Oilseed Rape
I wondeređ what this plant was when it appeared growing from the foot of a nearby wall. I have noticed it growing on local road verges too. It is Oilseed Rape and is rather pretty. I assume these appearances derive from an arable farm not far away.
It may be pretty but it is a problematic crop. The oil is good for cooking and biofuel but it produces net greenhouse gas emissions and requires a great deal of water as well as pesticides and fertilisers.
I also wondered why so many spring flowers are yellow. It is a good colour for attracting early pollinators and reflects UV light. As a paler colour it also absorbs warmth giving the plants an advantage in cooler weather.
RSPB Redstart
It is always a pleasure when the RSPB magazine comes through the letterbox. The issue for Spring/Summer 2026 features a puffin in close-up on the cover. They are colourful and ‘cute’ but I am not a huge fan – for some reason I find them rather irritating. There’s a gorgeous picture of a Redstart inside. Useful to know as an aide memoire that ‘start’ derives from the Old English word for ‘tail’.
I have already covered the new advice about bird feeding.
There’s a very good piece on RSPB Pulborough Brooks which I have visited and written about and RSPB Arne which I haven’t – but I am hugely looking forward to doing so in a few weeks time.
Golden Eagles
Elsewhere there is an announcement from DEFRA (DEATHRA): “Environment Secretary approves additional £1m of government funding to explore the reintroduction of golden eagles, restoring hopes they will return to England.” About time too but first something needs to be done about raptor persecution from grouse moors or else there will not be much point.
Sam West
I very much enjoyed the first episode of ITV’s programme about the terrific actor Sam West (Siegfried from the latest incarnation of All Creatures Great and Small and much else) and his friend the comedian Adrian Edmondson going birdwatching together. The former knows his stuff, the latter is a newbie. They seem to have a warm and lovely friendship. I didn’t want the programme to end. At one point they visit a sewage works which birds love because of all the insects, which hadn’t occurred to me. They identify one bird as a Blackbird which I questioned since the beak was black but this means it is a juvenile – there is always more to learn.
I suddenly remembered the strange fact that I have so often seen Pied Wagtails in car parks – at our local Tesco and motorway service stations, where no doubt they find discarded bits of food.
Protect the Wild
Protect the Wild have sent out a one-click easy was to fill in response to the ongoing consultation on trail hunting. But there shouldn’t be a consultation, we the people should be given what we were promised. It is just a delaying tactic. They even guaranteed not that long ago that the ban would happen early this year.
Nevertheless: Trail Hunting Consultation – Protect the Wild
They also report that Network Rail, flying in the face of “local campaigners identifying at least nine nesting sites and submitting 38 pieces of evidence showing exactly where these birds [Swifts] were nesting” and sharing that information directly, has nonetheless filled some of them in.
There’s an update on this. More than 12,800 people signed a petition and now Network Rail, after initial resistance, is promising to look into reinstating the holes, providing Swift boxes and to work with local authorities and conservation organisations in future. Power to the people. But what were they thinking? Idiotic.
(It was lovely to see that one of a pair of Jackdaws in the garden was carrying nesting material.)
Protect the Wild also takes Amazon to task for continuing to sell cruel and indiscriminate glue traps. In Wales they are completely illegal and they will be in Scotland later this year. In England we lag behind as usual, but even here they are only allowed to be used by licensed professionals under strict and exceptional conditions. Amazon can be very sloppy about its sellers to the point of highly irresponsible and providing a conduit for fraud.
Madagascar
Although it ends inexplicably abruptly I highly recommend this documentary:
Secrets of the Shape-Shifters: Madagascar’s Chameleons | Full Documentary
The presenter, Adam Schmedes, seems a gentle, thoughtful soul. And chameleons are amazing but my word they are weird. Sadly we also learn that Madagascar has been and continues to be massively deforested and that children are sent out to capture chameleons so that can be exported for the exotic pet trade. I don’t understand why people keep exotic pets at all. Why take animals from the countries where they were born and belong?
Also concerning Madagascan wildlife, in America ‘lemur yoga’ is apparently a thing. There should never be interaction between the public and caged wild animals. People, including children have predictably been bitten and animals destroyed.
Star Trek and Dad’s Army
I have rewatched a couple of old films over the last few days. Star Trek VI – the Undiscovered Country was one. I am not surprised I hadn’t returned to it before – it is pretty dull and way, way too long. The best thing about it is the sprinkling of quotes from Shakespeare. ” … the undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler returns” is from Hamlet. William Shatner (and I am a fan) seems to have given up trying to act and simply looks bewildered most of the time. Good to see Christopher Plummer though.
The 2016 film version of Dad’s Army remains a joy. It is perfectly cast with a truly stellar line-up. Toby Jones is always delightful, Bill Nighy is ineffably Bill Nighy, and there are also Michael Gambon, Tom Courtenay, the unquestionably, objectively beautiful Catherine Zeta-Jones, Bill Paterson, Alison Steadman and more. A gentle pleasure.
The Assembly – Lenny Henry
There is a new episode of The Assembly (see previous post) available. It is Lenny Henry’s turn to run the gauntlet and he does not disappoint. He is moved to tears at one or two points, as was I. I think he is a lovely man. I have never been a member of the Groucho Club but I have been taken there for lunch or dinner a few times. After one meal and way too much wine I left somewhat unsteadily as Lenny Henry was coming in with Robbie Coltrane. To my discredit, I blurted out: “You’re Lenny Henry, you’re f***king funny you are”. He took it extremely well and thanked me with an indulgent smile. Robbie Coltrane looked extremely annoyed that I had not paid him the same compliment. The Assembly is really the opposite of other tv interview shows. Very often they consist of a series of rehearsed prompts for anecdotes but here everything seems spontaneous, there are no plugs, egos are left at the door and it is all about connections and love. The singer Julice deserves to be a star with her angelic voice.
Starmer
Starmer. What can one say? Surely he must resign now. I am rather looking forward to the roasting he will no doubt receive in Parliament on Monday. For much longer can the public be expected to tolerate his formulaic lie, repeat, lie, repeat? As so many have already said, he is either definitely lying or incompetent and probably a mixture of the two.
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