you possibly can. I know they look a bit helpless but they have
to learn from their parents who do a much better job of rearing than we do.
That’s my lecture on leaving alone for now, I will catch up on casualties in our care next week.
Thank you to everyone who came to our Open Day on Saturday 11th June. We were so pleased there was such a good turnout. The
Mayor (our Chairman Mike) and the Sheriff opened the new Hogwards Shed. Then Mike cut the cake which was made by Una’s sister and
was beautifully decorated and tasted wonderful. We had plenty of stalls and were offering our new book about the history of the Trust.
This sold very well as did our new notelets and 2023 calendars. Thanks to Michael at Shiel and Morrison they arrived exactly on time and
we are extremely pleased with them. I think everyone had a good time. The pulled pork rolls and strawberry scones sold out and despite
the threat of rain and very strong winds the day went off well. Thanks to Jackie and Barbara as well as all the volunteers who helped to
make the day a success.
Pat Goff
week. Unfortunately, sister newspaper the “Berwickshire News” are no longer following suit. For those unable to read these items, and
those living outside the Berwick area, here are the last few editions...
30th June 2022
Last week I was telling you about the busy times we have so this week I will start from where I left off.
At the beginning of April we fetched in a Buzzard. He was one of last years young and had had a hard time during the winter. He was
very thin and out of condition and too weak to fly. He had not injuries but was very hungry. We keep a freezer for road-kill finds and he
was soon eating his way through our stock of rabbits and pheasants. When he was fit enough to fly a little we put him in the big aviary
where he was able to build up his flight muscles. He wasn’t eating so ravenously by this time, just as well as our stocks of road kill are
now very low. We checked him a couple of weeks ago and decided he was fit and
ready to go but we called in the ringer to make sure. He looked at him and said
he was it really good condition so the bird was ringed and Dick took him with the
lady that found him, to let him go. She was amazed how well he looked. The
picture this week shows him just before he left his crate fully fit and ready to go
and quite cross.
We have just recently had a tiny Tawny Owl brought in. It needed hand feeding so
Kay took it home so that she could feed it at the right times. Usually owls soon
learn to pick up food for themselves but this one is very slow. It also is quite bad
tempered and it looked to me like a red Tawny and they are always difficult. It is
now picking up for itself so is in the Claw and Talon room. In another week it may
go into the Longridge indoor aviary to stretch its wings a bit before going outside.
Kay is now busy with some very tiny hedgehog babies only a few days old. She
carries them with her like I do with baby birds. They need feeding every hour and
a half so its a full time job. They are very difficult to rear from this age so I will
give a follow up next week. We are just hoping for the best.
A young rabbit has been with us for a few weeks only just able to manage without milk when he came in. He has been kept wild as he
only saw us when we cleaned and fed him. Dick released him last week.
The young pigeons, jackdaws and a crow that were being hand fed last week are now outside in aviaries to learn to be independent and
will be released a bit later.
The little Cygnets came in and were only 7 or 8 days old so very small. They have settled into their quarters in the Longridge Aviary.
They are eating well and are a happy little group. All babies do much better when there is more than one.
One very sad occasion this week was when a lady brought in an injured Kingfisher. It had a smashed up wing joint. It also had some
sort of head trauma as it was moving its head from side to side. It was an adult bird and its plumage was brilliantly coloured. It was so
sad as nothing could be done for it other than put it to sleep. This is always a horrible decision to have to make but the lady that brought
it in also understood the reasons.
We are now preparing for our next Open Day and A.G.M. which is on Saturday 13th August, 2022.
Pat Goff
23rd June 2022
It happens that some weeks we have lots of coming and going this week is one of those and will take two weeks jottings I think.
Last Friday a Cygnet came in from Haggerston. It was beaten up by another family of swans when it came to close to their territory. It
was with a sibling which was drowned by the Cob. Sadly it died the following day. We are now waiting for three more Cygnets which are
boing brought up from the Newcastle area. Our swan that was injured when it collided with power cables is still unable to stand although
we are seeing a slight improvement and we are aware it may take a couple of months to recover. It is eating well and on daily painkiller
to help it.
The duckling colony is now all together in the Lomax aviary. We have three
Eider ducklings. Eleven Mallards and a Greylag Gosling. They love the space
and the grass and now they are growing up a bit we can get the little sunken
water tank filled for them. They will certainly enjoy that. We have since had
another wee Mallard duckling in but he is too small to join this group (they
would beat him up) so he has to stay in a little pen by himself until he is
bigger. We can try to introduce him later. It is surprising that these little birds
group together and have their own little ‘gang’. The gosling and the Mallards
are one group and the three Eiders another.
