More Cuckoo nonsense

[watsthat]

Just heard the presenter on Radio Humberside say; Heard my first Cuckoo today, having seen one yesterday They are that rare around here most people wouldn`t know a Cuckoo if it came and laid an egg in their hair!

Pete

[solus]

I'd love to hear his description.

"Bit like a small pigeon, pinkish, sat on the roof...."
Wonder if he'll report it to the RSPB for his Big Garden Birdwatch....

[captain nodge]

Maybe he heard a clock!!!( big grin)

[diggleken]

Just trying to beat The Times letters silly season......................
Cheers
Ken

[Beekeeper]

Originally Posted by solus

I'd love to hear his description.

"Bit like a small pigeon, pinkish, sat on the roof...."
Wonder if he'll report it to the RSPB for his Big Garden Birdwatch....

And then it went into the trees with all the other Cuckoo's

Ian

[RKB]

Originally Posted by watsthat

Just heard the presenter on Radio Humberside say; Heard my first Cuckoo today, having seen one yesterday They are that rare around here most people wouldn`t know a Cuckoo if it came and laid an egg in their hair!

Pete

They're not that rare. There are three calling each spring on the edge of one of the roughest estates in Hull.

[darrenm]

read a similar thing on another forum about someone who says he heard a Cuckoo on (Jan 29th 2010) in the grassland at the back of his house. I and others pointed out this was highly unlikely being the wrong time of year but he insists its true.

As for Cuckoos being rare they are now Red Litsed and that would suggest they are endangered and in massive decline across their former range.

The problems of Cuckoo decline may not just be caused through agricultural intensification here but also through loss of habitat or decline of habitat on wintering grounds. Many pesticides are now being used in Africa to grow food for the rest of the world and this will have some knock on effect on some species that visit us to breed in the spring and summer but winter in Africa.

If we were to lose the Cuckoo it would be a very sad day indeed and for many it's call heralds the start of real springtime.

[RKB]

Originally Posted by darrenm

As for Cuckoos being rare they are now Red Litsed and that would suggest they are endangered and in massive decline across their former range.

That's not the same as being rare. Herring Gull is red-listed, as is Marsh Tit and Starling. None of which are 'rare'. If a population halves from 10 million to 5 million, they get red listed due to a >50% decline, but they are still common. Having said that, Cuckoo is at around 20,000 birds now, so it is by no means common, although my point was that they are not 'rare' in East Yorks - they can be found quite frequently.

[Ukwildlifeo]

I think a recent study (the one involving sightings from springwatch viewers) found that they are still as widely distributed but in lesser numbers: i.e. they are still found at most the sites they were before but there less of them at each one.

[The Woodman]

I was in a shop in Grange over Sands yesterday morning when an old chap came in said to the man behind the counter, "My wife's just heard a cuckoo."

He lived just a couple of miles west of Grange and his wife was convinced!