Natural History Wanderings

The BBC  report on a project save Turtle Doves and farmland birds in the U.K.  Led by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds the goal of the project is to restore plants that birds feed in the British Countryside. The Turtle dove is the bird most likely to be extinct in the U.K. by 2020. The Population of Turtle Doves in the U.K. has declined by 90% between 1997 and 2010. Th birds typically fee on seeds of wild plants that grow among farm crops.   Farming practices have changed resulting in a sharp decrease in these plants such as vetch, fumitory and clover. Part of the project is work with farmers to increase the planting of food plants for the birds. Read more at: BBC Nature – Turtle doves: RSPB launches rescue mission.