I was rearing three Robin chicks at home but later as they grew realised they
were Dunnocks. They have now been released at my house after spending a
week at the Rollo Centre to forget the human that fed them.
We also had in a young Starling complete with the fat ball feeder he was stuck
in. He had gone in from the top of the feeder and got himself well and truly
jammed. It took us a while to get him out. We had to push him further in to
get his wings free and then slide him gently out. He was quite cross about the
whole ordeal and squawked loudly to tell us. He had rubbed his legs raw an a
couple of places and grazed the edge of one wing. We gave him antibiotics and
a cage to pull himself together. After three days his grazes were healed so he needed no more antibiotics and since he was very keen to
be out of his cage he was released. If you have a tubular type fat ball feeder please make sure it has a lid so the birds cannot get stuck
inside.
We also took in a small leveret that had been hit by a car but sadly it had a broken pelvis and had to be put to sleep.
We also have had in a variety of young birds not able to feed themselves so we have been busy shoving food into various beaks. As soon
as they can feed themselves they are moved to an aviary to perfect their flying skills and forget that humans have fed them.
We have fifteen little Herring Gull chicks that are very messy and take a tremendous amount of time to keep clean. As soon as we put
down the food bowl it is empty. We have two ‘classes’ infants and juniors. Eight are quite a bit bigger than the little ones and their would
be bullying if they were kept together. This means two areas to clean instead of one but it is necessary. I have run out of space now so
the rest next week.
Pat Goff
16th June 2022
We have been having calls regarding dead and dying sea birds being found on local beaches. This is very distressing to see. It seems to
be mostly Gannets in this area. This is due to Avian Influenza and the birds die within 28 hours. Vets can do nothing to help them. We
cannot take them in, nor should any reputable rescue or rehabilitation centre as this could lead to spreading the infection and all animals
and birds in such a centre being destroyed. Please go nowhere near the birds if they are alive or dead. Findings can be reported to
D.E.F.R.A. There is a link on our website which gives all details and numbers, but they are aware of the situation here. Do not bring any
sick bird to us as we cannot get treatment for such birds and we cannot deal with the bodies as there are special arrangements to
dispose of contagious bodies. The disease stays active within the corpse for over a month.
We do still take in injured or orphan birds. We cannot, however, collect all
the Herring Gull chicks that are being blown off roofs. If the adults are
swooping use an umbrella to cover your head pick up the baby and put it in
a box. Once the parents cannot hear the baby crying they will have nothing
to protect and will leave. We had ten little fluff-ball chicks on Sunday if the
wind continues there will soon be more. The Swan is in the pen we use for
gull chicks so we will have to move her this week. We have a nice paved
and turfed pen with a pond for the gull chicks so that it is easier to clean
but they still make an awful mess and need hosing down twice a day. It is
always a busy time for us.
We had some calls over the weekend about young mammals. If you see a
fawn lying still in a wood or field please do not touch it. The same applies
to Leverets. They will hunker down and lie still when frightened. If you
handle them they may be rejected by their parents. They are not still
because they are injured. Seals also ‘park’ their youngsters on a beach
while they hunt for food. The parents collect them at night. Fledglings are
also a cause for concern at this time of year. Please leave the parents to
feed them if you possibly can. I know they look a bit helpless but they have
to learn from their parents who do a much better job of rearing than we do.
That’s my lecture on leaving alone for now, I will catch up on casualties in our care next week.
Thank you to everyone who came to our Open Day on Saturday 11th June. We were so pleased there was such a good turnout. The
Mayor (our Chairman Mike) and the Sheriff opened the new Hogwards Shed. Then Mike cut the cake which was made by Una’s sister and
was beautifully decorated and tasted wonderful. We had plenty of stalls and were offering our new book about the history of the Trust.
This sold very well as did our new notelets and 2023 calendars. Thanks to Michael at Shiel and Morrison they arrived exactly on time and
we are extremely pleased with them. I think everyone had a good time. The pulled pork rolls and strawberry scones sold out and despite
the threat of rain and very strong winds the day went off well. Thanks to Jackie and Barbara as well as all the volunteers who helped to
make the day a success.
Pat Goff